Maine Lighthouses

Maine Picnics

You may think that Picnics is an odd topic for January! Well, start dreaming of an oceanfront Picnic at Ocean Point Inn. When I lived in Vermont, we often backpacked a picnic lunch on a cross country ski adventure even in below zero weather. It was delightful.

Another type of winter picnic is great for mothers of young children. Let them have a Beach Picnic inside. Don bathing suits, put beach towels on the floor and have a picnic in front of the fireplace!! Read a book about the beach and do a shell craft. Blow up lots of blue balloons to cover the floor and hide little sea creatures under the balloons. Pretend to be wading in the ocean looking for sea creatures. This is also a fun way to have a birthday party for young children.

Picnics evolved from the traditions of elaborate outdoor feasts the wealthy. Having picnics is credited to the Europeans but today it is enjoyed around the world. The word picnic can be traced back to 1748 in a 16th century French text.

Hundreds of years ago picnic meant a pot luck. By the 1860s it started meaning everyone eating outdoors but not bringing food. By the mid 19th century Americans developed an interest in picnics.

Picnic foods tend to vary according to regions of the country. New Englanders love a thermos of clam chowder, southerners love barbeque and mid-westerners like chili and biscuits.

If you are staying at the Ocean Point Inn, think about having picnics on the rocks, at the beach, at a lake, on a mountain or on a dock. Life is good at a picnic!! You can order box lunches at the Inn’s Front Desk the night before and designate the time you wish to pick them up. The East Boothbay General Store is also a great source of picnic food and drink.

Children love to go on picnics. The following food are favorites with children.

opi-picnic2 ABC Pasta Salad
Nutrella on Crackers
Melon Swizzlers
Fruit Salad in an Ice Cream Cone
Fruit Punch with Fruit in Ice Cubes
Sandwiches cut with Cookie Cutters
S’More Bars

Pack the kids lunches in beach sand pails with a shovel. They will have a toy to play with after the picnic. Don’t forget antibacterial lotion and hand wipes.

For an adult picnic on the rocks, you can easily pick up the following while traveling:

Fresh Bread
Cheese
Cold Meats
Fresh Fruit
Wine

Create a gourmet picnic with your own imagination, maybe with some Maine lobster salad.

If you are close enough to Ocean Point, a picnic on the rocks in the winter is fun as well. Bundle up! If it is too cold and windy to eat out on the rocks, park your car next to the ocean where you can enjoy the view and hear the surf from your car. The following foods are great for a winter picnic:

Hot Soup
Hot Chili
Hot Cider
Hot Cocoa
Energy Bars

Make picnics a part of your next vacation at the Ocean Point Inn.

Off the Beaten Path

When you first come to Maine, you visit all the well known points of interest, lighthouses, lobster shacks. If you are looking for a new adventure, check out some of these places more off the beaten path but not far from Ocean Point Inn and Boothbay.

Whaleback Shell Midden

Do you know what a midden is? It is an old dump for domestic waste. In this case, it is an enormous heap of oyster shells left by the Abenaki people who lived along the Damariscotta Rive before the colonists arrived. The shells date back over 1300 years. Originally the Whaleback Shell Midden was over 30 feet deep. From 1886-1891 many of the shells were processed into chicken feed to help harden the egg shells.

Coming from the south on US Route 1, turn left at Belvedere Road and go 0.1 of a mile to a stop sign. Turn right and follow US Route 1 Business/Main Street another 0.5 mile. The parking lot and trail head are on the right. The trail is a half mile loop past an apple orchard along the east bank of the Damariscotta River.

The Glidden Midden on the Newcastle side of the river is the largest shell midden in Maine and on the U.S. east coast north of Georgia.

Liberty Graphics

Liberty Graphics features wonderful designs from the natural world. The Maine printed T-shirts and long sleeved T’s for men, women and children are all printed with earth friendly water base ink. The Liberty Village Outlet Store at 58 Maine Street in Liberty is open daily 9-5 from Memorial Day to Columbus Day. They sell these great shirts at discount prices. Everyone loves a bargain and it is a scenic ride to boot!

