Hot tips to make your Maine summer much cooler
Ten places off the beaten path that won't cost you an arm and a leg
I have a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that (hopefully) make me a total delight for people like you. Skills like having committed to memory a long list of recommendations from every corner of Maine for everything from restaurants and bars to weird little art galleries and homegrown festivals.
Seriously. I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but here I go a-tootlin’: I’m kind of an expert when it comes to things to do in Maine. What’s more, I know the places to go that are off the beaten path - where you’re less likely to spend an entire week’s salary on one night in a hotel and two lobster rolls (that don’t even come with fries).
Whether you’re a year-round Mainer or just visiting our fine state, I’ve compiled a selection of ten places or activities to check out this summer that will suit just about any sort of person - provided you are a person that wants to see more of Maine than whatever glossy magazines or TikTok says we are. This, of course, is by no means definitive: it’s just stuff I’ve grown to know and love over the years, and can heartily recommend.
Want to add your own recommendations for cool stuff to see and do in Maine this summer? Leave it in the comments.
Nervous Nellie’s Jams & Jellies, Deer Isle
When our beloved friends from outside Philly come up to Maine to visit family and friends each summer, they always take their kids to Nervous Nellie’s Jams and Jellies in Deer Isle - and not just because they really, really love jam. It’s because it’s an artistic wonderland for all ages, a wild, imaginative little town called Nellieville, populated by Peter Beerits’ wooden sculptures and spread out over several acres ripe for exploration and incredibly memorable picture-taking. There’s a great artisan market, too. Every person that comes to or lives in Maine and has even the faintest whiff of a sense of humor and/or whimsy must go at least once in their lives.
Thunder Valley Mower Races, Hope
I’ve been to things like demolition derbies, stock car races, tractor pulls, snowmobile races and other such quality entertainment. I’m from small town Maine, and there’s enough redneck in my background that I actually kind of love it - which is why I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the rise of lawnmower racing in Maine over the past few years. Thunder Valley Mower Races began in Waldo County in 2018 and have since grown into a full-fledged racing organization, in which participants race souped-up riding lawnmowers and tractors around a track. Doesn’t that sound fun? I’ll take my neighbor braaaap-ing in a tractor over some rich dude in a multi-million dollar boat anyday. There are races set for June 13, July 25-26, Aug. 8. Aug. 22 and Sept. 12 at 267 Camden Road in Hope, as well as over the weekend of July 18-19 at the Owls Head Transportation Museum.
Carbohydrate tour of coastal Maine
I’m a fiend for fancy pastries. Give me laminated dough, chewy cookies, buttery shortbread, expertly proofed loaves - I want it all. If you’re like me, you will go out of your way for it. And while you can certainly go to reliably excellent places in the Portland area like Standard, Scratch and Tandem, I propose that you make an entire day or weekend of it and check out some bakeries that are a bit farther up the coast. The Place in Camden (yes, there are some things I like in Camden) deserves its reputation as one of the best bakeries in Maine, with absolutely stunning sweet and savory delights. In Brooksville, Tinder Heath has for years now been cranking out beautiful bread and massive croissants alongside fabulous pizza. And, new to the scene, La Laiterie in Jonesboro, I mean - just look at those layers! Look at that crepe!
Contradances, everywhere
If you get social anxiety or value personal space, you can skip this one. Contradances and other forms of folk dancing are all about physical contact and getting all up in the business of strangers, while learning traditional group dances on the fly. It has been an incredibly popular pastime in Maine for decades now, and you can find a dance pretty much every weekend, all year round - where at the very least you’ll get to listen to some great music and meet your neighbors. The Folk Arts Center of New England has an up to date list of dances statewide. Get over yourself and whatever concerns you have about not being able to dance or whatever. It’s fun!
