8 Best Sights in Lubec Area, Down East Coast

With 4½ miles of undeveloped Bold Coast between Cutler and Lubec, views from this state preserve above Cutler Harbor are likely to take your breath away. Here a wall of steep cliffs—some 150 feet tall—juts from headlands partially forested with spruce and fir. Look for whales, seals, and porpoises while taking in views of cliff-ringed Grand Manan Island and the Bay of Fundy. One of the East Coast's premier hiking destinations, the preserve's interconnected trails offer hikes of 3–10 miles, including loops. There are challenging sections, and a log ladder descends to one of the cobble beaches, but the 1.4-mile portion of the Coastal Trail from the parking area through woods to an ocean promontory is relatively easy. From here the trail follows the glorious Bold Coast for 3.4 miles. Revealing the area’s unusual terrain inland from the coast, the 4½-mile Inland Trail passes by raised peat bogs, salt marshes, swamps, and a beaver pond and wends through meadows and forest. While the coastal portion of the preserve, which has several primitive campsites, is the star attraction, most of its 12,234 acres are on the opposite (northern) side of Route 191. Forest and grassland here is laced with 19.5 miles of multiuse roads and ATV trails.

Candy cane–striped West Quoddy Head Light marks the easternmost point of land in the United States. One of Maine's most famous lighthouses, it guards Lubec Channel as it flows into much wider Atlantic waters that also demarcate Canada and the United States. Authorized by President Thomas Jefferson, the first light and keeper's house was built here in 1808. Just inside the park entrance are their 1858 replacements. You can’t climb the tower, but a video of the inside is shown at the former keeper’s house, now a seasonal museum with displays about the lighthouse and its keepers, works by local artists, and a gift shop. Plan for more than a lighthouse visit at this enticing 541-acre Bold Coast park. Whales are often sighted offshore, the birding is world-famous, and there’s a seaside picnic area. Visitors beachcomb, walk, or hike several miles of trails; a 2-mile trail along the cliffs yields magnificent views of Canada’s cliff-clad Grand Manan Island, while the 1-mile round-trip Bog Trail reveals arctic and subarctic plants rarely found south of Canada. Leading to a lookout with views of Lubec across the channel, the western leg of the 1-mile Coast Guard Trail is wheelchair-accessible. In the off-season, visitors can park outside the gate and walk in.

There are some steep sections on the 2-mile trail network, but this lovely preserve provides easy access to the Bold Coast. Visitors marvel at sweeping ocean views from cliffs and amble on rocky beaches; a viewing platform looks across Grand Manan Channel. Other geographical features add to the mystical vibe: wind-stunted trees, a heath (raised peatland), and forest carpeted with sphagnum moss. Two headlands are on the 400-acre coastal section of the preserve, while the 300-acre inland parcel connects with owner Maine Coast Heritage Trust's Hamilton Cove Preserve—among several the conservation group has in the Lubec area. Check the website to learn about these preserves and others Down East and all along the Maine coast.

Cobscook Bay is a mishmash of small coves and sub bays, as though a giant tried to claw his way inland from Lubec and Eastport. Even for Maine, the coast here is nooks and crooks, and a number of exceptional parcels on these wildly shaped waters have become part of a nonprofit, foundation-funded public park system with 20 parks and miles of shore frontage. Amenities include woodsy screened-in picnic shelters, restrooms, water fountains, and spiffy kiosks with large maps and information about the park's ecology and history. Old Farm Point Shorefront Park off Route 189 serves as an outdoor (unstaffed) visitor center for Cobscook Shores and has a few short trails. Black Duck Cove and Race Point are two of the larger parks. The park system draws bikers, paddlers, hikers, walkers, and campers.

Hike in the state preserve in Cutler (Cutler Coast Public Land) for views of this 1876 cast-iron lighthouse, which faces the ocean on 15-acre Little River Island fronting Cutler Harbor. Better yet, boat or kayak over: the island is open to the public 9 am–sunset. A wooden walkway leads from the boat ramp, and rock-clad shores and trails through pine woods await visitors. Friends of Little River Lighthouse offers overnight stays from June through September in the charming 1888 Victorian-style keeper’s house; check the website for details.

Small buildings clustered on piers along the downtown waterfront are what remains of the nation’s last herring smokehouse, which operated here from the 1890s until 1991. Restoration is ongoing, but you can take a guided tour of the skinning and packing sheds, which have exhibits about the smoking operation and the sardine canning industry that once thrived along the Down East coast; your guide might be someone who worked here years ago and is helping preserve this legacy. On the National Register of Historic Places, the smokehouse is part of Lubec Landmarks and there are photos and a video about the industry. Next door, the organization's seasonal Mulholland Market Gallery, in a yellow 1860s shop front with bright green trim, has art exhibits and sells works by area artisans.

This 1.2-mile beach on the southern side of Lubec Neck has dramatic tides that produce excellent clamming conditions, and you'll often see clammers out on the expansive tidal flats at low tide. The shoreline is a hot spot for birds (migratory, nesting, and wintering)—and birders. A boardwalk leads through a heady mess of fragrant rugosa rose bushes to the shore. From the beach, you can see Lubec Channel Light, one of only three “spark plug” lighthouses in Maine, in these relatively shallow waters. Part of a 48-acre Downeast Coastal Conservancy preserve, the beach is at the edge of Lubec town center. There is parking.

Maine Coast Heritage Trust’s Western Head Preserve flanks the coast on the south side of Cutler Harbor. This pristine 247-acre preserve is known for its awesome Bold Coast views. Along the steep cliffs, wind and salt spray have sculpted spruce and fir trees into odd, stunted shapes. Cranberries, iris, and juniper grow from rock ledges. There are beaches here.