Making Memories in Maine

One of the dreams that I write in my Start Today Journal every day is to travel to all 50 states, so we decided that Maine was a great place to start!  It was an awesome trip full of memories that will last a lifetime. The drive to get there was long, but it was definitely worth it!

Prospect Harbor

On our first day, we set out for our destination around 7:00 in the morning. We drove through Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut.  We saw lots of beautiful scenery and didn't have to drive through any major cities.  There was very little traffic, so it was a very relaxed and enjoyable drive.  We ended up driving on the outskirts of New York City, and the girls were amazed to see all of the big buildings!  My youngest daughter even exclaimed, "This is the best day ever!"  It was a very cool experience!  We drove just north of the city and found a place to stay in Fairfield, Connecticut. 

Beautiful views in Pennsylvania

New York City

The next day, we woke early for our second leg of the trip. We traveled through Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and then into Maine.  Some friends from home were in Portland, ME at the same time, so we ended up meeting them at the Portland Head Light, which I would say is a must-see if you love lighthouses as much as we do!  After walking around and taking some pictures, we drove to Elsmere BBQ & Wood Grill for lunch.  The food was delicious, and it was great to have lunch with good friends!  After lunch, we got back on the road to finish our journey to Prospect Harbor, ME.  We arrived that evening and instantly fell in love with the little cabin we had found on VRBO.  After settling in, we ate supper at Fisherman's Galley in Winter Harbor.

Portland Head Light

Our home away from home for the week!

From our cabin, it was about a 10-minute drive to Schoodic Peninsula, so we decided this would be where we would explore the next day.  A small part of Acadia National Park is located here, and there is a 6-mile loop road that takes you around the peninsula with several pull-offs and places to park and explore.  This part of Acadia is much less congested than Mt. Desert Island.  Frazer Point is one of the first places we stopped, and it was a beautiful location with picnic tables, a dock to walk out on, and a rocky beach area.  We got some great pictures and built a couple of cairns here.  My favorite stop on Schoodic Loop Road was Schoodic Point.  It is a rocky point where you can relax and listen to the waves crashing in while enjoying spectacular views of Mt. Desert Island.  Next, we parked at Blueberry Hill and decided to hike on the Anvil Trail.  We ended up hiking all the way up to Schoodic Head (we may have gotten a little lost for a while) and enjoyed some breathtaking views along the way!  After we finished hiking, we stopped just outside of the park to eat at The Pickled Wrinkle in Birch Harbor.

Schoodic Point

Hiking on the Anvil Trail

Our next adventure was to travel to Mt. Desert Island to explore the rest of Acadia National Park.  First, we drove up Cadillac Mountain and enjoyed some awesome views from the summit.  Our next stop was Jordan Pond, where we decided to hike on the trail around the pond.  It was a fairly easy trail with beautiful scenery.  We then made a stop at Sand Beach, which is one of the few sandy beaches in Maine.  My youngest daughter was thrilled to get to build a small sand castle!  She also tested out the water, which was really cold.  After some time on the beach, we stopped at Thunder Hole, which is a small cavern in an inlet where, when the rush of the waves arrives, air and water is forced out and makes a loud noise that sounds like thunder.  We were there during low tide, so we didn't get to experience the full effect, but we could still hear the gurgle of the air and water as it flowed in and out of the cavern.  After we were finished exploring Acadia, we stopped at The Log Cabin Restaurant just outside of Bar Harbor for supper.

Summit of Cadillac Mountain

Jordan Pond

The next day we had reservations to go on a Nature and Sight-Seeing Cruise at the Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company.  We made a stop at Choco-Latte for a snack, hot chocolate, and coffee.  The girls especially loved the animals drawn into the foam of their hot cocoa!  Then we walked down to the waterfront and got our tickets for the cruise.  We then had a quick snack at Stewman's, which was a restaurant right on the water.  We then boarded the boat and departed to explore Frenchman Bay.  We saw many of the same spots we had explored in Acadia, only from a different point of view this time.  We then made our way out to Egg Rock Island, where we saw a lighthouse, lots of seals, and some bald eagles.  The girls loved seeing the wildlife!  After our cruise, we explored the shops at Bar Harbor.  We highly recommend the Bar Harbor Popcorn Shop...the blueberry popcorn was awesome!  We ate supper at The Thirsty Whale, which was good but we don't recommend it for kids.

