64th Annual Maine Lobster Festival - August 3rd to 7th, 2011

August 2010, we toured the 63rd Annual Maine Lobster Festival in Rockland, ME. Rockland is located along Maine's Mid-coast (4 hours from Boston). The fair is located at the Port of Rockland with beautiful views of Penobscot Bay. 

20,000 lbs of Maine lobster are cooked during the event in what is said to be the largest lobster cooker in the world! You may also want to try a lobster roll - a local sandwich concoction, or feast on "steamers" (clams), shrimp  and other seafood that is either steamed or fried. You will not be disappointed! 

Not sure how to eat them? Volunteers circulate through the food tent and provide instructions to both the novice and experienced lobster eater. You'd be amazed on how much meat you might be missing!

A three lobster dinner last year (including soft drink, corn, roll & butter) was $32. These are whole lobsters that are chix size (approximately 1 to 1.24 lb). 

Breakfast is served daily during the event and include all-you-can-eat blueberry pancakes! Food is reasonably priced.

There is a parade with floats, coronation of a sea goddess, live entertainment, various arts and crafts vendors (many with local wares), local marine life exhibit, U.S. Coast Guard Station tours, races, carnival rides, seafood cooking contests, games and plenty of activities for the kids! Downtown Rockland is full of shops and local artists. Definitely a great place to shop!  

The fair runs from Wednesday through Sunday. Admission is free on the Wednesday when the fair opens. Four day tickets and daily tickets are available at the gate. The festival, with a "Lobster Palooza" theme for 2011, officially opens on Wednesday, August 3rd and runs through Sunday, August 7th, 2011. For other details regardin g the event go to the Maine Lobster Festival website at http://www.mainelobsterfestival.com/



Captain Jack w/ Catch in Pot

AREA ACTIVITIES
Other things for couples and families to do in the area include a ride on a lobster boat (or sailboat) and actually watch the crew "pull pots" hopefully full of lobster! Rides are available from the dock at the fair where you can contact the captains directly. These are small group tours and fill quickly! Our group boarded Captain Jack's Boat. Yes, we caught lobster and Jack was full of local information!    

Take a short road trip to Chester, ME. Great food and stroll the area near the water and port. Many local shops with plenty to see.



BOAT TOURS

New Harbor, ME is about a one hour drive, and where you can board a tour boat from Hardy Boats to do a Puffin Tour, Lighthouse Cruise, Seal Watch or visit Monhegan Island, ME for the day. Great photo opportunities abound at all locations!

You may also see seals, whales, dolphins and other marine wildlife during any of these tours. 

The crew is very knowledgable and Captain Al was excellent! Reservations strongly encouraged.

The puffin tour takes you to Egg Rock where a colony of puffins have been reintroduced to the area and are thriving. The island is inhabited by many species of seabirds, and scientists & interns studying the birds.

August is a great time to view the puffins before they return to the sea for their winter feeding. 

The Puffin Project headquarters is located in downtown Rockland and worth a visit.



"Downtown" Monhegan Island
(From Lighthouse)

Monhegan Island is an island community of less than 100 people, occupying one sq. mile at about ten miles from the mainland. Great hiking trails that take you to a view of the town from the lighthouse at one end, and a typical Maine rocky tree-lined coast (with shipwreck) at the other end. Use caution as there are no emergency services on the island! This is an artist community and there are shops there to buy local produced arts & crafts. Overnight and longer accommodations are also available on the island. Everything that  the island needs is brought daily by boat, including the tourists!



Pemaquid Point Lighthouse

LIGHTHOUSES

After your return to New Harbor, visit Pemaquid Point Lighthouse which is a short ride away. Speaking of lighthouses, there are plenty in the area to visit. During our stay we visited Rockland Breakwater, Pemaquid, Monhegan Island and Owls Head lighthouses. Many more lighthouses are in the area and we can help you locate and visit them on your journey.

There is also a great maritime museum with many artifacts just outside the Lobster Festival fairground entrance.

