Tag Archives: maine

A mooooving experience.

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Still at the fair, and still admiring old farm equipment.

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Well, one of us was.

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While he was doing that I wandered over to meet some geese.

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With strict instructions not to feed or pet, I stood and photographed.

Next up was the youth calf competition.

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If you’ve never seen one of these, you really should.

Taking care and responsibility for livestock is a full time job and these youngsters were doing their best to show off their accomplishments.

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If you’re showing momma?

Better bring baby along.

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Such sweet faces!

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I do love cows.

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After the show we wandered a few barns.

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Always my favorite part of the fair.

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These are Belted Galloways, but we call them Oreo cows… for obvious reasons.

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At the end of our cattle tour, the husband stopped to talk to one of the owners and her daughter.

Husband likes to talk.

Husband was raised on a dairy farm.

Husband talked for over an hour.

Husband talked to so many people for so long we didn’t see the other half of the fair, I didn’t buy a fried dough and when he finally stopped chatting…. it was time to go.

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Back over the bridge of flowers to a small town seafood restaurant we always try to visit when we’re in the area.

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It doesn’t look like much.

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And the atmosphere is more family style diner than anything….

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But the clam chowder is to die for. Thick, rich, creamy and chock full of clams … it’s almost a meal in itself. (deckhand lemonade with Tito’s, because yes… they serve alcohol)

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The meals are always amazing, and their fresh seafood is cooked to perfection. I had a massive platter of fantail fried shrimp with baked potato and cole slaw, husband had a garlic butter broiled haddock with butternut squash and a bowl of cottage cheese. Neither of us went away hungry.

Two soups, a cocktail, a beer and two more than ample seafood dinners for $82. In our neck of the woods that amount barely gets you past appetizers.

🥴

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It’s fair season!

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Late summer and fall are agricultural fair seasons in Maine and on a beautiful sunny day the husband and I decided to take a drive northwest to check out one we’d never visited before.

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Located in Dover Foxcroft…

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The Piscataquis Valley Fair was very small.

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But it had an impressive building filled with a large collection of fire fighting memorabilia.

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The disembodied Smokey the Bear head was a trifle disturbing..

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But these old pull along pumps were fascinating. Can you imagine putting out your burning house with that?

🥴

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The husband was checking out the patches, but all I could see was the Happy Hooker. Limitless marketing opportunities there…

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Random giant carved fish?

Check.

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Award winning art and Maine centric photography?

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Check.

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I had to laugh that even here I couldn’t escape the pickles…

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And some extremely unappetizing carrots.

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Did my husband find people to chat with? Boy howdy, did he ever.

Over 40 minutes were spent learning about invasive, non native water plants choking Maine lakes and streams.

Do we live on a Maine lake or stream? No. But we learned how to identify the evil greens all the same.

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Another half hour was spent talking to an old farmer about rusted machinery and equipment.

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I was tempted to remark on the unfortunate company name on this one, but I didn’t have the heart.

And yes, that second letter is a worn off O.

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The final hop.

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Our last Boothbay Harbor stop was the Boathouse Bistro as seen on the left.

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It’s a rustic three story restaurant with three floors that are usually packed with summer tourists as it has the best food in town.

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We always land here, on the glassed in second floor.

But along with the first, it was closed… and empty. The same disturbing trend we’d seen all day.

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Three places that are always bursting with tourists… weren’t. Tariffs and bad blood with Canada may not be affecting you… but they’re certainly hurting this area.

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Granted…. the top floor had a crowd, but the bar was empty and the bottom two levels were deserted.

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A shocking loss of prime season business.

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Saving the best for last, along with my pomegranate margarita I had blackened jumbo shrimp with fried balls of chorizo grits and smoky tomato sauce while the husband went with pan-seared scallops and crispy cornbread with an apple gastrique (apple cider, sugar, apple cider vinegar, calvados,thyme, chicken stock).

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Both tapas were excellent, and came with a view.

❤️

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Still hopping.

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Our second stop on the toddies and tapas tour of Boothbay Harbor was McSeagulls, just to the left of our first… Mine Oyster.

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Unassuming places from the front…

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Lovely waterfront spots in the back.

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Can you guess which glass of craft beer I raised?

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Once again we found a popular summer tourist restaurant/bar nowhere near capacity. It was a shock… this area is usually jam packed.

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A bowl of creamy tomato bisque for the husband…

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Some calamari for moi.

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And a groan worthy fish pun for the rest of you.

😉

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The evening shift.

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Our lawn has turned brown from the troubling lack of rain, but that doesn’t stop our nightly critter visitors.

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Skunks and raccoons are usually not a good mix…

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But these guys make it work.

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There are five trash pandas here…

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And this family has been coming since they were babies.

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I rarely get photos because they arrive after dark but here’s a quick clip to give you an idea.

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💕

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We were hopping.

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While we usually avoid the Boothbay Harbor region like the plague in the summer due to the high concentration of tourists and traffic, we threw caution to the wind and drove up for an afternoon of bar/restaurant hopping last week since the weather was beyond perfect for a blueberry mojito on the ocean.

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Our first stop was Mine Oyster, which has the best outdoor seating on the harbor. We always elect to sit on the second floor deck but discovered it closed. And empty.

In the summer.

In Boothbay Harbor, Maine.

We were stunned. And as we made our way out back to the first floor deck…

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We were equally as stunned to find only a few people enjoying the view.

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This is a prime spot. A tourist Mecca. A restaurant that offers lobster 20 different ways.

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And it was virtually empty.

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Good for us as we had our pick of seats, but not good for the local economy. We’ve been hearing the tariffs and American relations with Canada had been taking a toll on visitation from our northern neighbors, but this was proof.

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They just weren’t here.

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Lobster stuffed mushrooms for the husband.

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But troubling lack of tourists aside, it’s hard to beat the scenery.

❤️

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Always up for Otto’s.

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One of our favorite restaurants is an unassuming little spot housed in an old building in the once deserted but now having a mini renaissance, downtown area of Augusta, Maine’s capitol.

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Otto’s by the River isn’t on the river per se, and the only way you’re able to see the water is if you sit on their side deck and swivel your head.

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But the interior is amusing enough for us.

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And we usually sit at the bar.

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On this particular day peach Crown Royal slushies were on special and they were so delicious my beer loving husband actually joined me.

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Otto’s makes the best crab dip I’ve ever had… so I stuff myself with that and have to give up a big meal for a chicken Caesar salad.

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Husband’s pan seared scallop Alfredo was decadently rich.

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So if you’re ever hungry in Augusta? Give Otto’s a try.

😊

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Surgery… with a view.

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A friend of ours had to go in the hospital for pancreatic surgery recently so we ordered a bouquet from our outstanding local florist to brighten up his room.

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The arrangement was so beautiful I wanted to keep it myself, but I did the right thing and rode with it on my lap for the drive up the coast to the medical center.

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I didn’t even know this hospital existed.

But north on Route 1, past a boat with a beard…

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And a non partisan political sign…

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On a peninsula in Damarriscotta, stood a waterfront hospital with rooms that really didn’t require cheering up.

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Talk about gilding the lily.

He had a corner private room with a view that can’t be anything but healing.

❤️

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