Elmer’s Barn

Do you like to search for unexpected treasures and antiques? Elmer’s Barn in Coopers Mills along Route 17 may be of interest. It is a junk and antique mecca. If you love to dig through piles of “stuff” looking for the elusive find, Elmer’s Barn will be right up your alley. One could easily spend a day there looking on the outside and on the three floors of the barn. Elmer is a real Maine character. Have a chat with him!

The Moxie Museum

Ask any “Mainer” about Moxie and they will either say it is great or they hate it. It is a regionally produced soft drink that some say tastes like medicine. I had an uncle who liked Moxie so much that it was served at his Memorial Service! Take a trip to the Moxie Museum in Lisbon Falls. You can even try Moxie ice cream while you are there!

The World’s Largest Rotating Globe

You have probably driven past this globe on your way to Ocean Point if you live south of here. But, did you see it? The DeLorme Headquarters on Interstate 295, just beyond Freeport, in Yarmouth houses this amazing globe called “Eartha.” It takes about 18 minutes for Eartha to complete her cycle. Open 9:30 - 6 daily and fascinating to all ages. The shop is a great source of maps, travel guides and educational gifts for children and adults.

See other great day trips from Ocean Point Inn.

Monhegan Island Day Trip

Another favorite day trip of ours from Ocean Point Inn is to head for the tranquility of Monhegan Island. This tiny island, twelve miles out to sea, is less than one square mile in area. The island has no paved roads and no cars, just wonderful walking trails that lead you to amazing vistas.

As you walk through the woods watch for the Fairy Houses. Stop to build one of your own from natural bits and pieces and see how creative you can be!

Browse the shops and galleries. The Black Duck Emporium has great gifts, espresso drinks and home baked treats. The Lupine Gallery features Monhegan Artists. Winter Works is a cooperative shop of creative items made by the Island’s winter residents. The Barnacle also has a few gifts as well as sandwiches, soups and pastries.

For lunch, I often get a crab roll at the Fish House Fish Market and eat it on the rocks at Fish Beach. After lunch, I like to look for sea glass and shells on the beach. You can bring your own lunch and enjoy eating at one of the many vistas on the highest cliffs in Maine.

Walk up the hill to the lighthouse where you can sit and enjoy the view. Keep your eyes peeled for whales, seals, birds and wild flowers. Sometimes along the path from the dock, artists will be selling their crafts. Note the lovely cottage styles as you walk around the island and try to imagine what it must be like here during a blizzard in January!

The Balmy Days II sails to Monhegan daily in season from Boothbay Harbor. The ride out and back is beautiful in itself. Capt. Bill Campbell will point out whales, seals, birds and other marine life as you go by the rugged coastline and outer islands.

After leaving the harbor you will pass Ocean Point on your left and then the Ram Island Lighthouse on the right. Next on the left will be the Pemaquid Lighthouse perched on the seaside cliffs.

What started out as a tiny spot on the horizon starts to look much larger. Before you know it you are pulling into the dock at Monhegan Island.

Balmy Days offers an optional ride around the island for an additional fee. You can make your reservation for the Balmy Days by calling 207-633-2284 or 800-298-2284. Monhegan Island is a place that evokes fond memories and I bet you will want to return!

See more Ocean Point Inn things to do in the area including visiting Camden and Rockland and other day trips to Damariscotta, Bath, and Boothbay Harbor.

Ram Island Light

Ram Island Light is located in Fisherman’s Passage off Ocean Point at the entrance to Boothbay Harbor. Back in the mid-19th century a fisherman began hanging a lantern. This tradition was passed on for many years from one fisherman to another.

During the period when there were no lights, the local people told of ghosts warning the ships off the dangerous rocks. One such tale is of a sailor approaching the rocks and seeing a woman waving a torch above her head. He turned just in time to avoid the rocks.

Ram Island was first lighted on November 5, 1883. The first keeper was Samuel Cavanor from Nova Scotia and he stayed until he died in 1913. He lived on the island with his wife and five children and the children went to school in Boothbay. Mr. Cavanor had a wooden leg as a result of an accident on a lighthouse tender.

