We left Vermont Sunday, June 2 for Kennebunk, Maine. We have an old friend there we wanted to spend some time with. She is 93 years young and sharp as a tack. It also was my birthday so we celebrated with one of my two must have meals when we are in Maine – whole belly fried clams at Alissons Restaurant.
The next day we spent three hours visiting with Muriel. Such a sharp and inquiring mind is rarely found in someone 93 years old. We talked about family, both alive and dead, politics, technology, morality, books, life – the changes she has seen over almost a century. It was a delightful way to spend the morning and part of the afternoon.
We stopped for lunch at Rogers Pond in Kennebunk. The pond sits next to the Mousam River and is down a side street, out of the way so if you didn’t know it was there you’d pass on by. There is a road around the pond, a perfect place to walk Ginger and Finn. After a sandwich we again walked around the pond and chatted with a fellow Vermonter who happened to be there.
He told us that he came upon people with nets out in the Mousan River some time ago and asked what they were trying to catch. To his surprise (and to ours) they said they were after eels. Being the inquisitive type I had to Google eels in Maine and to my surprise I discovered it is big business. Last year eels were selling for $2,300 a pound. They are prized by Asians in sushi, called unagi (unagi is actually one of my favorite sushi dishes too). For more information on Maine eel fishing you can go here: https://www.maine.gov/dmr/science-research/species/eel-elver/factsheet.html
After our visit to Rogers Pond we took a spin down to Goose Rocks beach where dogs are welcome in the “off” season. Once things pick up during later in June dogs are excluded but we were well ahead of the June 22 dog-less date. Finn, the border collie has never been to the ocean so this was a first for him. He didn’t waste any time getting wet. Ginger is an old hand and has traveled everywhere with us so the ocean was just one more thing she has seen before.
We returned to the Red Apple Campground late in the afternoon. This campground is spectacularly nice. It is expensive ($70/night) but it comes with every conceivable amenity (dog park, pickle ball courts, shuffleboard, horseshoe pits, heated pool, water, sewer, electric and cable TV, etc). One amenity is unique – order a lobster by ten AM and they will bring it, cooked, to your campsite for supper. And the price is far more reasonable than going to a restaurant to eat. So for $20 I got my other must have meal – a pound and a half hard shell lobster cooked perfectly.
The weather was perfect for our two days in Kennebunk, our camp site was perfect, I got my two Maine must have meals and we had a great visit. The only glitch was the tick infestation but that is going to be the norm this summer according to all the experts. The wet rainy weather this spring and a relatively warm (but snowy) winter has meant the ticks survived and have multiplied beyond all expectations. We have them at home and I suspect we will find them wherever we travel.