Last Updated on August 12, 2022
Captivating Boothbay Harbor may be the very essence of beautiful coastal Maine…
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
By Jim Ferri
I was walking down the street in Boothbay Harbor, Maine when I saw the t-shirt.
“Sail naked” it said, “it adds color to your cheeks.”
Although it was probably the 30th tongue-in-cheek Maine t-shirt I’d seen in the past two days, it still made me smile.
I was in Boothbay Harbor, Maine and had been smiling a lot, and not just at t-shirts. The scenery was beautiful, the food superb, everything that could make a vacation worthwhile just seemed to come together. Maine is the kind of tranquil place you come for a week and wind up wishing you could stay a month.
In Boothbay for an Overnight
I wound up in Maine’s Boothbay Harbor on Friday just for an overnight on my way back to Boston. Since I had heard so much about the Boothbay region I wanted to get a taste of it.
On Saturday morning, out wandering about at 8:00am to get a feel for the place, I was surprised to find the town already abuzz. Obviously something was happening, or about to happen, with people all over the streets walking around carrying things and setting things up. I learned it was the annual Windjammer Day Festival and a large crowd was expected to watch the annual parade of windjammers as they sailed into Boothbay Harbor.
It was rotten luck for me though, since I needed to leave at midday. Making things worse, I soon realized that the balcony of the room in my hotel, the Fisherman’s Wharf Inn (where I unexpectedly had a fantastic scallops dinner from room service the night before), provided a primo spot for watching the festivities on Boothbay Harbor since it was at the center of the action on Commercial Street at Pier One. I decided to walk about and at least get a taste of the town pre-festival.
Feeling Festival Fervor
Walking along Commercial Street I came to the Byway, a smallish street renamed “Artist Alley” for the weekend and now open only to pedestrians, where artists were setting up their stands. As I walked along the Byway, and later elsewhere around town, it soon become apparent that there are a lot of artists in Maine.
All about Boothbay Harbor you could feel the festival fervor. Some shops display bunting and flags and up on the corner of Commercial and McKown Street I found a craft fair on the lawn of the town’s Memorial Library. A block away a Budweiser truck had begun to bring in needed provisions. I just ambled about taking in the whole thing.
I walked down along the waterfront on Commercial Street and across from Capt. Sawyers Place, a picturesque B&B, passed a tugboat converted into a restaurant. Around the corner a little shop called Enchantments had launched a fleet of colorful whirligigs, a little lawn regatta in Boothbay Harbor. Nearby I came across Finns McCools ice cream shop. I wanted to keep walking but had to get moving back towards Boston so I headed back to my hotel to collect my car from the valet. I had also wanted to visit the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, but had run out of time.
Most Popular Hotels in Maine
I remembered from the previous day’s drive how appealing the drive along Route 27 in the Boothbay region was. It’s mostly rolling hills and forests and I was looking forward to seeing it again. This time, however, I wanted to stop at Boothbay Railway Village, which I had spied on the way in.
Historical Maine
The Boothbay Railway Village, is a collection of historical buildings brought to Boothbay Harbor from around the state, with the exception of the town hall that was already here. The attractive station was brought in from Freeport in 12 sections and then reassembled. When I arrived I found that I was the only visitor at the moment so I stopped and chatted with engineer Tom Wriggins who was sitting on a bench outside the station.
His engine was a small-gauge engine brought to the US from Germany after the war. “Now, I don’t know if it’s true or not,” Tom told me, “but the rumor is that after the war an Army Lieutenant came across these engines – hundreds of them – in a German train yard. He bought 80 of them and had them shipped back here to United States and given to different museums. We have four of them.”
Off to the Lobster Shack
I had to be off from Boothbay Harbor and as I continued along on Route 27 I found myself thinking about another Boothbay experience I had as I came through here the previous morning when I decided to stop off in the little village of Georgetown to get a look at another little pocket of coastal Maine. The coast is exceptionally picturesque and due to all its nooks, crannies and islands actually has more miles of coastline than California.
But the real reason for that foray was to visit Five Islands Lobster, a little lobster shack that’s a favorite with many people for its lobster rolls. Although they don’t open until 11:30am, when I arrived at 10:30 there were already people waiting. I waited patiently with them on the little pier until opening time and then paid for my little prize. It was delicious and exceptionally fresh, something you just can’t replicate outside of Maine.
As I walked back to Five Islands’ tiny parking lot I saw more people sitting at picnic tables set up by the water’s edge in a little makeshift park enjoying their rolls. And as I pulled out I was met by a line of cars coming in.
It was all typical Maine … a place where people will drive 30 miles out of their way down a small winding road for no other reason than just to get a good lobster roll.
You may also enjoy: The Maine Coast: A Great Summer Road Trip / 5 Delicious Places for Lobster Rolls in Maine / Windjammer Cruises on Maine’s Penobscot Bay / Maine Cruises – Experiencing the State From A Different Perspective
If You Go:
Maine Office of Tourism
111 Sewall Street
Augusta, ME 04330
Tel: (207) 287-5711
http://www.visitmaine.com/
Fisherman’s Wharf Inn
Pier 6 – 22 Commercial Street
Boothbay Harbor, ME 04538
Tel: (800) 628-6872
http://www.fishermanswharfinn.com/
Boothbay Railway Village
586 Wiscasset Road
Boothbay, ME 04537
Tel: (207) 633-4727
www.railwayvillage.org/
Five Islands Lobster Co.
1447 5 Islands Road
Georgetown, ME 04548
Tel: (207) 371-2990
http://fiveislandslobster.com/
Booth bay is really cool place to spend holiday because there are lot of things to see and food is really awesome there!!!
It’s all overpriced and has been sitting in the shops since the 80s. The food isn’t great, but it’s priced as if it is. Not much to do, unless you like nature, you can go for a walk. Much better places for food and shopping though.
I’m a Mainer, living away. Although my family has been there for almost 260 years, yes earlier folks. Your article has captured my Maine, Well done. Theres another place I cod tell you to write about.
You missed out on the best local lobster wharf lobster dinner in boothbay harbor…..The boothbay lobster wharf is Maine like it used to be .. whatch as the lobsters are unloaded and then hVe one cooked outside in the seawater cookers while you have a drink with one of the locals…
Thanks Nikki. I would have loved that.
Jim