Maine has lengthy been a getaway for vacationers making an attempt to beat the summer season warmth and bask in recent seafood like lobster rolls and uncooked oysters. The northeastern-most state has 3478 miles of wonderful shoreline on the Atlantic Ocean, with a beautiful mixture of flat sandy seashores and dramatic rocky cliffs dashed by whitecaps.
Whereas it’s true that the ocean water here’s a little chilly for some folks’s sustained consolation, Maine additionally has beautiful lakes to spare, with calm our bodies of hotter water surrounded by hushed pine forests and, when you’re fortunate, moose.
Talking of which, the native sightseeing is unparalleled, from iconic lighthouses and all method of labor and leisure boats to aquatic creatures like seals and sea stars – even whales, up close to the Canadian border. Convey some binoculars, lay out a towel and luxuriate in Maine’s greatest seashores.
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What to pack for a Maine seashore journey
Once you’re packing solar safety, like sunscreen, hats, mild layers, umbrellas and seashore tents, for shiny summer season enjoyable in Maine, you must also think about layers, like rashguards for youngsters and even wetsuits for anybody who plans to spend so much of time browsing or splashing within the ocean.
Even at peak heat in August, most of Maine’s coastal southern waters hover round 60°F. For those who make it to one of many nation’s easternmost seashores – resembling Mowry Seashore Protect in Lubec, the place you possibly can wave to Canadians throughout the Lubec Narrows – the summer season highs are solely round 50°F.
1. Mom’s Seashore, Kennebunk
Greatest seashore for all ages
Seashore Avenue is much from a meaningless title in Kennebunk: the road is dwelling to Mom’s Seashore, Center Seashore and Gooch’s Seashore, all in a row.
Permitted parking is proscribed, however Mom’s is a superb guess for all ages, because of its sizable playground, seasonal lifeguards and a woven polyester mat laid out from the parking space that enables simpler entry for individuals who use mobility aids. You may also lease a large-tire seashore wheelchair by means of the Kennebunk Parks & Recreation Division.
And if these three seashores aren’t sufficient, Colony Seashore gives a scenic, rocky shoreline with idyllic boat views simply throughout the mouth of the Kennebunk River on Ocean Avenue.
2. Fortune’s Rocks Seashore, Biddeford
Greatest seashore for solitude and sea glass
With its restricted parking and facilities – in excessive season there could be a conveyable bathroom and maybe a gelato or hot-dog cart – Fortune’s Rocks Seashore in Biddeford is good for the beachgoer seeking some solitude. (For extra motion, take a look at close by Center Seashore or Biddeford Pool.)
Lifeguards are on responsibility right here from late Could by means of early September, watching over Fortune’s Rocks’ beloved 2 miles of white-sand coast, clear water and delightful rock formations that host charming tide swimming pools. Excessive tide brings first rate waves for surfers and bodyboarders, whereas low tide reveals hard-packed sand for walkers and joggers and treasures for sea-glass and sand-dollar hunters.
3. Previous Orchard Seashore
Greatest seashore for successful of nostalgia
Step again in time at Previous Orchard Seashore, identified regionally as OOB, a seasonal cease on the Amtrak Downeaster practice’s scenic coastal route. The resort city on 7 miles of comparatively sheltered Saco Bay could be the closest Maine will get to the Jersey Shore, full with a boardwalk-like pier and nostalgic pleasures, like fried dough, seafood shacks and mini golf, plus arcade video games and amusement-park rides at Palace Playland.
The flat, sandy seashore has lifeguards and stays busy all season, because of sunbathers, paddleboarders, surfers and even jet skiers and parasailors. You possibly can lease tools for all this and extra at close by outlets, like Previous Orchard Seashore Water Sports activities & Leases.
4. Crescent Seashore State Park, Cape Elizabeth
Greatest seashore for white sand and wild blueberries
A deal with for many who like delicate white sand and grassy dunes, Crescent Seashore, within the Portland suburb of Cape Elizabeth, is without doubt one of the many awe-inspiring seashores lower than 10 miles from Maine’s greatest metropolis. You’ll discover a playground right here, in addition to seashore wheelchair entry and typically a meals truck or two.
Once you want a break from the solar, have a picnic at tables outfitted with charcoal grills in shady wooded nooks alongside paths lined with wild Maine blueberry bushes – forage for the famously scrumptious fruit when it ripens in late July and August.
