We took Lee’s family on a day trip to the east coast of Maine. We decided to drive via Augusta and Damariscotta to the Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park in Bristol, Maine. This lighthouse park is a city park and charged a small admission fee of $3.00 per person (disabled veterans get free admission). Regardless, the admission fee is worth this breathtaking quintessential rocky Maine coastline scenery. We realized that there is so much of Maine that we haven’t seen yet and this trip inspired us to visit more of the coast of Maine. We can’t wait to see what awaits us. In our heads, we pictured the Maine coastline as a straight line with lots of islands but it is nothing like that. There are so many peninsulas, inlets, and bays, each with a life of their own. This was the true rocky Maine coastline experience with lighthouse and all. We really enjoyed the park, especially the view and the waves.
Commissioned by John Quincy Adams in 1827, this Maine lighthouse has the Fisherman’s Museum on the first floor in the Keepers House…The Pemaquid Point Lighthouse Park is located at the entrance to Muscongus Bay and Johns Bay, in the town of Bristol. The Town of Bristol purchased the park property from the Coast Guard in 1940 with the exception of the light tower. Learn more at Visit Maine.
We literally drove from the Appalachian Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean in a matter of three hours on this trip. There are no east-west highways so most of the driving is done on backroads to get to these places. Maine has everything and there is so much more to explore and discover. I grew up in this beautiful state and want to get more acquainted with what the state has to offer. We have access to Acadia National Park and just recently the federal government under the Obama administration created another national park in Maine, the Katahdin Woods and Water National Monument.
Lee got a new camera for Christmas so he took advantage of this time to take some pictures. He used the timer on the camera to get some pictures of us with this incredible background. His camera was the best investment ever. He was able to catch some great shots of the scenery, of us, and me and my service dog, Onyx. She’s so beautiful and in every shot you can clearly see how she has my back. I don’t get that perspective every day. Service dogs are a force to be reckoned with. Pets were also allowed at the Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park.
It was relaxing and fun to hang out on the rocky coastline and listen to the waves crashing. Both of us had our cameras out in the hopes we could capture those epic wave photos. When we document the moment, like I am right now, we can relive the moment over and over and share it with others. We hope you are inspired to visit our city and state parks too.
We were in awe of the beauty at Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park. The fisherman’s museum and art gallery, the lighthouse, the rocky Maine coastline, the waves crashing, the flowers… All of it was simply breathtaking and interesting. We couldn’t believe what an experience this was. We had fun taking pictures of ourselves, the family, the park, and especially the crashing waves. Making the realization that this was only one of many places to visit on the Maine coastline gave us something to look forward to. We can’t wait to visit more of these spots. We visited Popham Beach State Park which is one of many state parks littered along the coast but we want to incorporate the city parks experience too.
I was born and raised in Maine so when I went on vacation, I left the State of Maine. We went to beaches and the Caribbean and other amazing city, state, and national parks. But we were inspired by our visit to the Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park to continue visiting the very state we live in more often. There’s a reason we are called Maine, the vacation land. And we plan to explore all the neat spots the tourists are drawn to. We want to experience where we live and we want to venture out of the state and find the beauty wherever we find ourselves next.
Related Links:
Bristol City Parks, Maine
Pemiquid Point Association
Pemiquid Art Gallery
Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park
Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park (video)
Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park 2 (video/slow-mo)
Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park 3 (video)
Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park 4 (video/slow-mo)
Pemiquid Point Lighthouse Park 5 (video)
Acadia National Park
Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument
Tim Hudson to Lead Efforts at Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument
Jennifer S. Norris 