maine in the fall.
it was halloween weekend when kaley and i headed to maine. we both had never been before and we knew the landscapes, small towns and seafood we be the autumn retreat that we needed. we met in portland, stayed for a night and then drove to acadia national park, stopping in camden and bar harbor along the way. sleepy-towns greeted us with signs that said, “ closed for the season see you in may 2022.” and we were glad to have snuck into the quiet part of the state just before the reclusing ( yes, just made that word up.) began.
portland pulled out all the stops for us upon arrival. after yummy wine and popcorn at the portland hunt & alpine club, our seafood needs were met thanks to eventide oyster co. we woke to wander around the plethora of quirky shops while drinking matcha turmeric lattes from lb kitchen ( they added black pepper which changed everything for me).
we went from dreary weather to crisp air and sunny skies as we made our way up the coast. i had the best pancake breakfast of my life at marriners grill in camden, approximately 295ft away from zoot coffee, where the sunlight danced on the tables as she sipped cider and I matcha. (being a gilmore girl, it felt like a stars hollow kind of day.) the church bells rang every hour on the hour and the golden leaves crunched at my feet as we made our way to the marina. it was quaint. it was quiet. as we left the town to head to bar harbor, we drove into a park and up a winding road to see the church, who’s steeple we were just gazing up at, now from miles and miles above it. having been to a small coastal norwegian town with kaley years ago, we both didn’t feel like we were in america anymore upon seeing this view.
bar harbor with all its charm, won us over as we walked to dinner and stumbled upon an ivy covered inn where a man and his bud were playing music while people crowded around small fires sipping cheap wine. so we ate quickly and made our way over. it felt nice to be apart of something that happens weekly - especially since this would be the last time before the season ended.
the concept that you would close for a season was mind-blowing as i am a florida native and we have only one season. but soon enough the sun will set at three, said the harmonica player, and why would you want to be open when it’s so dark and cold for most of the day? I am sitting here now typing, wondering how they are coping without the sun.
i decided to go to maine in the fall when everything is changing colors and shoot mostly in black and white. i don’t shoot bw that often, but they hold the texture of the trip - the feel of our time. and it’s wild how taking the color away can somehow make something more tangible. i also loved the snapshot-lighthearted feel i had when taking them. just fast, sweet moments quickly composed before they were gone.
everyone asked us how we landed on maine, and we truly just landed on it. i am very glad we didn’t try for something else, because the calm of the sunrise at otter’s cliff our last morning was, unknown to us until it happened, why we came. we leaped and clapped and shouted, with the waves and rocks beneath our feet, at the true glory that a sunrise holds. it’d been so long since i’d see one from the ocean and to feel it’s warmth the instant it broke the horizon line was pure magic.
this will not be my last trip to maine, ty.