Back Where We Started

 One more lunch at a favorite place, Dolphin, and that was that.

Fell down on the job, no pictures of our delicious lunch, fried haddock, fish chowder, and awesome homemade blueberry muffins!

We made our way back to Brattleboro, VT and Pine Grove, PA retracing our steps, then detoured to Hayes, VA to one of the very nicest parks we have ever been to, Machicomoco State Park to visit Colonial Williamsburg.  Huge private sites, with enormous patios, completely dark and quiet, only ding no sewer, no big deal.

In all our years of travel we had never visited Williamsburg.  It was very hot, but we did manage to walk from one end to the other, very interesting and beautiful.

We spent several hours walking around and then it was time for lunch and oysters, we had to redeem ourselves after not really enjoying Maine oysters.  We were between two different restaurants and chose one, we ordered and in a few moments the waiter came back and told us they were out of oysters:-(  But the rest of our meal, a couple different appetizers was quite good.  So after we drove down to Jamestown, not really knowing what we could see, actually not much as it was so long ago, not much left, but they had a nice drive through road with lots of signs and information, after that, well we still wanted oysters, and it was a very small lunch so......  We went to the other restaurant that we had picked, Berret's, and wow, they had $1 oysters all day!  So we got oysters and a local beer, Jan had 10, and I started with a dozen, and then had her 2 that she couldn't eat, she was full, but loved them, then ordered 6 more, they were delicious!

Then we had one more thing on our agenda, crab cakes.  There is a small restaurant chain in that area that I discovered long ago while flying, and got Jan to a couple years ago that has amazing crab cakes, Surf Rider.  They also offer a unique side dish, when you order an entree, you can pick any two sides or broccoli, yes broccoli, it is a huge portion simply steamed that is served with a sauce on the side, it is good, delicious, and different:-)

Fried oysters

The broccoli

And the amazing crab cakes!

So now we are back in Georgia, at Talona Ridge in Ellijay visiting Karen and Tom for a few days, then will return to Cartersville.  There has been progress, at last, on the house build and will share more in the next few weeks as it, hopefully, comes together.

Goodbye to Maine, Already!?!

Our time here has flown by, as we knew it would, and it's already time to say good bye.  We spent only 2 nights at Shore Hills in Boothbay as Chewonki was full for those days.  Since we were near Boothbay Harbor we wanted to go over to Trevett Country Store and get an awesome haddock sandwich, plenty big enough to share and oh so delicious.

And after lunch we took a ride over to River Road and to an oyster farm we have driven by at least 10 times over the years and never gone in, this was the year.  We drove in to a very well organized operation that provides oyster tours, oysters, shucking instruction, etc.  We don't know much about specific Maine oysters so we got a mixed dozen, 3 each of 4 different varieties.  Stupidly we didn't take a picture of the names of the oysters and we can't remember what they were.  There are hundreds of varieties we found out.  So we were handed our dozen on ice, asked if we needed to learn how to shuck, no we already knew how, handed a towel and an oyster knife.  Then you go find a seat, shuck and eat your oysters.

So what did we learn, first of all it is a great experience, a lot of fun in a very pretty location, but we really didn't like the local oysters very much:-(  Way too briny for our taste, not awful, but it did prevent us from buying any more.

Then we moved over to Chewonki into one site for 2 nights and then over to a better site for 4 more.  We had several last shot restaurants to go to, and first on the list was Shaw's in New Harbor, it is a picturesque, real working harbor.  We had a delicious lunch that delivered on all fronts, probably the best lobster stew on the planet, sorry Billy's, flavorful haddock bites and awesome onion rings, all the food groups!

We had another place to go, Moody's Diner an institution since 1934, and we had planned a major splurge.  Just so you don't think we only eat seafood, they have a sensational open face hot turkey sandwich, real carved turkey served with real mashed potatoes covered in homemade gravy, wonderful.

And then the splurge, we both joined in, real Maine blueberry pie a la mode, oh my!

