Girls Weekend #20, Tuesday, October 10. Maine

Tuesday, October 10 (written by Lori)

We woke up to a stunningly beautiful day with a predicted high of 74 degrees.  Who knew it could be so warm in Maine in October?

We got ready early this morning because we wanted to check out the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens (located right here in Boothbay Harbor) before our 12:30 whale-watching adventure.  After a quick stop at Mama D's cafe for some coffee, we made our way to the Botanical Gardens.  There were still an amazing number of flowers and blooms left on the plants at the gardens considering the time of year.  There was also a nice scattering of pumpkins throughout reminding one of the season.  We spent about 2 hours roaming this beautiful spot when we both realized that we were a bit tuckered from wandering around with no breaks.

I decided that I would call the whale watching place before we made our way to the dock to see if we would be able to get some lunch on board the boat or if we should grab a bite to eat beforehand.  I made the call and, much to my chagrin, learned that the reservation I had made for the whale-watching tour was actually for Monday (yesterday) at 12:30pm and that the next whale-watching tour isn't until tomorrow (Wednesday), when we need to be on the road to the Portland airport to catch our planes home.  I AM SO DISAPPOINTED!!  AND I FEEL STUPID!!  Apparently when I called to get our tickets for the whale-watching tour, I was a bit confused about what day of the week it was.  We were offered a boat tour of the harbor, but I quickly said no (I think mainly due to my embarrassment over the whole situation), because that just didn't sound as exciting to me as a whale-watching tour.  I rethought this decision later, called them back and booked us on the 3:30 harbor tour after all and I am so very glad that I did!

We found a spot to have lunch (Kaler's) that also provided us with free wi-fi so that we could work a bit on our journaling as we enjoyed a bite to eat.  I had a delicious hamburger, while Kathi ordered up so fish and chips, with the fish being something fresh. (I am not a fish eater and do not know my fish).  She said it was scrumptious and not at all like anything she would have gotten in Indianapolis!

After lunch, Kathi drove back to our tiny house, while I decided that I wanted to take the footbridge across the small harbor after wandering around town a bit.  Under normal circumstances, Kathi would have been up for this walk, too, but she is still recovering from an ankle surgery and had pretty much reached her limit of walking for the day at the Botanical Gardens.

It was a VERY warm, but quite beautiful walk back and it was on this walk across the harbor that I decided we really should take that harbor boat ride after all.

We headed back into town and made our way to Cap'n Fish's dock to board the boat for our harbor cruise.  This included a tour around the harbor as well as a ride out into the bay with the guide pointing out landmarks and places of interest.  There are actually a couple of privately owned islands right there in the Bay, where the owners spend some or part of the summer living.  In addition there are also a couple of lighthouses in the bay, both of which are still operational, but, of course are no longer manned by lighthouse keepers.

We saw mainly ducks, loons and cormorants out on the water, but also spotted some harbor seals and even one porpoise.  We also got to watch personnel on the boat pull in one of their lobster traps.  It had 3 live lobsters in it and one of the women brought it around the boat so that everyone would get a chance to see it up close.  Being a touring boat, they are required to toss all the lobster they catch back into the water.  Speaking of lobsters and lobster traps, they were literally HUNDREDS of lobster traps placed out in the harbor and bay. Every lobster fisherman has uniquely colored buoys onto which their traps are tied and the fisherman are allowed to only pull up their own traps.  There are also several restrictions in place regarding which lobsters may or may not be kept in order to keep a growing and healthy population of lobsters in the area.  While the trip wasn't nearly as exciting as a whale watching excursion would have been,  it was still a very pleasant way to spend part of the afternoon on this beautiful day.

Upon exiting the boat we were a bit undecided about what to do.  Kathi checked out lobster prices at a couple of restaurants and then some kind staring tuning a guitar near where we were so we sat and listened to him and his partner do a few songs to warm up before going into one of the nearby lounges to perform for the evening.  It was quite lovely.

We finally ended up going back to one of the restaurants where we had already eaten (The Boathouse Bistro Tapas Bar & Restaurant), where Kathi got some lobster tail in a land and sea combo and I had some delicious Vegetable Fettucine.

We then went back to the tiny house and watched an episode of Chicago PD as well as an episode of The Brave on the tiny TV before going to sleep.