Another Touch of Maine – September 24, 2012

What  a fun day!  We started with a drive to Pemaquid Point to see the lighthouse that is pictured on the Maine quarter produced by the US Mint.

Pemaquid Lighthouse – Pemaquid Point, ME

The lighthouse was originally commissioned in 1826 by John Quincy Adams.  It is not a tall lighthouse like Ponce Inlet in Daytona, but sits high on a bank over looking Booth Bay.  This is one of the lighthouses you can actually climb to the top so, of course, we took the winding staircase to the top and got some beautiful pictures.

View from Pemaquid Lighthouse

After two days of cloudy/rainy weather the sky was filled with soft fluffy clouds that accentuated the blue sky.  We even walked on the extensive granite-like rocks in front of the buildings.

MG walking on the rocks in front of the lighthouse

We left Pemaquid Point and drove back to Booth Bay Harbor.

Tour Boat at Booth Bay Harbor

We were there on Friday and it was crowded with people visiting for the weekend or on bus tours.  Everywhere you looked there were throngs of people filling all the shops and restaurants.  Today was a totally different story.  There was no car traffic to speak of; so limited, in fact, you could walk in the streets without fear of being hit or obstructing the flow.  We were taking the 1 o’clock boat tour around the bay passing by three of the seven lighthouses in the bay, one of which is the Permaquid Lighthouse so we could see it from the water’s side.  It was already 12:15 when we got to Booth Bay and we were hungry so after buying our tickets we asked about a quick place to get a bite.  We were directed to a deli and what a find it turned out to be.  This was the last day this deli was opened for the season so everything was half priced.  They had a specialty sandwich made on thick- cut homemade bread that made the sandwich (no exaggeration) three to four inches high.  The bread was fresh and the sandwich was wonderful, or maybe we were just hungry.

The boat tour lasted about two and half hours passing the Ram Island lighthouse, the Burnt Island lighthouse and then Pemaquid.

Ram Island Lighthouse in Booth Bay Harbor

Pemaquid Point Lighthouse from boat

Burnt Island Lighthouse

I never realized there were so many small islands in Booth Bay and many of them are owned by individuals who use them as summer retreats.  Each of them has water and electricity out to the islands which I understand was accomplished by around the mid 1970’s.  One island has a huge mansion and an eight story observation tower constructed on it.  It was originally built by the creator of Alka Seltzer, Dr. Miles from Miles laboratories.  If you are interested, there are summer homes on islands available to rent for you and your family.  One in particular has eight bedrooms and four bathrooms and can be enjoyed for only $30,000 per week designed to accommodate up to 10.

Home on Private Island

One the way back into the harbor we got a bonus added to the tour that is not usually there.  For those of us who can remember the Brando/Bogart version of Mutiny on the Bounty, we saw the actual ship used in that movie.  It was built for that movie and is a replica of the ships of that day.  We were told it was, and may still be the most expensive prop built for a movie.  It has recently been used in all three of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies as well.  It was going to be demolished after the Bounty movie, but Brando couldn’t see that happening and bought it.

Bounty in Dry Dock – Booth Bay Harbor

It is currently owned by someone who lives on Long Island.  It is brought here for repairs and maintenance because of the experience of the shipbuilders in this area.

After getting off our tour boat, we walked across the foot bridge to the other side and watched a lobster boat come in with its catch and the process of sizing and weighing the catch for payment.  Jim took some great pictures.

Lobsters being on loaded at dock from local fisherman

One of the larger Lobsters caught

We walked around and looked in the shops and then went for dinner.  We did the lobster dinner again.  We are getting pretty good at breaking them apart and getting all the meat.  It’s probably the only food you can eat making such a mess and not be considered ill-mannered.

A truly wonderful touch of Maine day.