I am still drooling just looking at the picture:-)

We had a rendezvous that we were really looking forward to, meeting very special friends for lunch and a visit, Diane and Donald, Diane goes all the way back to high school!  We had another delicious lunch at McLoon's and a pleasant visit.  They were camped nearby and we went back with them to enjoy a cup of coffee, that Donald roasts himself, grinds himself, and brews like an art form, it was truly excellent!

So one more visit to Shaw's, had to have a final go at that awesome lobster stew, then we picked up some cooked lobsters for our traveling day lobster rolls.  Good bye Maine one big ding for making this trip so short is we sadly didn't have time to see our Maine friends, Bob, Scott & Sue, and Doug & Nancy:-(  So now back to Brattleboro, VT and Pine Grove, PA retracing our path getting here, then one more detour as we make our way back to Atlanta.

Searsport, Done. Back Down the Coast to Boothbay and Wiscasset

Part of our lobster dinner was to have two extra lobsters for our traveling day lobster rolls, also the first ones for this year.  And man, were they good!

That got us to our new campground in Searsport, Moorings II.  We had years ago stayed at their other, only one at the time, Moorings, and had mixed reviews.  It was on the water, but the sites weren't laid out very well and had numerous sewer connections placed all over the place including right in the middle of our living space.  We can report Moorings II is much, much better, but still has some dings.  It is set up in tiers going up the hill, each tier having a front section with pull in sites and a rear section made up of pull throughs.  Pricing goes up as you get closer to the water, and front of the tiers is more than the rears.  We opted for tier 2, back row, seemed good trade for the money.  We almost picked the front of tier 2, but looking at how they located the hookups, we aren't sure we could have reached the electric plug.  The site spacing is good, the views fantastic, but the sites aren't level, and not even level enough for our air leveling to deal with, so we are on jacks, which we hardly ever do.  And let me say our air leveling can handle quite a bit of not level, but not here.  We would recommend the place, very friendly, good location right off Rte 1, but.......

Right down the road from the park is another one of our favorite restaurants, Anglers, we've been to the one here in Searsport and the one up in Newport many times.  It is a no frills seafood place with excellent food and friendly service.

Excellent haddock chowder

Great haddock sandwich with awesome onion rings

Then we had to go visit another favorite, yeah we have lots of them up here, Bagaduce Lunch, a pristine setting and superb food, what a combo:-)

Whole belly clams, rings, and scallops!

We stopped in Castine on the way back, home of Maine Maritime Academy, lots of history and forts as well.  Walked around for awhile, gorgeous day.

A pretty schooner, and one of the academy's training ships in the background

Also while here we wanted to have our ultimate lobster dinner and get a couple extras for our traveling day lobster rolls.  We went to Trenton Bridge Lobster operating since 1956, I even went there as a kid on a family vacation many moons ago, because they always have a great selection of fresh lobsters, any size, and they are the only place we have experienced that give you some seaweed along with your lobsters.  We cooked them with seaweed years ago for the first time and it was a unanimous opinion that it was really noticeable in a delicious way.  So we picked up 2 huge ones, a 3 pounder and a 2 pounder, and 2 small ones for the rolls.

In went the seaweed followed by the biggest one, then the next biggest and then finally the last 2 small ones.

Jan put the 2 small ones asleep while they were waiting for their time in the hot bath

These are 2 BIG lobsters!

We had to throw in the towel, we were full with these two bowls of meat remaining
Don't worry they won't go to waste:-)

The scene of the crime

Then while Jan was cleaning up the wreckage, I picked the 2 little ones for later.

Then with our time here at a close we went to Belfast and walked their Harbor Walk, it is about 3/4 of a mile and goes right through a working boat yard, gorgeous day, wonderful walk, lots of very cool boats, and a meh lunch, oh well.

Walking across the bridge towards the harbor

This huge, strange looking boat was being repaired as it had gone aground
and damaged one of its stabilizing fins, a local couple we met filled us in

A gorgeous sailboat passing by

Finished our last night with a beautiful evening.