Planning tip: On weekends in July and August, you possibly can skip Crescent Seashore State Park’s $8-per-person entrance price by pre-booking a paddle board or sea-kayak rental or kayak tour with Portland Paddle.
5. Fort Williams Park, Cape Elizabeth
Greatest seashore for excellent images
A small swimming space at Ship Cove is bounded by spherical stones concerning the dimension of tennis balls. These make it difficult however entertaining to clamber to the water’s edge, the place flat sand and delicate waves meet on the base of imposing cliffs. This seashore is rarely too busy, regardless of the recognition of Cape Elizabeth’s Fort Williams Park itself, the place folks flock for photos of Maine’s oldest and most photographed lighthouse, Portland Head Mild.
Stroll southeast from the Ship Cove parking zone (the place there are grills, picnic tables and a conveyable bathroom) towards the lighthouse alongside a large, gently hilly cliff stroll, admiring native plantings on one aspect and genuinely breathtaking ocean views on the opposite. When you’ve captured the right angle of the lighthouse, pattern a flight of lobster rolls from the Chew Into Maine meals truck by the higher parking zone.
Detour: For those who stroll north as a substitute of south from Ship Cove, you’ll attain a quieter part of the park, dwelling to the hollowed-out stone Goddard Mansion and Battery Keyes, an deserted concrete gun battery you possibly can climb for a stellar have a look at Portland Head Mild and Ram Island Ledge Mild Station throughout the way in which.
6. Songo River Seashore, Sebago Lake Park
Greatest seashore for sunning on a sandbar
Households love Songo River Seashore for its sandy shore lined with evergreens, abutting heat, clear freshwater that deepens steadily because of a pure sandbar. On the northern aspect of Sebago Lake in Sebago Lake State Park, this Western Maine waterfront provides lush views in addition to barbecues and seasonal lifeguards, so anticipate a jubilant crowd in the summertime.
Close by, your children may even love watching boats go by means of the hand-operated Songo Lock – the final surviving boat lock of the Nineteenth-century Cumberland and Oxford Canal.
7. Popham Seashore, Phippsburg
Greatest seashore to stroll to an island at low tide
A half-hour drive from Brunswick (dwelling of Bowdoin Faculty), Popham Seashore in Phippsburg is a well-liked 3-mile span of sand and sea between the mouths of the Kennebec and Morse rivers. Loos, rinse showers powered by photo voltaic vitality, lifeguards, accessible parking, picnic areas and a large-tire seashore wheelchair (first-come, first-served) guarantee a variety of holiday makers can get pleasure from this charmer.
For those who time your go to with low tide, you possibly can stroll out to Fox Island; when you come October by means of March, you may see people driving horses.
8. Moosehead Lake, Lily Bay State Park
Greatest seashore for wildlife
The 925-acre Lily Bay State Park provides entry to the jap shore of Moosehead Lake, Maine’s largest physique of recent water – it covers about 75,000 acres, and on a map it has a good resemblance to a moose’s head with antlers.
White pines overlook a seashore of pebbles and sand, surrounding a glacier-eroded basin full of cool, clear water. Go for a brisk swim, stroll the shoreline trails and let the youngsters play within the playground. No matter you do, hold a watch out for wildlife, together with deer, foxes and, after all, moose, that are stated to outnumber people right here three to at least one.
Planning tip: You probably have your fishing license, you may catch trout and salmon to grill at your campsite.
9. Sand Seashore, Acadia Nationwide Park
Greatest seashore for epic views
The petite Sand Seashore nestles between granite mountains and rocky shores inside Acadia Nationwide Park, and the sandy terrain of its title is generally composed of fragmented shells.
You possibly can take the seasonal Explorer Shuttle Bus or park off the Loop Highway and descend stairs to the seashore, the place you’ll be handled to gorgeous views of Otter Cliff and the ocean. Between the sights, the park’s reputation, the facilities – restrooms, altering rooms and a water-bottle refilling station – and Sand Seashore’s small dimension (it’s simply 290 yards lengthy), this one can get crowded throughout excessive season.
Detour: Round excessive tide, take the Ocean Path to the boisterous Thunder Gap, named for the distinctive roar attributable to waves crashing into the rocky inlet. Get a unique perspective through the Nice Head Path, a reasonably difficult path with views of Sand Seashore within the foreground and the Beehive rung-and-ladder path behind it.
