P.S. Kaili’s dynasty of winning that That Special Pet ended this year.  Mind you he did get a second place ribbon.

Way to go Liz and Heather.

We stopped and had lunch at The Lobster Pool which is just past Rockport.  We enjoyed our lunch dining right on the water.  We drove back to Rockport and were able to find a parking spot some distance away from downtown.  We ended up spending a few hours walking around the downtown taking pictures and checking out the various shops.

We didn’t want to go back to the city and eat at a chain restaurant so Karen found a place not too far from Rockport called Woodman’s of Essex.  The restaurant was in the Adam Sandler movie “Grown Ups”.  The lobsters are lined up out front like veggies at the market.  You can pick your own, the guy drops it in the water, cracks it open, and dinner is served.  We enjoyed our final dinner of fish “in the rough” which means dining on the picnic tables out back of the restaurant.

We drove home after a great day of sight-seeeing but not before stopping at Marshalls and Macy’s.

Before heading south, we went back to Portland to pick up some Maine staples.  We went to Stonewall Kitchen to get some wild Maine blueberry jam, scone mix, whoopie pie mix, and grilling sauces.  We then headed to Harbor Fish Market to pick up 2lbs of lobster meat and smoked trout for Nana & Papa.

We took the long way from Portland to Ogunquit enjoying the beautiful New England scenery along U.S. Route 1.  We happened to stumble upon Congdon’s Doughnuts where we had one of the best doughnuts we’ve ever had.  They were much much better than Tim Hortons doughnuts.  They taste more like cake than  fried dough.

Once we got to Perkins Cove/Ogunquit, we were lucky to find some parking right on the waterfront.  We found The Lobster Shack and enjoyed our final lunch consisting of Maine lobster.  Perkins Cove has a draw bridge and while we were on it, a boat below called out and asked us to raise the bridge.  Karen did the honors and raised and lowered the bridge.  How cool is that.  Perkins Cove/Ogunquit also has a walkway called the Marginal Way that goes along Maine’s rocky shoreline.  We didn’t take it too far but enough to take a few pictures.  Perkins Cove is a quaint little area, and exactly what you think Maine would look like.

We made one last stop in Maine at the Cape Neddick “Nubble” lighthouse in York.  We didn’t spend too much time here since we were running out of energy.  But it’s a picture-perfect lighthouse, and a great place to relax and enjoy the ocean.

We would have liked to have stayed in Maine but we couldn’t find any reasonable accommodations.  (Saco KOA was totally booked on weekends).  While surfing for hotels, we were able to get two free nights at the TownePlace Suites Boston North Shore/Danvers in Danvers, Massachusetts.  We were able to get the room for free because we had enough Marriott points.

As we got closer to Danvers, we called ahead to The Cheesecake Factory and picked up dinner which we enjoyed in our room.  We decided to make it an early night and stay in to recharge our batteries for tomorrow, our last day of sight-seeing in New England.

We got on the road around 10:30am after enjoying our Belgium waffle again for breakfast. I dropped Karen off at the L.L. Bean retail store to see if she could sign us up for a kayak tour.  L.L. Bean has this thing called Outdoor Discovery Tours where for $20 you can take an introductory kayaking course.  Unfortunately they were all full so we hit The Outlet Store first.  The store was packed and there were some bargains (and we managed to leave some $$ there), but not as good as at the Nashua, New Hampshire store.

After our first round of shopping, it was time for lunch.  The lady at the outlet store mentioned a place called Harraseeket Lunch and Lobster Company where you could enjoy your food at the South Freeport waterfront.  What can I say, more lobster, whoopie pie and an incredible view. 

We headed back to Freeport and to the L.L. Bean retail store.  L.L. Bean has created this huge village with all of these different stores.  There is The Home Store, The Bike, Boat & Ski Store, The Hunting & Fishing Store,  and their ginormous Flagship Store.  The retail store was broken down into many different areas.  The camping area was so large that some of their tents were set up.  We spent over two and a half hours and lots of money but we came out with everything we were looking for.

Karen’s friend Paula’s sister recommended a place to eat in Freeport called Cindy’s.  The place is known for it’s owner Bob as they are for their food.  It’s really quite a funky place and the food was excellent.  More fish please.  Bob was kind enough to give us each a delicious slice of carrot cake, covered in cream cheese icing.  Talk about sugar overload.

