Friday again dawned with a mix of clouds and sun. We convoyed to the nearby town of Searsport to see their Maritime Museum. It included several museum buildings, and we also were able to see the local Congregational Church. We toured the buildings, admired the art, and enjoyed learning about the maritime industry in this part of Maine.
The Congregational Church; this tiny church just raised funds to spend at least $30,000 per window to restore this stained glass:
The museum:
The town of Searsport, like most small towns in Main, has been in a depression for over 100 years due to the elimination of all the skilled labor industries that no longer exist; this house seems to be quite a bargain:
We then headed off to one of our favorite type of places: A lobster Pound; we found Young’s Lobster Pound, recommended by the staff at Searsport RV Park.
These places are usually located on a pier or wharf with access to the harbor. Lobsters are brought in by lobster boats and turned loose into the “pound” – an enclosed area of the sea, designed to contain the lobsters. Every hour or so, fresh, live lobsters are brought up to a tank in a shack on the wharf. These places don’t sell anything besides lobster, and maybe clams and/or mussels. You walk in, you tell them what size lobster you want, they pull them out of the pen, and throw them onto a scale. If it looks good to you, they put them in a numbered bag and throw them into a pot of boiling water. 20 minutes later you pick up your lobster.
You bring your own wine, utensils, napkins, whatever you want, and sit on picnic tables on the wharf:
Lynda, waiting patiently:
The picnic tables; these “wood” planks are actually plastic, usually used for decking; they have a very high coefficient of thermal expansion:
And, finally, the feast:
This is a truly Maine experience and if is really a lot of fun. When we were here in 2004, the hardest thing about eating at a lobster pound was to defend your lobster from the mosquitoes – they would swarm down and literally lift your lobster off the plate; if you didn’t swat them away they would fly away with your lobster. Not this day at this place; no mosquitoes, just a light breeze off the harbor and lots of sun. It was a great meal in a great setting – something not really available anywhere else in the world.
After our lunch, we returned to the Villa, and finalized more plans for our return trip home. That evening we had another GAM, and got to know 4 more couples on the caravan. An enjoyable time was had by all…
Adventures in the Villa 