Two same-sex married couples planned a trip to rural Maine. Here’s what happend.

When planning our semi-regular group trip with another couple, we all agreed that we wanted to head northeast. My husband and I live in Ohio, and our married friends, Travis and Ramone, live in Atlanta. We figured somewhere in or near New England would be roughly equidistant for us, and it was a part of the country we hadn’t explored as much.

We initially thought about some gay havens like Fire Island or Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, but decided that we wanted to hike, enjoy the outdoors, and explore. Finding a gay-centric destination wasn’t critical, but locating a progressive, gay-friendly place certainly was.

After a lengthy text thread and a Zoom call, we decided on  Maine, focusing on the coastal region around its famed  Acadia National Park. Only two of us had ever stepped foot in the state before, but had never really explored the state’s small towns, coastline, or backcountry.

Portland and cities
We flew into  Portland’s airport (or actually, they call it a jetport here) and spent a few hours exploring the city and the area. Downtown featured some great pedestrian streets, full of shops and restaurants and bustling with tourists. It had a neat, historic vibe and a bustling harbor. None of Maine’s cities are huge;  Portland is the largest, at 70,000 people, and the second largest, Lewiston, is only half that size. 

Pack your bags, we’re going on an adventure

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We liked Augusta, the state capital, but it is tiny, and only the 12^th largest city in the state, with fewer than 19,000 people. It’s also the third smallest state capital by population. But we enjoyed wandering along Water Street downtown, and also on the Kennebec River Rail Trail, a 6+ mile path dedicated to walking, biking, rollerblading, or dog walking.

One of the most popular tourist towns is  Bar Harbor, on the edge of Acadia, a glamorous spot that’s rife with seafood restaurants, funky dining spots, gift shops, and fun retailers like the wonderfully named pet store, Bark Harbor. The picturesque city is worth wandering before or after a trip to the national park.

Acadia National Park
Comprising almost 50,000 acres on the Atlantic coast of  Maine, Acadia National Park is located on Mount Desert Island. There are mountains here, such as Cadillac Mountain (the East Coast’s highest point, at 1,530 feet and Acadia Mountain, at 681 feet. The park is also dotted with lakes, rolling hills, and a dramatic, rocky coastline that offers views galore.

The visitor center is located in the northeastern corner of the park, close to the city of Bar Harbor. We parked there and took the extensive (and free!) shuttle bus service through the eastern portion on one day, and then self-drove through the quieter western section on a second day. 

The park’s eastern portion is where Cadillac Mountain is located, but you need to plan far ahead — further than we did! — to secure a car reservation to drive to the summit. This drive is popular in the very early morning hours to see the sunrise from the top of the mountain. This is one of the first places in the U.S. to see the sun rise each day, and there’s an extra $2 charge for the pass (in addition to the regular park entrance fees).

Instead, we decided to climb Acadia Mountain in the western half of the park, and it was both challenging and rewarding. We took a loop that ended up being 3.16 miles, with an 860-foot elevation gain. There was a fair amount of rock steps and several short ascents up boulder formations, but we enjoyed the tougher aspects of the hike, and the views of Echo Lake, Somes Sound, and the Atlantic Ocean — dotted with islands near and far — were worth every drop of sweat.

We explored the park on a Monday and Tuesday, figuring that it would be somewhat less busy than on the weekend. Still, the eastern half was crowded in places, with shuttle buses occasionally full; for those who ventured out in their own cars, parking was a challenge. But in spite of all of that, we mostly found that the trails themselves were somewhat empty, a vast difference to some mountain parks out west, where you occasionally feel like you’re hiking along with a whole swarm of people. Acadia lacks some of the drama of the craggy peaks and waterfalls of a Yosemite or a Glacier, but it offers a quieter, more reflective experience, with coastlines at every turn and a slower pace.

Lobster rolls, oh my!
We ate well across our trip along Maine’s coastline. Lobster is everywhere here, and the classic lobster roll is a must-try! There are two versions: the locals’ preferred variety of cold lobster in a mayonnaise-based sauce or what they call the “tourist’s way,” where the lobster is served warm with a butter sauce. I enjoyed them both ways, but prefer the tourist option-what can I say?! And don’t pass on the crab rolls, either, which I found to be delightful.

We ended up eating several great meals in the tiny town of Ellsworth, due to its location between our rented Airbnb and the national park. We loved the New York style pizza at Zeppa’s, the seafood and lobster rolls at Union River Lobster Pot, and the lattes at Chloe’s Café. We also enjoyed a great dinner (and flights of margaritas!) at Side Street Café in Bar Harbor. And we splurged on some of the best ice cream we’ve had on the road at  Mount Desert Island Ice Cream in Portland.

Bar Harbor Winery was a small local business that we also stopped at on the way to Bar Harbor. We enjoyed the wine tasting here, sitting outside while listening to live music — a great way to spend a few hours.

Overall vibe
I didn’t have a good handle on what Maine was like before the trip, but I really enjoyed the portion of the state we saw. In some (positive) ways, it felt like  West Virginia, with winding country roads, mountains aplenty, and mostly smaller towns. However, it has a definite progressive streak, which intrigued me, given its mostly rural nature. Over more than 600 miles of driving, we saw many political signs for liberal candidates and only one for a conservative officeholder.

Maine also has plenty of little fishing villages along its extensive  Atlantic coast. We found the locals friendly everywhere we went, and there were a plethora of Pride flags across the state. I think every decently sized city we were in had at least one hanging from a shop or restaurant.

It’s always refreshing to explore new places that are queerer than you expect, and we found Maine to be refreshingly accepting and friendly.

Our friends at VisitMaine assisted with portions of this trip.

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