maine highway from Bar Harbor
 

The first week in Oct, we will travel from Bar Harbor to Portland. We would like to travel via Hwy 1, along the coast. We are in no big hurry since that day is set aside for travel. Is this a bad idea or is this an interesting drive ? Any suggestions on where to stop ? Never been there before. The new Fodor's guide comes out in May, but we need to make plans before that. Thanks.

Remember, rt 1 is not really along the coast. The section from Ellsworth to Camden is quite a bit inland. It's a quiet drive but if you're starting from Bar Harbor it won't seem too boring. Camden is gorgeous and I would plan to have lunch there. You'll want to get out and walk around. View from top of Mt Battie is spectacular and Yankee magazine voted Camden one of the prettiest foliage spots. Rockland is another good stopping point and place to explore. Do a detour to Owls Head Light. It's just a short hike with nice view. Up to you whether to visit the Farnsworth Art Museum or Owls Head Transportation Museum. There's also a couple of wineries you could stop at close to Rt 1. I prefer Cellar Door's Lincolnville location where the grapes are but they have a shop on Rt 1 near Camden.

Rt 1 also goes thru Wiscasset which is a charming town. Up to you whether you want to do a detour to Boothbay Harbor.

Brunswick is where we get on I95 for a quicker drive. It's pretty boring but if you have limited time you might need to get on I95 at this point.

Great advice. You could easily take two days doing this drive if you took the back roads to places like Friendship or Popham Beach.

There will be places closed that you might want to see, but you will miss the traffic in Wiscasset, which is horrible in the summer because somehow the idea has developed that the only place in Maine to eat a lobster roll is at Red's Eats. Traffic backs up two or three miles in each direction as people try to get across the highway. Wiscasset has beautiful sea captain's houses; just get off the highway. There are many, many places to eat lobster rolls in Maine.

Thank you so much. When we stop for lunch (hopefully lobster), do you have a recommendation ? This is the type info I needed, and expected from this forum.We have traveled most parts of the world, and find this to be the best.

Look at the map and give an idea of how far you are going to get by lunch time. Also, what day of the week is it? Some of the lobster shacks are open on the weekend. You would only want to do this if it was warm enough to eat outside at a picnic table.

Years ago we had lunch at Just Barbs in Stockton Maine right on Rt 1 and I'd love to go back. It's a small, friendly, local place but it might not be far enough south.

Last summer we had a very good lobster roll at a drive-in restaurant with inside dining on Bath road just outside Brunswick. It looked like a former A&W drive in and was on the east side of the road. Sorry, can't remember the name.

Despite spending a couple of vacations in Wiscasset, we never ate at Red's!

you can google best lobster roll in Maine to read a report (with photos!) to start you salivating.

The Harraskeet Lobster Company in Freeport but well away from the outlet madness is a nice place to eat lobsters, and I am pretty sure they have an indoor area where you can eat.

You wouldn't be there for lunch if you do this trip in one day.

Actually we will be leaving from Southwest Harbor. According to MapQuest, it should take 4 hrs, 4 mins to travel on Hwy 1 to Portland.Sounds like we would have adequate time to reach either place for lunch. Is there something they don't know about the trip ? I will certainly Google "best lobster roll". I'm already hungry. Thanks for the help !

You won't find a problem with finding good lobster rolls anywhere along the coast. Last summer, there was a lobster glut, and they were very inexpensive. Good for diners, not good for our lobstermen. If you have time, you may want to stop at the Coastal Botanical Gardens in Boothbay. Fab coastal gardens, and I'll bet that even in October, they have some lovely displays.
BTW...my favorite lobster roll was in Bar Harbor at the Bar Harbor Inn. Camden is indeed a lovely town, and the view up Mt. Battie is worth it, hopefully you'll get some foliage color, too. I agree that Wiscasset and Rockland are nice, too.
Lincolnville has a winery, you might stop for a tasting, time permitting, it's called Cellardoor.

"Is there something they don't know about the trip ?"

Timings on all these map sites are driving time only. They do not allow any time for eating, buying gas, using the toilet, sightseeing or taking pictures.

If this is a place you are not sure to come back to, you will certainly not want to drive past it.

If you follow Rte 1 as opposed to the infinitely boring I-95, you will still not see the best scenery since, as dfrostnh points out, the main roads don't go through the best scenery.

Look at a map focused on Thomaston, Maine. It is on your route, and you will drive through on US 1.

Beyond Rockland, the interesting places in this area are Owls Head, Spruce Head, Tennant's Harbor, and Port Clyde. You have to leave US1 at Rockland to get to them, so that a simple trip from Rockland to Thomaston becomes a long ride.

The "good stuff" between Thomaston and Waldoboro is in the Cushing and Friendship areas. It is no distance from Waldoboro, but the good stuff is in Boothbay Harbor, East Boothbay, and Linekin.

When you close your eyes and think "Coast of Maine" these are the places that fulfill your vision. They are the Good Stuff, the Real Deal, and they make a 4 hour drive into an 8 hour drive -- minimum. If you aren't coming back to Maine any time soon, they are absolutely Worth It as are Harpswell, Orrs Island, and Baileys Island out of Brunswick.

This is great stuff from knowledgeable folks.We will certainly plan on taking some side trips off Hwy 1.In the interest of scarce time,is there a preferred detour off Hwy 1 ? We need to make the trip in approx. 6 hours.I wish we could have planned better for an extra day.Thanks again.