The American Lighthouse Foundation is also located in Rockland, ME. A good place to visit and shop. 



View of Bay from Rooms
at Strawberry Hill Seaside Inn

ACCOMMODATIONS

Accommodations in Rockland (and nearby Rockport) include B&B's, hotels and rental properties. Some adjacent to the fairgrounds. Our group stayed at the Strawberry Hill Seaside Inn in Rockport, ME. Nice accommodations, pool and all rooms view the bay!

A great time was had by all and we would recommend this for couples and families alike. 

Travelers should contact us for information and accommodations if interested in attending this year. 888-895-5255

Florida's Forgotten Coast - A Great Place to Visit!

A quiet section of Florida's panhandle coastline, stretching from Mexico Beach to Carrabelle, Florida including the areas of Cape San Blas, Apalachicola, St. George Island and Eastpoint is known as the "Forgotten Coast."  It got its name (a trademark of the Apalachicola Chamber of Commerce) when it was left off a Florida tourism brochure in the 1990's, and the "locals" still refer to it this way today.



Carrabelle, Fl (at Lighthouse)
Facing Rt. 98 and Bay

 There is no Interstate Highway in the area (I-10 runs well north of the area), and the coast is accessible via Rt. 98 / 30 which is frequently a two lane road traveling the coastline. There are great views of Apalachicola Bay and the barrier islands beyond while traveling this road. The area is also accessible via Rt. 71 from the North, taking you through forested and scenic back country roads.
The area is quiet, inviting and consists of beautiful state parks, pristine bays, sugar white beaches, coastal marshlands, estuaries rich with sea life, and barrier islands with impressive dune formations. A great place for couples and the family to visit! This is NOT the place for high energy day or night life.


Beaches & beachcombing, bird & animal watching, fishing, shopping, boating, photography and other relaxing activities abound here. There are plenty of sights to photograph. Animals (local favorites like pelicans and alligators!), seascapes, palm trees, docks, quaint villages, and as with all our trips, lighthouses are always a great stop! We visited St. Marks, Crooked River, Cape St. George and Cape San Blas Lighthouses!



Boss Oyster Restaurant
Dining on the dock!

When the daytime activities are through, you can relax at a local dockside restaurant and partake of the local catch. Local mariners are dependant upon shrimp, oysters and fish (grouper, snapper, kingfish, bass and even shark) for their livelihood. The fleet heads out in the early morning (bring your camera) and many can be seen trolling the coast for shrimp, or fishing off shore. The Apalachicola River and Bay meet in the eastern Gulf of Mexico to form one of the most unspoiled and productive estuaries in the country. This mixture of fresh and saltwater makes an ideal nursery for a diverse group of marine species that includes oysters, shrimp, crabs and a wide variety of fish. Apalachicola Bay produces 90 % of Florida’s oysters and 10% of the nationwide supply.



Coombs House Inn

 The locals are welcoming and enjoy the company of travelers (a good source of income to the area). Bed and breakfasts far outnumber chain hotels and provide a comfortable place to unwind. We chose the Coombs House Inn in Apalachicola. The rooms are well appointed and have a private bath. Breakfast (served from 8 to 10 am) varied by day and consisted of fresh muffins as well as a main course prepared by the owner. The Inn also offers picnic baskets prepared by staff for a beach lunch, bicycles, beach chairs, towels and umbrellas, afternoon tea and cookies (3 to 5pm), and a wine reception in the parlor (6 to 7 pm on Fridays, Saturdays and Holidays). For those who need to stay connected, wifi is present and a TV is in each room. Very cozy and pleasant!

To familiarize you, below is a review of the areas we visited (traveling west from St. Augustine):

St Marks Lighthouse

St. Marks Wildlife Refuge

St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge offers a variety of outdoor recreation activities. The Visitor Center presents a general overview of what there is to see and do. You should stop here first to get information and a map of the park. It is also one of the few places in the park that has restrooms. Trails for hiking, wildlife observation, fishing, crabbing, boating and photography are some of the activities. The main route through the park is County Road 59. It is approximately seven miles from the visitor center to the lighthouse. You will pass many fresh, brackish and saltwater pools where you are bound to observe wildlife. Many birds are wadding, "fishing" and nesting. You might even observe an alligator in one of the ponds or sunning on a bank.   



