September 2011 Maine trip
 

I am in the planning stages of a first time trip to Maine for my husband & I. We are in our fifties & our main interests are sightseeing, hiking & biking (we are taking our own bikes). I have tentatively planned on arriving in Greenville for 3 nights & 4 days at Moosehead Lake. Then on to Southwest Harbor/Acadia for 5 nights & 6 days, then to Camden for 3 nights & 3 days. We have 2 nights left before heading home to Ohio & I don't know whether to stay in Ogunquit or Kennebunkport. Also, where would be the best place to take a whale watching cruise or are we arriving at the wrong time of year for this? Any help would be appreciated with "not to miss" activities/hikes.

Kennebunkport and Ogunquit are both outstanding towns. I believe Ogunquit is probably my favorite but I really like Kennebunkport also. I believe Ogunquit has more beautiful ocean shoreline than Kennebunkport which is on a bay of some sort. I hope you have a good trip.

September is getting late for whale watching. Once you get past Labor Day, some operators offer trips on weekends only. Also, the later in the month, the more likely it is that the whales have begun moving south.

Remember as well that it is significantly colder out on the water than it is on land, so plan accordingly. I went on a whale watching trip from Ogunquit in September a couple of years ago and we did see whales, but no breaching or lobtailing, just spouting. It seems like we had to go pretty far out, too. And it was COLD out on the water, and a little rough (6-foot swells).

Thanks for the responses. I was leaning a little more towards Ogunquit so now I definitely think I'll seal the deal. As far as whale watching, maybe we'll skip that. We spent 3 wks in Alaska 2 years ago & saw a pod of orcas & a humpback whale along with lots of other wildlife...but no breaching. We were there the end of May into June & since they were having a very late spring that year, we know all too well about COLD out on the water:)

We also prefer Ogunquit.

How are you getting to Greenville and from where? It's quite isolated. Do you have to get back to Portland or Boston for a return flight to somewhere? Because if you are heading to Boston from Ogunquit, you might enjoy spending some time in Portsmouth, NH.

Rather than a whale watch, maybe consider one of the cruises out of Portland ME or Portsmouth NH. We did the mailboat cruise around Casco Bay last June. Not much narration but interesting. Have enjoyed both the harbor and inland rivers cruises out of Portsmouth. The other boat trip to consider would be a day trip to Monhegan Island. Great hiking and views but it will depend on the weather. September can be beautiful weather, but agree, still cold on the water.

In addition to biking all the wonderful carriage trails in Acadia NP be sure to take your bikes via ferry over to the Schoodic Point area of the park. Very few people, spectacular scenery and easy loop ride. Enjoy!

Thanks everyone for all the helpful suggestions. Irishswampyankee...we are driving from Ohio. Plan on leaving very early & driving about 10-12 hours and spending the night somewhere...Maybe north of Boston?? Then driving the last 4-6 hours the next day to Greenville. Originally thought about planning our drive out through NH & VT but decided to spend our time really exploring Maine & doing a separate vacation for NH & VT. Now we just want the fastest way from point A to point B to get our vacation started.
The mailboat cruise around Casco Bay or trip to Monhegan Island sounds very doable in our itinerary. Barblab...I have definitetly put the Schoodic Point bike trip on our must do list. That exactly fits the bill for what we like to do! Thanks to everyone!!

Take the Katahdin boat trip on Moosehead. Years ago there was a boat out to Mt. Kineo, but it wasn't operating last time I was there. If a new one has started up, I would take it also.

If you don't have a place in Greenville, consider the Indian Hill Motel which has a great view of the lake just as you come into Greenville. Nice large rooms also.

Depending on when you are there, you might ask about picking wild blueberries or raspberries and where are good places to spot moose and bears. I used to see the bears at the dump, but I believe they have made it into a 'sanitary landfill' which would not attract the bears.

Glad to see you are going to the 'real Maine' and not just the coast.

We stayed in Rockland ME for 3 days in July prior to a sailing trip. It is a beautiful area.

We stayed at Berry Manor Inn. We loved it - the rooms were comfortable, the food excellent and gracious and knowledgable hosts. The best part however was the FREE PIE! 24/7, fresh, hot: cherry, raspberry and of course - blueberry with ice cream. Help yourself and we sure did.

We did several walks/hikes, ate lots of lobster, went to lighthouses, and really had a great time.

We went to Owl Head Transportation Museum and even the ladies liked it.

Here are some ideas:

http://www.berrymanorinn.com/stay.html

Bigtyke....I already have the Katahdin boat trip on our to do list. I had been looking at the Kineo View Motor Lodge for accomodations. Would you suggest the Indian Hill Motel over Kineo? We don't need fancy..just clean!!
Also, we wanted to hike Mt. Kineo Indian trail. Can you access this by car? I thought you had to take a boat but if there is no longer a boat operating, will we have to scratch this hike? Thanks everyone for your helpful suggestions. I'm considering all of them.

You need a boat to get to Kineo.

I don't know the Kineo View Motor Lodge. Indian Hill is located across the street from the small shopping area (It used to be a field where I picked blueberries 50 years ago!)

Kennebunkport and Ogunquit are not that far apart. You can stay in one and visit the other. Or, you could stay in between in Wells where lodging is more economical. You should be able to find shoulder/off season rates in September.

Know that Bar Harbor is often completely fogged in days at a time, so you may have to adjust your plans accordingly. Sometimes you have to go much farther south (Camden, Boothbay Harbor) to escape the fog.

Unless you really want to see whales (and have no seasickness concerns), harbor cruises available all over are really nice. As mentioned, you would need to check schedules in various locations for that time of year. You may have to plan around weekend only schedules.

Kennebunkport/Cape Porpoise seems to me to be a much better choice than Ogunquit if biking and hiking is your main interest.