Much of the Maine coast north of Portland consists of either moody fog-shrouded coastal villages where fishing and boating are a way of life, or bustling tourist towns with gift shops, restaurants, and inns. But there is one town on Mount Desert Island that has a tidy, colonial feel that wouldn't be out of place on Cape Cod in Massachusetts or along the Connecticut coast. Indeed, Somesville is an historic community with beautiful homes and peaceful tree-shaded lanes and very little in the way of commercialism. The photo shown here, which was taken in May of 2008, shows a charming footbridge in the heart of the "downtown" section of the village.For a larger version of this photo, go to the Somesville, ME photo on the Travel Guide of America site.
Much of the York Beach area in Maine is flat (as you would expect in a beach town), but heading east out of the village of York Beach, you quickly encounter some rather steep and winding roads that afford dramatic views of the ocean. The photo here, which was taken in December of 2008, shows a look eastward out over the open ocean near Cape Neddick Light (an often-photographed lighthouse). The rugged, rocky shore in this area is much different from the sandy beach areas found only a little more than a mile away.
Even though Portland, Maine, is a cosmopolitan city with a striking skyline and a real urban feel to it, you don't have to drive far to get into some truly rustic areas. Sebago Lake, for instance, is less than 20 miles from Portland, yet feels like it could be in the great North Woods of Maine. The photo shown here, which was taken in June of 2006, shows the mostly unspoiled southwest shore of Sebago lake near the tiny town of Sebago.
Some say that Mount Katahdin in Northern Maine is the one place in New England that has a distinctly western feel to it. From the bottom especially, the broad, massive mountain with its series of summits looks like something you might see in Montana or Wyoming. This photo, which was taken in the late 1980s, gives a view of the Knife Edge from the true summit of the mountain. There is a trail along the Knife Edge (which I took partway) that has dizzying views 2,000 feet below from either side of it.
It seems that in some ways, the further north and east you go along the Maine coast, the more interesting the landscapes and the lighting get. And this certainly is the case with Mount Desert Island, which is where much of Acadia National Park lies. But outside of the park are equally stunning vistas, including some really haunting ones around the tiny town of Northeast Harbor. The black and white photo shown here, which was taken in May 2008, shows the foreboding beauty of the Maine coast from a spot called Clifton Dock. From this part of town, one can hear the sounds of buoys and a lighthouse in the distance, and little else.
Cadillac Mountain in Maine's Acadia National Park is famous for its magnificent sunsets, but while most folks go to the top to watch the scene unfold, some of the best sunset views are along Cadillac Mountain Road itself. This photo, which was taken in May, 2008, shows the contrast between the darkness of the fir and spruce trees and the brilliant colors of the sky just as the sun was setting.