COAST OF MAINE

Portland is an old seacoast town with lots of history. Leaving the harbor we saw several old forts and lighthouses. We sailed for four hours and arrived in Bath around 6:00 p.m. while we were having dinner (probably preplanned to keep us out of the crew's hair.

The next morning we decided to walk into town (about 1½ miles). Along the way we passed the Bath Iron Works where they were preparing to christen a new destroyer. Lots of dignitaries were in town for the event so security was very strict. We walked by a checkpoint and asked if we could go in just to take a picture. They told us it was open to the public so we were very excited to `get in. They handed out beautiful medallions and large brochure. Jason Dunham, who was just 28 years old, was a Marine on patrol in Iraq. His unit was attacked and he covered a grenade with is helmet and body, taking the brunt of the explosion, saving the rest of his unit. Although he survived the blast, he succumbed to his injuries in Germany. For his heroic action, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously. Although not on our itinerary, this was probably the highlight of our trip. We didn't stay for the ceremony but did take many photos of the festivities.

We then continued our walk into town and wandered around for some whiles before heading back to the ship. We left Bath a noon for our next stop, Rockland.

We arrived in Rockland around 9:00 p.m. In the morning we walked into town and wandered around for a while but there wasn't much to do. They were having the Maine Lobster Festival but we didn't check it out. We left at noon (once again while we were eating) and arrived in Bar Harbor around 7:00 p.m.

We signed up for a 2½ hour tour of Acadia National Park which was quite beautiful. We heard there was a beautiful coastal walking path which we wanted to take as well as seeing the cute town but there just wasn't time after the tour. We asked the captain if we could have one more hour in port but he couldn't (or wouldn't) do it. We left at 1:00 for the five hour trip to Castine.

We get into Castine at dinner time (do you see a pattern) so wait to go ashore the next morning. We walk around the town (not much to see) and later in the morning took a tour with a guide. The only thing to see was all the historic homes and the tour is mostly about the architectural styles of its historic Main Street where most residences were built prior to 1860. Since we've stayed in B&B's centuries older than these, we didn't have much interest in the tour. I would have much preferred to spend more time in Bar Harbor. We left at 12:30 and arrived in Belfast at 2:00 p.m.

Another small town with not much to do but shop and we're not shoppers. We left for Port Clyde at 6:00 a.m.

Arrived in Port Clyde around 12:30 p.m. and it was even smaller than Belfast. We decided to walk to the Marshall Point Lighthouse which was about 2 miles from the boat. Checked it out then wandered back to town. We left at 5:30 for Portland.

Arrived at 1:00 and boarded a trolley for a tour of the city which we enjoyed. The final stop was at the famous Fort Williams Lighthouse which is the oldest in Maine (1791). After breakfast the next morning we disembarked for our train ride to Boston.

After breakfast at our hotel we took a trolley tour of the city getting off several times to see places of interest. We had lunch at Cheers in Faneuil Hall and got off to see the U.S.S. Constitution but the lines were too long so we toured an old torpedo ship. The next morning we left for home.

As I said, we enjoyed ourselves but since the main reason for the trip was seeing the coast of Maine (which is beautiful), we traveled during the day which didn't allow for much time in port. That being said, there really wasn't much to do in most places so it worked out fine. We'd definitely take the cruise line again if and when we take another trip.

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