Instate vacations, Cape Porpoise, Old Port, Wells Beach ME.
When you are lucky enough to live in Maine full time, Vacationland is your playground. Ready to tap. Short trips, instate vacations are quick and easy when you already live in the state of Maine.
This blog post more of a photo log about a three day trip from Northern to Southern Maine and back.
Anything Maine to cover is fair game right for this blogging post channel right ?
Had a little Maine winter snow storm change the instate vacations weekend plans just a tad.
Because a foot of new fluffy white stuff arriving in the weather forecast last Friday, Meg and I decided to head out a half day earlier. This Maine snow storm started north and headed south so we got on Interstate 95 Thursday afternoon to stay ahead of it. Pushed along during daylight and just warmer temperatures, light rain happening outside the car.
Good cruising to git while the getting was optimum. We both knew the weather was influx, it was going to change. If we sat still or waited getting “out of Dodge” for harder travel conditions to change to match the current forecast. .
Thursday night staying at the Hilton Garden Inn in the Old Port where we could walk to some place new to eat.
No reservations, no need for calling ahead when it’s during a snow storm or in the middle of winter during your instate Maine vacation.
The winds picking up and change over from icy drizzle to a snow crystal like sugar. You don’t have to be an Eskimo to know about the 50 kinds of snow. Living in Maine, because of her sheer size and many weather zones, you get a chance to experience it all. More than the eyeballs see what is developing. You can taste, smell, sense weather change in the Maine air any season.
Back in Aroostook County, over a foot of just white, fluffy light snow landing to blanket the Earth.
While in the Old Port region of Maine, the accumulation was under four inches of a different kind of snow. Granular, more ice than light airy snow flakes. A lot like sugar, sand and hardening up like compact cement to make it harder to plow or shovel.
We ate at Scales in the Old Port.
Maine seafood… Meg got the scallops, I worked on a pot of steamed clams.
More whole belly fried clams after that.
When in Maine, on the coast, it’s seafood the choice of many. Because it was probably swimming in the sea earlier in the day.
Not caught, hanging around, shipped eventually to all four corners of the World.
The neat thing about staying in an Old Port Hotel is the car is tucked away for the night.
No windshield to scrape. No snow to clear off the hood, roof and everywhere else after a Maine snow storm wraps it up.
Our winter jacket hoods were up like the zippers and braced for the Nor-Eastern seacoast winds. You could see even the Portland Harbor chopping, ice chunk water and swells forming as the winds picked up.
The plan on this trip was to re-visit and old familiar haunt, Wells Beach Maine.
The Old Port region of Portland ME’s waterfront just a bonus lead in stop for Thursday night.
The next morning, it was breakfast at the Hilton Garden Hotel lobby.
We could leave the car in the hotel parking garage until 3pm when we would be on our way to the next instate vacation stop at Well’s Beach Maine. Meg wanted to walk to Whole Foods to see her Nature’s Circle Farms produce display at that nearby location.
The yellow potatoes looked great, there were red beets there too. Whole Foods a really neat store and supportive of locally sourced farmers, fishermen, everyone in one neat display.
Exploring the shops up and down the hillside leading toward the Old Port harbor, we wandered in and out to sample the wares.
Landing at Market Square Jewelers to check out the estate pieces. Low key, no expensive oriental runs covering the floor that you don’t want to mess up with slushy feet.
No pressure and had fun locating a few pieces to celebrate the approaching Valentine’s Day and Meg’s birthday this past weekend.
All that walking, and knowing how much great Maine seafood is waiting to try at new venues, we trudged back down the slippery sidewalk slowly to wander into Gilbert’s Chowder House.
The seafood chowder was loaded with lobster, clams, shrimp, scallops, haddock.
There was not much room in there for the potatoes but those and onions showed up for the lunch date too.
These instate Maine vacations mean more food, working up an appetite to sample local dining fare and no diet worries.
But life is short, you and I need to take a break right?
The local restaurant and hotel lodging owners in Maine during the winter months are much more laid back. Not so summer tourist season hurry scurry.
No, because the Portland area weather was becoming more difficult to drive in, Meg and I decided to saddle up, to get on the road to Well’s Beach, Maine.
Six accidents along the road, most were single car and just off the road without damage.
We did not speed, we live in Maine and have experience on driving in snow and ice. To keep the shiny part of the vehicle on top.
Stayed at Misty Harbor, ate at Veranos in Wells Beach ME .
We blogged about that instate Maine vacation stay last year about this time on the blog.
When you find something you like, you repeat the pleasant experience right?
Every summer, a vacation stay in Wells Beach Maine was a tradition of Meg’s family that continues.
Saturday we walked two hours down Mile RD to wander from Wells to Moody Beach, ME.
Saw some surfers braving the stiff breeze, blue skies, sunshine and low temperatures. They had a cheering audience and we snapped a few shots and video to use in future blog posts that always sample the many facets of this state called Maine.
Had to hit a favorite store, Reny’s to see if anything was on the shelves for the loved ones back home.
Grandchildren are fun to shop for and give back so much enjoyment when they get a gift. We had some hours to spend before the dinner bell rang again on our coastal instate Maine vacation.
The extra half a day going in really made the time go slower, more enjoyably.
Let’s go to Cape Porpoise and see if we can snap an image of the harbor, of Goat’s Island lighthouse.
The usual trip up Ocean Avenue in Kennbunkport, Maine part of the re-tracing familiar steps in this coastal section.
After seeing another Goat Island ME lighthouse to add to the collection, we noticed a couple going into a buoy covered hideaway.
At first glance thought the restaurant overhead was shut down for the Maine winter. Like many places that are not open or will re-open in March, it was a surprise to go into “The Ramp” part of Pier 77 located upstairs.
Lots of New England sports memorabilia filled the pub and met a nice couple from the Boston area.
Sneaking away for a mini vacation like we were doing. We are all part of the same Red Sox Nation right? Decided the starter for tonight’s meal would be sampled here in the Cape Porpoise Harbor.
Steamed clams that never go out of style or fail to hit the spot. But this second dose of shell food was switched up to star steamed mussels instead of clams.
We worked our way back to Wells to the Misty Harbor Motel.
The Verano’s meal stop for Chicken Marsala for Meg was not possible the night before due to the storm causing many places to not open for the evening.
We trudged to nearby Shop and Save to gather what we needed to dine in and the little apartment efficiency kitchen worked like a charm. While catching up on the day of winter Olympic events from the other side of the blue and green spinning marble.
Hope you enjoy the images salt and peppered in this Maine blog post today.
We ate at Becky’s Diner in the Old Port on the way back up to home in Aroostook County Sunday morning.
Earlier, the Maine Diner was the breakfast venue the day before on our instate Maine vacation. Lots of snow greeted us on our return and no vacation, no matter how long, short or in between goes unpunished.
Maine instate vacations.
Always a rush trying to get away and out of town. The adjustment to get back into the routine on the return but oh so so worth it. Where are you planning to head in Maine for your instate vacation next?
Meg and I will make sure to let you in on where we head out to sample and share on this blogging channel!
Hunkering down and snowed in somewhere new in Maine is an adventure.
The Winter Olympics were on and we caught the highlights between lots of meals, plenty of exercise. On our much anticipated Maine instate vacation trip down to the southern coastal regions of the state.
I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker
207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |
MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton ME 04730 USA