Boothbay, Maine

Thurs., Sept. 23, 2021 thru Wed., Sept. 29, 2021

We pulled out of Old Stage Campground on Sept. 23rd and headed North to Maine. Some of our Safari friends who were at the campground came to say goodbye. Luckily the ones we saw that day we actually plan to see again in the next few months so we were able to minimize the sadness. 

We are traveling with our road buddies Stacie & Johnny (friends we met on the road in 2018 and live in NC) and Cheryl & Joe (NH friends who just sold their home a month ago and are now full-time RVers like us). The first hurdle of our departure was navigating the curvy exit from Old Stage. Thankfully all the potholes had been filled the week before or it really would have been interesting. Once safely on the main road, we drove northeast 117 miles to Shore Hills Campground in Boothbay, Maine. Gary & I used to have a seasonal site at this campground. Upon arriving at Shore Hills, we met Pearl and Marti, friends of Cheryl & Joe who had traveled up from FL in their travel trailer to join us. We’ve got a fun posse!

This week we’ve enjoyed visiting the galleries and shops, exploring downtown Boothbay Harbor, and walking the Ocean Point path with its beautiful views. 

While at the campground, we got in a few cornhole games and enjoyed several get togethers around a campfire. A few of those campfires were in S&J’s “clam” or screen house with a propane fire pit. Yes, it’s safe (there’s ventilation)…. not to mention cozy and warm! 

We had one magical night around a wood fire that Joe provided… all 9 of us (Joe’s nephew John joined us for a few days) and were treated to impromptu ballroom dancing by Cheryl & Joe. Kudos to Gary for providing the music and lighting to make this happen. And kudos to all our friends for being so awesome. Joe & Cheryl did an initial dance and then a few encore performances. We also sat around listening to music for hours that night by the campfire while Gary played DJ to our musical requests. Amazing what an iPhone, Apple Music, playlists, a Bose speaker, and great friends can do! Life is good.

We were very happy that Carol & Charlie (friends from Nottingham who now live in Maine) came to join us for lunch one day and were able to meet S&J and C&J. We were fortunate to get to see Carol & Charlie a few times this summer. For the time being our future visits with C&C will be through zoom chats.

One of the highlights of our stay in Boothbay was our visit to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. Located on 323 acres it is a gem. Adding to the enjoyment they now have a new installation this summer of 6 giant Trolls making it even more amazing. The Trolls were created by a Denmark artist using recycled wood. They were built on-site with the artist’s team and 150 volunteers and took 2 months to create. They are awesome! They stand over 20 ft high and are just massive with wonderful stories to them.

A fun week and now on to Bar Harbor, ME and Acadia National Park.