We stopped at The Maine Mall before coming back to the campground to enjoy our last campfire.  We had a new addition to our campsite, a new swing.  We’ll miss the campground, and are heading back to civilization tomorrow.

We headed a bit further south today to Ferry Beach State Park.  The first thing I noticed that there wasn’t as many cars in the parking lot.  I wasn’t sure if this was a good sign or not.  Once we hauled our gear about 100 yards (this according to the ranger), we settled onto a beautiful beach.  As we drove in, the ranger station had a sign saying that today’s water temperature was 64 degrees.  That’s still too cold for me to go in.  We did the usual things that you do at the beach … read, nap under our towels (it was a bit windy) and snack.  The sun decided to hide behind the clouds and that was our cue to head out and get some lunch.  Karen found an Olive Garden that wasn’t too far away and we were shocked that we were actually able to get in.

Since we were further south than yesterday, we made our way to Kennebunkport to do some exploring.  The town is filled with many shops and restaurants.  It’s a charming New England town.

We knew that former President George H.W. Bush has a summer home in Kennebunkport so we went about trying to find it.  The home is located on Walker’s Point and using our map reading skills we were able to find it.  Secret Service are in the guard house at the entrace of the driveway but if you drive past it, there is a spot where you can pull over and have a look at the property.  The place is huge and I can imagine the views that they have.

We picked up dinner from The Clam Shack and headed back to St Ann’s Episcopal Church.  We saw the church on our way to the Bush Compound and we noticed that people had pulled up onto the grass and were sitting and waiting for the sunset.  We didn’t stay for the sunset but we did enjoy our dinner and fried dough with powdered sugar, while sitting along the water’s edge.

Saco is fortunate enough to have a drive-in so we went to check it out.  The price is right ($14 for the first two people and $3/person after that) and they ladle the butter on the popcorn.  Tonight’s double feature was “Dinner For Schmucks”  and “Salt”.  I believe “Dinner For Schmucks” is the worst movie I have ever seen in my life and we left “Salt” after the first hour.

We packed up the car with our beach gear and headed to Scarborough Beach State Park.  It’s a big beautiful beach which seemed even bigger because it was low tide.  We did bring our bathing suits but unfortunately the water was 62 degrees.  There was no way I was going in.  If I did, I’m sure I would have been dragged back in a body bag.  We spent the hours reading, napping, snacking and people watching.  Since we didn’t bring lunch, we left and stopped by Panera Bread before hitting The Christmas Tree Shops and Marshalls.

Before heading back to the campground, we stopped at the Portland Head Light to take some pictures.  It is the most photographed lighthouse in the world.  We needed to have supper so we stopped at the Lobster Shack At Two Lights.  The restaurant is situated along Maine’s rocky coast.  We had the best view of the ocean while enjoying our lobster rolls.  I’ve had some form of lobster every day since being in Maine and boy do I love it.

We enjoyed another quiet evening around the fire.

We headed into Portland today for two tours that we decided to do.  We had such a great time doing the food tour in Chicago that we wanted to try one in Maine.  We found Maine Foodie Tours on the web and decided to do their Old Port Culinary Walking Tour.

We met up with Pamela (director of Maine Foodie Tours) and John (our tour guide) at LeRoux Kitchen where we sampled Lobster Salad.  It was a quick walk over to the wharf to Harbor Fish Market where John showed us how to tell the difference between a male and female lobster.  We got to sample smoked maple glazed trout.  I’ve never had trout but I loved it.  We made a mental note that we would have to come back to get some trout to take home.  While walking along, John explained that there are over 300 hundred restaurants and 90% of them are chef owned.  Portland is a real foodie city.

Our next stop was K. Horton Specialty Foods where the owner Kris Horton explained and we sampled some fine Maine cheese.  Maine is not know for their cheese since almost all of the cheesemakers do not wish to get any bigger than they are.  They prefer to make quality products in small quantites.  Stonewall Kitchen was where we had scones fresh from the oven topped with wild Maine blueberry preserves.  This company was started by two guys named John and Jim who made jams at their homes. 

