photo courtesy Point Lookout Resort
Fall family travel in the northeast generally includes “leaf-peeping” — but if your kids are wondering why you’re putting them in the car to look at the trees that THEY look at year-round, consider adding an activity or a special vantage point. One that many families enjoy is lighthouse “collecting”.
September 12 is Lighthouse Day in Maine and is open to the public. Get a national lighthouse passport for “collecting” your visits — like the state quarters. You can also find a complete list of participating lighthouses on their website. Stephanie Seacord recommends a new place for your home base — Point Lookout Resort in Northport, Maine. She says it’s a great because many of the ‘midcoast’ lighthouses are near Point Lookout and:
1. Coastal Route One, north of Portland is a great drive on its own, with water views, lobster boats, etc.
2. The Summit at Point Lookout has panoramic views of the countryside, Penobscot Bay and the islands — foliage too
3. Get great photos of the kids with the life-size bronze animal sculptures by Maine artist Forest Hart: moose, deer, mountain lion with 6 miles of hiking trails as the backdrop
4. The accommodations are very affordable: a 2 or 3- bedroom cabin with kitchen facilities, all to yourself (but very upscale cabins as the resort was built as a corporate retreat for MBNA Bank — polished pine, leather furniture, air-conditioning and gas-operated woodstove.)
5. It’s an ideal place for an extended family getaway, or with another family as the cabins are clustered for privacy so you could have your own little compound.
6. Great shopping and restaurants in nearby Camden, plus lighthouses to explore 7. Bring your bicycle, kayak or canoe and take advantage of the private beach, lake and trails on the 397-acre property.
Here’s a quick list of many of the participating lighthouses in Maine:
- Dice Head Lighthouse
Town of Castine Penobscot Bay Groups by Appointment; (207) 326-4502 - Fort Point Lighthouse
Fort Point State Park, Stockton Spring, ME; (207) 567-3356 - Grindle Point Lighthouse Museum
Town of Islesboro, ME 04848; (207) 734-2253 - Maine Lighthouse Museum / Rockland
Rockland Breakwater Stamp & Owl’s Head Lighthouse Stamp available at the museum
One Park Drive; PO Box F; Rockland, ME 04841; (207) 594-3301
Website: http://mainelighthousemuseum.com
Email: info@mainelighthousemuseum.com - Marshall Point Lighthouse and Museum
Entrance to Port Clyde and the Saint George River
Marshall Point Lighthouse Museum Committee
Marshall Point Road; Port Clyde, ME 04855; (207) 372-6450
Website: http://www.marshallpoint.org - Monhegan Lighthouse
Monhegan LighthouseMuseum; Open June 24-Sept 30th
1 Lighthouse Hill; Monhegan, ME 04852; (207) 596-7003
Website: http://www.monheganmuseum.org
Email: museum@monheganmuseum.org - Owl’s Head Lighthouse
Stamp available at the Maine Lighthouse Museum
Website: http://mainelighthousemuseum.com
Email: info@mainelighthousemuseum.com - Pemaquid Point Lighthouse & Fisherman’s Museum
On Pemaquid Point separating Johns Bay and Muscongus Bay
PO Box 353; Bristol, ME 04539; (207) 677-2494
Friends of Pemaquid Lighthouse; (207) 563-2739
Website: http://www.cr.nps.gov/maritime/light/pemaquid.htm
Email: backlog@tidewater.net - Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse
Rockland Harbor, end of breakwater at Jameson Point
Friends of the Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse
P.O. Box 741; Rockland, ME 04841; (207) 785-4609
Website: http://www.rocklandlighthouse.com
Email: brkwater@midcoast.com
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