On our drive from Brandon, VT on Hwy 4 through Killington in the Green Mountains and past Woodstock, VT we saw firsthand the damage caused by the flooding. We were very luck to be able to exit the area on these main arteries that had already been temporarily repaired to restore commercial traffic through Vermont.
We had booked a little KOA on our way to our longer stop at Hemlock Grove near Kennebunkport, ME. The park was rustic and site was extremely unlevel but we got settled in. We found some good pickleball one day and explored Portsmouth, NH on a lovely day. Had some more rain, but nothing torrential.
On July 24th, we headed to Maine. As we had a short drive, I drove the Jeep separately. Mike fueled Ruth on the way in and we nestled into our spot at Hemlock Grove Campground. This spot was centrally located between Kennebunk and Portland. We were finally in lobster country.
The weather had been improving over the last few days, but we did have a couple of rainy days on this stop. Our site was nestled under a high tree canopy which brings rain drops even after the rain actually stops and in this case also brings the sounds of dropping acorns on top of the RV roof which has a distinctive "BOOM" than timpani sound as it rolls down the roof. Sounded a bit like we were living inside a pinball machine, needless to say we had a few sleepless nights.
We were not deterred however, from our first "official" lobster roll experience. We explored Kennebunkport on a beautiful sunny day along with hoards of tourists. The shops and restaurants were plentiful... welcoming a long stroll around the waterfront ending with a meandering drive along the coastline. We passed the Walker's Point Estate (Bush family compound) and finally turned inland at Goose Rock's Beach.
You can literally get lobster everywhere and anywhere. After our lobster roll experience, we opted to have a couple of lobsters steamed for us that we could eat at home. After watching a couple youtube videos on the proper way to crack open a lobster, Mike went at it like a pro and we had lobster at home. We learned all about soft shell vs. hard shell and also watched a video of a lobster molting its shell. We went way down the lobster rabbit hole, but we learned a lot of useless knowledge.
Our official entry into Maine included many lighthouses, more than one slice (or whole) of the local wild blueberry pie and coastal drives.
We explored Portland, Maine via a walking tour of the city with our guide Dugan. It was a nice, but warm day and we saw much of the city on foot. We continued on to visit LL Bean's flagship store in Freeport, Maine. It was an interesting visit. We did not buy anything.
We played some pickleball one evening in Kennebunk and rounded out our visit with a Beach House History Tour. We walked along the coast and discussed the age and architecture styles of the various beach side homes, some over 100 years old. Nice way to round out our visit.
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