Dessert was up next at Dean’s Sweets, a shop run by a husband and wife team.  Kristin explained how truffles are made and she gave us some samples.  It was a quick walk to Two Fat Cats where we had a whoopie pie.  John told us that Maine is about to make the whoopie pie the official state pie since legend has it was invented there.  They’re so much better than the ones at home.  The chocolate cake is to die for, and inside is made form home-made marshmallow!

We ended the tour at Gritty McDuff’s where we sampled Vacationland Summer Ale and Best Brown Ale.  Karen said that’s the most beer she’s ever had.  What’s cool about Gritty McDuff’s is that they have something called a mug club.  You get a numbered mug that hangs over the bar.  You come in, give them your number and your mug comes down and gets filled with 21 ounces of beer.  There is a five year wait to get into the club.

We said goodbye to our new friends and headed in search of some lunch.  Karen’s friend Paula has a sister who has visited Portland and highly recommended J’s Oyster Bar.  We each had the haddock filet sandwich and it ranks right up there with Port Dover perch.  This place is right on the dock, and known as a hang out for lobstermen.

The other tour that we booked was a lobster tour with Lucky Catch Cruise.  The tour takes you out into the bay where you get to see what an actual lobster fisherman does.  But you actually have to participate and help out.  We dressed in nice orange rubber smocks, filled the bait bags, hauled the traps, measured the lobsters to see if they were keepers or not, put rubber bands on their claws, and set the traps.  It was just like on “Deadliest Catch” except that it was lobster and it was in the summer, and we didn’t have to chip ice off the boat.

After getting back to shore, we made a quick stop at the L.L. Bean outlet in Portland before heading back to Saco.  We decided to pick up dinner from Ken’s Place and take it back to the campground.  We enjoyed a fabulous lobster salad plate on our picnic table.  After supper, I grabbed my laptop and started working on the blog by the crackling fire.

It wasn’t a long drive before we made our second stop at the Christmas Tree Shops in Salem, New Hampshire.  Before hitting our third stop at the Christmas Tree Shops in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, we had a quick bite to eat at Chipotle.  We did some more shopping at The Kittery Outlets in Kittery, Maine but by this point, it was getting late in the day and we wanted to get to the Saco KOA in Saco, Maine.  This is where we will be staying for the week.

We got to the KOA and were greeted by some friendly staff members.  The lady in the office explained that you can get firewood and ice delivered to your site.  You can even get fresh home made pizza delivered.  We will for sure be trying this one night for supper.  After getting the key to our Studio Lodge ($124USD), we were escorted to our site by another staff member in his golf cart.  (He later delivered our fire wood … sweet!).

The Studio Lodge is so nice and so cute.  There is a main room that has a queen size bed, a small table with 2 chairs, bar fridge, microwave and a flat screen tv with dvd player, and a few channels.  And wi-fi of course.  There is a very small room that has bunkbeds.  And the best part, it has a bathroom, which is a real bonus when you’re camping.  Outside there are 4 nice wood chairs by the fire ring and a picnic table under a canopy.  We are “glamping” in the wilderness area, which is beautiful and surrounded by lots of trees.

The lady at the front desk recommended that we have dinner at The Clambake Seafood Restaurant in Old Orchard Beach.  You order your dinner at a counter and then you go and find a seat in their huge dining rooms.  Eventually your number is called and you grab your dinner and enjoy.  Karen and I each had the Lobster Roll, which is basically large chunks of lobster on a hot dog bun.  She had hers with mayonnaise and I had mine with butter.  I’m really going to enjoy Maine lobster.

After dinner, we hit the grocery store to pick up supplies before heading back to enjoy a campfire.  It will be  nice to sleep inside, and not worry about the temperature or the possibility of rain.  Much more relaxing than camping in a tent!

Once we got the car packed up and we were on the road by 9:30am.  While driving down the QEW, I saw the sign saying that there was a one to two hour delay at the Lewiston-Queenston bridge.  We laughed since there is never a delay on the Whirpool Bridge.  It’s the bridge reserved for Nexus card holders.  We picked up lunch from the Cracker Barrel and kept on going down I-90.

We stopped for some quick shopping at the Prime Outlets - Lee before continuing to Nashua, New Hampshire.  Since it was getting late, we grabbed dinner from Panera Bread and checked into the Hampton Inn Nashua ($80.10 USD).