Anhinga



Oak Snake



Local Maritime Antique Shop
Apalachicola

Apalachicola

Situated on the Apalachicola River and Bay, Apalachicola or “Apalach“, as it is known by locals, is far from a typical tourist town. Established in 1831, it was once the third largest port on the Gulf of Mexico. It features over 900 listed historic homes and buildings.Travel to Apalachicola continues to increase as tourists seek experiences of "Old Florida," as many describe the feel of smaller coastal communities in the state. As someone who grew up spending summers in Florida (1960's and 70's) I definitely agree! With one blinking traffic light for traffic control on Main Street and a population of 2400, Apalach has a downtown that includes the Dixie Theater, shops and restaurants. - some that occupy restored sponge, oyster and fishing buildings along the waterfront. Locals and tourists alike spend time walking the downtown area to browse a shop, watch boats come and go, or enjoy a meal.



St. George Lighthouse

 St. George Island
St. George Island is a 22-mile barrier island with some of the most beautiful beaches on the Gulf Coast. It is one of the last inhabited, yet unspoiled, barrier islands of Florida, with miles of uncrowded beaches for sunning and shelling, clear Gulf waters for swimming and excellent fishing, pristine marshes for wildlife viewing and photography. Cape St. George Lighthouse stands prominently in town.




Cape San Blas Beach
(Adjacent to Lighthouse)

Cape San Blas
A scenic, 10-minute drive east of Port St. Joe will take you to the most hidden beaches of Cape San Blas. This is a 17 mile long barrier peninsula that curves around St. Joseph Bay. It has pristine white sand beaches on the Gulf side, with just a short walk across to spectacular fishing on the bay side. It was named America's #1 Beach for its natural beauty, in 2002. Annually it is consistently in the top 10! Shell collectors will enjoy this beach as many varieties wash ashore here.
The current (and fourth) Cape San Blas lighthouse was built in 1885. It is a skeletal tower with a lens house atop. The U.S. Air Force owns the property and ran a LORAN station here until 1972.  The museum and shop (in restored keeper's house) is open Wednesday - Friday: 11am - 5pm, Saturday: 10am - 4pm.
 
St Joseph Peninsula State Park (On Cape San Blas)

Conch at low tide

With miles of white sugar sand, this park has one of the top rated beaches in the United States. Sunbathing, snorkeling, and swimming are popular activities along the Gulf of Mexico and St. Joseph Bay. Canoeists and kayakers can take in an excellent view of the dunes and sand pine scrub. Outdoor enthusiasts can enjoy camping, fishing, hiking, photography and bicycling. As a coastal barrier peninsula, St. Joseph provides excellent opportunities for bird watching; over 240 species have been sighted in the park. At low tide, you can explore tidal pools teaming with life. Shrimp, conch, fiddler crabs, pipefish and other sea life can be observed.

Eastpoint
Just across the Bay from either Apalachicola or St. George Island, is the central point of the Forgotten Coast. Seafood docks stretch almost the entire length of the community and you can dine on the bay while watching the shrimp and oyster boats bring in the day’s catch. Great place for pictures also. We ate at Captain Snook's in Eastpoint. Great seafood combination meals, soups and try the "fish dip" for an appetizer. You will enjoy a view of the bay (and fresh oysters) while dining here.

So what's a vacation on the Forgotten Coast have to offer? Away from crowds, a relaxing vacation where you can re-energize, slow down and enjoy the local laid-back style ... this is what the "Quiet Coast"  (renamed!) has to offer!

Whether looking for a bed & breakfast, hotel or other accommodations, we will help you find the perfect location for your stay.