When you think of coastal Maine, places like Bar Harbor, Portland, Freeport and Rockland may come to mind. But we did not visit any of these coastal towns. Instead we set our sights on the furthest eastern coastal town of Lubec and the nearby Cutler Coast.
You may be wondering why. For one the opportunity to free camp within a few miles of coastal hiking. Two there are a lot less people the further east you go. And three because we like to find the off the beaten path kind of places. We found that in Lubec and the Cutler Coast.
Here is what I will say about Bar Harbor, keep in mind we have never been there. Bar Harbor is the most popular coastal town in Maine and is also home to Acadia National Park. Acadia was on my list of places to visit while in Maine. However, after talking to enough locals we changed our mind. Bar Harbor the gateway to Acadia is an absolute zoo during the summer. Many locals said they only visit after Labor Day, before the fall leaf peepers come, during the winter, or spring. But not during the summer. One local said she has been to Acadia less than a hand full of times because of the amount of people visiting.
Seeing how we do our best to avoid crowds we decided to explore a different part of the coastline in Maine. The Cutler Coast and Lubec did not disappoint.
After a quick overnight stay in the town of Bangor we made the trek eastward. The drive over was beautiful but also remote. We stopped for a brief pitstop at this old abandoned parking lot where a motel used to be.
After exploring several possibilities for boondocking on Maine Public Lands we settled on this spot tucked about a 1/4 mile off the road. It was like we had our very own private driveway. And it was so quiet out here. Yet we were only a few miles from the beautiful Maine coast.
We did not waste any time setting off to explore via a very nice hike through the woods and along the coast.
Eastern Knubble Preserve Trail
This is a short hike out to the coast and only minutes from our camping spot. It is maintained by the Maine Coast Heritage Trust. The hike through the woods is simply magical and then you emerge to see the beauty offered by the rugged coast of Maine.
We were the only ones on the trail on a Sunday! Well we weren’t technically the only ones on the trail. Turns out Mr. Porcupine was also along the trail and Josie found him.
Leave it to Josie to chase after a porcupine. She was extremely lucky with less than 10 total quills. Some on her face and a few on her chest, her harness protected her well. We were able to remove all of them on trail. Just google dog and porcupine and you will see how lucky she was. For those keeping track, she has chased a skunk and now a porcupine. Both times she lost. Maybe she should be writing the blog posts, being a nomad from a dog’s perspective. 🙂
Quoddy Head State Park
It may not be a national park but this state park has plenty to offer in terms of beautiful coastal hiking. Not to mention it is the most eastern point in the contiguous US and a lot less people.
In fact when we went for our hike we passed some people (probably less than 10) but as we trekked farther away from the lighthouse it was just us. My kind of hiking. We spent a lovely afternoon winding our way along the coast and taking it all in.
And we saw this guy on the side of the road on our way out. No Josie, he is not a friend.
We had lunch with friends we met on the road in Florida who ironically were also in Maine at the same time. I did not take photos of the cute and quaint town of Lubec but here are a few looking out at the harbor and Canada across the way. We did not venture to Canada this time around. But if you ever find yourself in Lubec Maine, I highly recommend checking out the Lubec Brewery. Delicious brews and dog friendly!
Eastport + Reversing Falls
Directly north of Lubec is the slightly bigger town of Eastport. From Lubec it is a short ferry ride, otherwise it is about an hour drive away. We picked a day and set out to explore this area. I found this cool spot called Reversing Falls, on the way to Eastport. We stopped in and had the place mostly to ourselves. The photos do not capture what happens here with the tides. But if you are here at the right time you can actually see the falls reverse due to the tides. It’s a pretty cool spot and perfect for a picnic lunch.
Great meditation spot
The town of Eastport also has a nice brewery, Horn Run Brewery where we enjoyed some delicious beers. And it is also dog friendly both the patio and inside at the bar.
Plus it is home to the Fisherman’s statue. Here is the story behind that as written on the plaque underneath.
“This statue was built in 2001 for Fox Television’s filming of its reality mini-series, Murder in Small Town X. Restored in 2005 with donated funds and services, the statue is now a tribute to Angel Juarbe, Jr., the New York City fireman who won the $250,000 grand prize in the mini-series and soon after lost his life as one of the first responders to the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001.”
Bog Brook Preserve at Moose Cove
Another great hiking spot about 15-20 minutes from our camping spot. This is a preserve managed by the Maine Coast Heritage Trust. It is stunning and a short walk to this beautiful view.
We visited on two different occasions because it was so beautiful. Notice the difference from the tide in and the tide out between the two photos below.
I also recorded a yoga series during one of our visits. If you are interested check out the playlist.
Western Head Preserve
Another great coastal hike within 10-15 minutes of our camping spot. With spectacular views and we were treated to a whale sighting! In fact two whales, a mother and her baby. I did not get photos as they were too far out for my cell phone to capture. But wow it was so cool to see them as they continued down the coast as we hiked alongside on shore. The first photo is looking back across the water at the small town of Cutler, where there are no stores. Simply lobster boats and a post office. The last photo is the same vantage point but at the end of our hike at the last hour before sunset.
Another cool thing we came across is the Naval Computer and Telecommunications Station. There is a gate and without proper credentials you are not getting in, even for this ex-Navy girl. But it was pretty cool to see these tall towers across the bay. The photos below do not capture just how tall these were. One local told us they are able to communicate with submarines throughout the entire world from this base.
I must say we are not disappointed with our decision to skip the more populated coastal areas for this more remote area. We loved having multiple coastal hikes completely to ourselves along with a nice remote spot to camp. In fact during our stay a ranger stopped by. When I went out to talk to him, he said he has never seen anyone camped this far back. He only stopped because he saw tire tracks and thought someone was illegally bear baiting. I told him we did our homework and were simply boondocking on Maine Public Land for two weeks. We happen to love remote areas. He was a nice young guy and told me to enjoy our stay.
And we did. Cheers to the most eastern Maine coast. What a beautiful, wild, and remote place.
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