Every year as the first weekend in August approaches, I begin to get giddy with excitement. The week goes by slowly as I anticipate the Friday when I will head up to Brooklin, Maine, land of the sun-soaked blueberry barrens, twisting roads, seaweed coated rocks, and wild-waved bays for the Eggemoggin Reach Regatta (much more after the jump).
Usually I sail up to Brooklin in the feeder race, called the Camden Classic, but this year I drove up with my friend whose family I sail with every year. The drive from Rockport to Brooklin starts with a trip up route 1, where we passed some of the most fabulous signs (“Perry’s Nut House” being a particularly good one), diners, and beautiful old houses. We crossed over the Penobscot Narrows Bridge, one of whose towers holds the highest bridge observatory in the world.
We then wound our way up back roads. I put my feet on the dashboard, put my hand out the window, and let the car and the Rolling Stones carry me and my friend up past the stunning inlets and woods. The sun was setting, spreading golden light over the roofs of blueberry warehouses and the decks of yachts, shingles of general stores and stretches of forest.
We pulled up to the cottage, a beautiful home near Allen Bay. Family and friends were seated on the porch, and we had drinks overlooking Blue Hill. Dinner was a feast of lobster, corn, five-thousand kinds of salad, and tons of laughter, wine, and love. It was the perfect summer evening, and I went to bed happy, tired, and ready for the race the next day.
Here, some photos:
Passing over Belfast.
Never underestimate the importance of a pink dinosaur outside your shop.
Cut away rock by the Penobscot Narrows Bridge.
The bridge!
437 feet above the river.
G.M. Allen and Son's blueberry warehouse.
Setting sunlight.
A glimpse of the sea.
Porch.
Living room.
Nothing more Maine than this...just need a pair of Bean boots in the photo to really complete it.
The seaweed glowed golden in the evening light.
And some from Instagram(@thewilderthings):
Hammock feet.
The great lobster massacre of 2012.
Believe it or not, my first sip of moxie. Ever. It was kind of amazing.
ERR Parts 2 and 3 coming soon.