Maine Time

We are now mountain people. We spend most of our lives in Utah, surrounded by mountains. I have always loved mountain towns, and their culture.

But both of us grew up on the ocean, in Marblehead, Massachusetts. So it’s a little odd that we find ourselves 1,000 miles from the nearest ocean, and 2,000 miles from the ocean we grew up on.

Generally, I don’t miss being on the water, but that may be in part because every summer for the past 38, Gail and I have spent time at her family’s cottage on the coast of Maine, about an hour northeast of Portland, on the edge of a resort, Sebasco Harbor Resort, that Gail wrote a bit about in her earlier post, The Story Behind a Logo That Was Not Meant to Be. It is a magical place. Beautiful, old fashioned, a bit sleepy.

Typically, we spend about a week to ten days here each summer. But sadly, Gail’s dad passed away last September, and the cottage now belongs to Gail and her brother, a by-product of which is that we get to spend more time here. We decided to rent out our own cottage in The Poconos, in Pennsylvania, where we usually spend the bulk of the summer, so we are spending until the end of July here in Sebasco.

It’s the perfect place for this era of Covid. We always have socially isolated here, so this year is no different in that respect. The cottage sits on its own little point, away from others, surrounded on three sides by water. An incredible setting, peaceful and gorgeous. It’s easy to relax here, and to recharge.

The resort provides opportunities to engage when we wish, and lots of amenities and activities, including golf, tennis, swimming, boating, hiking, music, food and drink. We’ve been coming for so many years (Gail, much longer than I), that we have friends and some relatives here, so at least in normal summers, there is plenty of socializing. Not so much this summer, for obvious reasons.

So we spend our time enjoying the scenery, the fresh fish, lobsters, clams and oysters, and recharging.

I’ve even learned to shuck oysters, and there are lots of them here. Oyster Farming has become a bit of a local cottage industry. These are some oysters from Emily’s Oysters in Bath Maine. And my first shuck!

And Emily’s truck at the Bath Farmer’s Market.

And every now and then, spending time with family as a special treat.

I have discovered some local bike rides, both road and gravel, that have been wonderful. I avoid traffic as much as I can, and ride alone, or with Gail, or with one or two friends (keeping our distance, of course). I have discovered routes and places that I have never seen before.

Park City is a low stress place, especially after our 35 years in New York City. But Maine takes low stress to a whole other level. Every now and then, we all need that. And this year, it couldn’t have come at a better time.

Give it a try! You won’t regret it.