Experience the vibes in Waldoboro
Waldoboro may be the “it” town on the coast of Maine this summer - it’s got the oceanside vibes you look for during the summer, of course, but it’s also got some excellent new businesses and activities that have popped up in the past few years. Despite some recent controversy, the Waldo Theatre nevertheless consistently programs some of the coolest stuff in Maine. Next door, the Waldoboro Inn hosts interesting music and community events, as well as being a favorite hangout for the Midcoast queer community. There are some nifty shops and restaurants in the cute little downtown. And, well, if you’re there you might as well go to Morse’s Sauerkraut and buy lots of delicious things, from incredible cheese to their legendary sauerkraut and pickles.
Vasquez Mexican Takeout, Milbridge
I continue to bang the drum for Vasquez Mexican Takeout in Milbridge because it’s the original and still the best. People: they make their own tortillas! They make real tamales! They make horchata! They have conchas and tres leches cake! Everything is fresh and delicious! In Milbridge! I’m obsessed. Best Mexican food north of Portland (there are others that are really good too but this is my pick; fight amongst yourselves). I actually haven’t been in a few years. Maybe that’s what we’ll do this Memorial Day weekend: go find a hike somewhere nearby, and then stuff our gobs with flautas and gorditas.
International Cryptozoology Museum, Bangor
After our fascinating interview with founder and legendary cryptozoologist Loren Coleman earlier this year, I’m very pleased to say that the greatly expanded International Cryptozoology Museum will open in its new Bangor location at 490 Broadway next month, with a grand opening set for July 11. Whether you’re a true believer or think it’s all a bunch of hooey, I can guarantee you will be informed and entertained. Pair it with an SK Tour, a concert on the waterfront or one of multiple festivals and markets happening around town all summer, and you’ve got yourself an excellent weekend.
L.C. Bates Museum, Hinckley (next to Fairfield)
If your tastes run less towards the likely non-existent and more toward the gloriously extant, the L.C. Bates Museum on the Good Will-Hinckley campus is my pick for the museum you should go out of your way to visit this summer. I would be willing to bet the vast majority of Mainers have never been, and that’s a shame. The museum itself is like stepping into a time machine and going back 100 years, with dioramas and glass cases filled with thousands of specimens of fossils, taxidermied animals, rocks and minerals and more. They have a marlin caught by Ernest Hemingway. They have a platypus. They have lovely nature trails to walk, and each year there’s a new exhibit by a Maine artist, to bring you back to the 21st century. It’s located only about five miles off the 95 exit in Fairfield, so it’s incredibly easy to visit.
Rowing with Come Boating, Belfast
No Maine summer should go by without getting out on the water; freshwater or salt, you simply must get your butt in a boat at some point. There are many different ways to do it - schooner, canoe, party barge, whale watch and so on - but I’m going to suggest that this year you look up the fine folks at Come Boating in Belfast and try rowing in Belfast Harbor. For just $35 a year you can go rowing as often as you’d like all summer long. It’s such a cool organization! Some members compete in rowing competitions in the U.K., but you can also be an absolute beginner and it’s no problem. And if you really get into it you will have some seriously jacked shoulders and arms by the end of the summer. The Come Boating season launches on May 23 with a nautical yard sale and open rowing on the Belfast Waterfront.
Eastport Pirate Festival, Eastport
I am always going to include this ridiculous event on every list I ever make about things to do in Maine, because it is a truly magical mix of heartwarming community spirit and slightly unhinged revelry. It’s exactly what it sounds like: people dons pirate gear, pirates invade the town and set up an encampment, and everybody has a great time. Parades, food, kids stuff, all the bars and restaurants are full. I attended the Eastport Pirate Fest many years ago on the recommendation of the late, great Tony Sohns, and got so drunk I didn’t get back to where we were staying until the sun came up, and I do not remember how we made it there. I somehow managed to not lose my pirate hat. It was awesome. You don’t have to go as hard as I did when I was in my mid-20s - I certainly can’t do it these days - but the fact that the option is there is a good thing. Plus: You’re in Eastport, the coolest town in Down East Maine.