Journeys Near and Far

Maine Maritime Museum

Learn About Maine's Maritime Past

If you're wondering why my posts have been scarce lately, it's because I'm getting ready for a trip to Italy -- somewhere I haven't been yet but have always wanted to go!  I plan to visit Rome first, then the Amalfi Coast, and then travel to Tuscany.  Everyone I've spoken to who has been to Italy has loved it -- so I'm anxious to see it for myself!

Today, though, I'd like to write more about Maine, specifically about the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath.  I visited this museum on my first trip to Freeport, and really got caught up in the maritime history of the area.  This non-profit, privately funded museum's mission is to collect, preserve and interpret materials relating to the maritime history of Maine, and to promote an understanding of Maine's maritime history to the public.

Founded as the Marine Research Society of Bath in 1962, more than 65,000 people visit the museum each year.  It can take two or three hours to see the museum -- more, if you want to see everything! I especially enjoyed climbing aboard the Sherman Zwicker, a 1940's 142' Grand Banks fishing schooner which docks at the museum in the summer. 

One of my favorite displays was the "Lobstering & the Maine Coast" exhibit.  In it's own building, this two-floor exhibit depicts Maine's lobstering industry with lobster boats, the canning process, and dioramas of a coastal fishing village.   Visitors can watch how "workers" prepare lobster meat in a canning room, and view a video depicting the lobstering industry while perched on the gunwale of an actual lobster boat! 

At the Percy & Small Shipyard some of the world's largest wooden sailing vessels were built, including the six-masted schooner Wyoming, launched in 1909. 

The shipyard closed in 1920 when wooden ship building was on its way out.  Donna, our guide, told us they built the ships right outside by the buildings, twelve months a year, and it could take six to nine months to build a wooden vessel like the Wyoming.  Imagine a job building ships outdoors in the cold, snowy Maine winters! 

Visitors to the Shipyard today can see how a wooden ship is reconstructed, from the first stages of design through launching day. 

The museum's Mill and Joiner Shop held my interest, too; Donna told us it was built in 1899.  The first floor contained the sawmill and a bevel-cutting jigsaw for making the curved frame timbers; the second floor contained the joiner shop for production of the finished woodwork used in the deckhouses and cabin interiors.

Want to arrive at the museum via your own boat?  There are several moorings and a Visiting Yachtsmen's Building with amenities.  I didn't arrive on a yacht this time, so I left from the parking lot, instead of by water, stopping on my way out at the Museum store and bookshop.  It's a good one, and I didn't leave empty-handed!

The Harraseeket Inn, Freeport, Maine

My favorite place to stay in Freeport, Maine is the Harraseeket Inn -- it's perfect whether you are in Freeport for the shopping, outdoor activities, visits to museums or just a relaxing getaway.

Not only is the Inn conveniently located (just two blocks from the numerous outlet shops, galleries and specialty stores in downtown Freeport),  it's cozy, romantic, and, well -- friendly!   Whether you're traveling alone or with others, you'll feel comfortable there, as I did. 

While there, if you and your companions would like to hear some great stories, or if you're traveling solo and don't want to dine alone, make a reservation for the Innkeeper's Table in the Maine Dining room.   Offered every evening, you'll sit with one of the innkeepers and some of the other guests.   Chip Gray, owner of the Harraseeket Inn, recommended the Innkeeper's table when I was staying at the Inn.  "Conversation goes wherever you take it," he said, describing the experience.  "One party had the whole table trying moose calls, much to the confusion of the other diners."  Imagine being there for that!  Normally, though, he assured me, conversation centers around something unusual that one of the guests does for a living, or questions such as how deep the snow gets or whether bears bother them there.

The Inn makes a great base for exploring Freeport and the surrounding areas.  The luxurious afternoon tea, served with pastries, finger sandwiches and cookies, was nice to return to after a day out shopping or an afternoon out on the bay.  I enjoyed evenings reading a book by the warmth of the drawing room fireplace, and morning strolls through the Inn's lovely perennial gardens.

You can dine at the Inn's two restaurants -- the Maine Dining Room and the Broad Arrow Tavern.   The Inn and its restaurants patronize 33 of Maine's best organic farms.  My favorite item on the menu?  The Lobster Stew! 

Top two photos courtesy of the Harraseeket Inn.

Freeport, Maine -- A Shopper's Haven!

Most often, thoughts of Maine bring visions of tall white lighthouses atop craggy cliffs, white sails billowing in the bay, quiet woods and quaint towns.  But increasingly, Maine is becoming a haven for casual and serious shoppers.  Although I'm not much of a shopper myself, during a September, 2004 visit to the picturesque Maine enclave of Freeport (just a 15 minute drive north of Portland), I decided to check out this historic village's 170-plus upscale outlets and one-of-a-kind specialty shops.  After all, there must be a reason why 3.6 million people visit Freeport every year.

In fact, home to L.L. Bean's flagship store, Freeport has become an outdoor enthusiast's shopping Mecca. And it all started with a boot!  About 90 years ago, Leon Leonwood Bean returned from a hunting trip with damp feet and an idea that would change outdoor footwear forever -- he enlisted a cobbler to stitch leather uppers to a pair of workman's rubber boots, creating a hiking boot perfect for exploring the Maine woods. 

"L.L." later set up shop in the center of Freeport, and founded a catalog business.  That shop grew from a one-man operation to a global organization with annual sales exceeding $1.4 billion known as L.L. Bean.

The store, a paradise for insomniacs, is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  In 1951, Mr. Bean himself removed the locks from the front doors, and proclaimed, "We have thrown away the keys to the place!"  There have been no locks on the doors of the flagship store in Freeport to this day.

To my surprise, I spent a good two-hours in the store, before venturing off to some of the other outlets such as Banana Republic, Bass, and Patogonia.  It was a much more charming shopping experience than a visit to a mall would have been.

Not a shopper?  Well, shopping is just the tip of what Freeport has to offer.  Do you like to kayak, fish, sail, hike, hunt or canoe?  Enjoy museums?   Or do you love to feast on Maine lobster?  I'll tackle all this in future posts, and I'll write about my base for exploration in Freeport -- the romantic family-run Harraseeket Inn.  I loved the Inn so much, I returned during a snowstorm in March and spent a relaxing weekend reading by the fireplace!

More to come...

Photos courtesy of the Maine Office of Tourism.