Egg Rock Island Lighthouse and Seals

Bald Eagles on Egg Rock Island

The weather was rainy and dreary when we woke up the next morning, so we decided to travel about an hour southwest to Bangor for bowling and a movie.  Along the way, we stopped at the Sullivan Harbor Farm Smokehouse and sampled some salmon pate.  It was delicious, so we got some to eat for a snack on our trip.  We all had a blast bowling, and we ended up watching Toy Story 4, which was great!  On the way back to our cabin that evening, we stopped at Ruth & Wimpy's in Hancock and ate supper.  We thought the food was OK, but the blueberry pie was very good!

Bowling Fun!

Wilbur the Lobster outside of Ruth & Wimpy's Restaurant

The following day we decided to find a couple more lighthouses south of where we were staying.  We drove to Castine to see the Dice Head Lighthouse.  We couldn't get up close to the lighthouse because the house next to it was a private residence, but there was a short trail along the back of their property, so we were able to get a few pictures.  We then drove a little north to the Bass Harbor Lighthouse near Tremont.  There was a paved walkway to the back side of the lighthouse, but if you want the best views we highly recommend taking the short trail through the woods and down on the rocks along the coast.  We then decided to go back to Bar Harbor for some more shopping and had supper at Geddy's.  This was definitely one of our best meals and it was very kid-friendly.  None of our family vacations are complete without at least one round of mini golf, so we stopped at Pirate's Cove just outside of Bar Harbor for a quick game.  

Dice Head Lighthouse

Bass Harbor Lighthouse

For our last day in Maine, we decided to travel north up the coast.  Our first stop was in Corea for a quick lunch at the Wharf Gallery & Grill.  We then made a quick stop at the Bartlett Estate Winery in Gouldsboro for a quick tasting.  Our next stop was Wild Blueberry Land, which was a neat little shop near Columbia Falls.  We had some of the best blueberry pie I've ever tasted and a delicious blueberry milkshake.  The man we met at the winery suggested that we visit the Roque Bluffs State Park, so we took his advice and found a nice beach to explore for a while.  As we were heading north through the small town of Machias, the girls spotted some cool waterfalls under a bridge we crossed over, so we stopped to check it out.  We found that it was a little park called Bad Little Falls Park with some cool views of the river.  Our next stop was Quoddy Head State Park near the town of Lubec, which is the easternmost town in the US.  There was a cool lighthouse, and we even got to see a porcupine and her baby while we were getting some pictures.  Near the lighthouse, we saw the Coast Guard Trail and decided to go on a hike.  The views were amazing, and the trail was very well maintained and easy to walk on.  The girls were especially excited when we told them that the land they could see across the harbor was Canada!!  We stopped in Milbridge at Vasquez Mexican Food for supper and then headed back to our cabin to pack up to leave the next morning.  

Quoddy Head Lighthouse

Awesome views from the Coast Guard Trail

 The next morning, as we were getting everything ready to leave, we saw a deer and a turkey right outside of our cabin, which the girls thought was very cool!  We left Maine around 7:30 that morning and traveled through New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and stopped that evening in Victor, New York for supper and to stay the night.  The girls FINALLY got to swim at the hotel, so they were pretty pumped about that! 

Deer right outside our cabin!

We woke early the next morning and drove about an hour and a half to Niagara Falls.  We all did the Cave of the Winds, which was really cool.  You ride an elevator down into the Niagara Gorge and then go out onto wooden walkways that take you right to the bottom of Bridal Veil Falls.  We also did the Maid of the Mist boat ride, which takes you right to the middle of Horseshoe Falls.  It was a great experience, and the views of the falls were breathtaking!  After we finished seeing everything at Niagara Falls, we were back on the road for our last leg of the trip home.  We arrived safely home that night and were definitely happy to get to sleep in our own beds!

Cave of the Winds

Beautiful Niagara Falls

This vacation was definitely one of my favorite trips that I have been on!  Maine was beautiful, and I am so glad that we took the time to stop by Niagara Falls on our way home.  Our family made lots of wonderful memories that we will treasure forever!  

We are already coming up with ideas for our next family adventure and would love to hear any suggestions that you have or fun places you have been!