Ram Island Light became automated in 1965 and last keeper was removed. In 1983 the building was going to be torn down. The Grand Banks Schooner Museum Trust saved the building. The Ram Island Preservation Society restored the house. In 2002 they restored the walkway to the light that had been destroyed many years before.

Ghost stories continuee and some say on very dark nights the spector of a shipwreck victim can be seen wandering the island!! Visiting Ram Island Lighthouse is a great day trip while staying at Ocean Point Inn

Burnt Island Lighthouse

The Burnt Island Light, built in 1821, is the second oldest surviving lighthouse in Maine. It operates a Living History Museum and was added to the National Register of Historic Places as Burnt Island Light Station on November 23, 1977.

Burnt Island is at the western entrance to Boothbay Harbor and visible from Ocean Point. The name came from the fact they burned the island vegetation so it would be clear for sheep grazing. In 1885 the keeper had pigs, chickens and cows in addition to sheep.

In March of 1821 funds were designated to build a light and the land was purchased soon after. A tower of granite rubble lined with brick was built along with a stone Keeper’s House. A system of whale oil lamps and reflectors was used. The stone Keeper’s House was replaced with a wood house in 1851 and is still there. At this time Fresnel lens were installed changing the lighting of the beacon.

Originally there was a fixed white light that was to attract ships to the harbor, not warn them of danger! In 1988 the light was blocked in a sector to the southwest to prevent it being seen by ships coming up the coast before clearing Cuckolds. A year later it was changed again. This time a fixed red with two white sectors were created to indicate safe passage on either side of Squirrel Island. This caused confusion with Ram Island Light which was built in 1883. Therefore, in 1901 the fixed light was replaced with a rotating beacon that had a lens on each face. The lens lasted until 1962 when it was replaced with an electric beacon. It was the last lighthouse in Maine to be converted from kerosene. The station was automated in 1988.

In 1988 the island and light station were transferred to State of Maine Department of Marine Resources. The buildings have been restored as closely as possible to the 1950’s condition. In 2003 a living history program was started.

A trip to this island is a “must do” during your stay at Ocean Point Inn. Call the Balmy PERCIVAL_COVER.31781633_std Days at 207-633-2284 to find out the schedule of “The Novelty” and rates. It is a 2 1/2 trip with two hours on the island. Wonderful experience for all ages!

There is a very special book written by Robert McKay called “Percival the Lighthouse Mouse.” A great gift for young children, especially if they get to go to the island.

History of the Cuckolds Lighthouse

In 1891 the Lighthouse Board wrote, “The Cuckolds consist of two rocky islets rising about 15 feet above high water in the westerly edge of the channel at Booth Bay.”

The Atlantic Coast Pilot said they were a great danger to the three to four thousand vessels that entered the bay for refuge in Booth Bay and recommended a fog-signal be placed there.

The cost for a keeper’s house, fog signal house, cistern and equipment was estimated at $25,000. Congress appropriated the amount in March of 1891 and work began in January of 1892.

The station had to be built to withstand very heavy storms. The foundation was made of granite. Materials included 105 yards of granite masonry, 60,000 bricks, 430 casks of cement, 100 tons of sand, 200 tons of stones, 70,000 feet of lumber and 3,400 pounds of iron work. This huge amount of materials was carried on the lighthouse tender, Myrtle. Work was completed on November 16, 1892.

In 1895 a 1000 pound bell was installed to be used when air pressure was building. In 1902 “a modern apparatus operated by oil engines” replaced the “old hot-air fog-signal.” In 1907 a small tower and lantern room were added.

On January 27 and 28 of 1933, a nor’easter struck the Cuckolds doing a great deal of damage. The lighthouse was automated in 1974.

The lighthouse keeper’s dwelling has been successfully rebuilt. In June 2014, the beautifully restored lighthouse opened to overnight guests as the Inn at Cuckolds Lighthouse. You can see Cuckold’s Light from Ocean Point Inn.