Oh, what a wonderful place Port Clyde, Maine is! It’s one of my most favorite places in the world. The people are so genuine. When I’m there I just don’t want to leave! Gorgeous sunrises, sunsets… Fabulous places to eat, drink and be merry. A great ice cream shop, kayak place, cool home and clothing store and one of our favorites the Port Clyde General Store… Here’s a blip about Port Clyde from the Monhegan Boat Line website – if you haven’t been to Monhegan Island it’s a definite treat, Monhegan Boat Line is the way we always go. Here’s their information on Port Clyde:

Home port for the Elizabeth Ann and Laura B is the picturesque fishing village of Port Clyde, at the tip of the St. George Peninsula. To get to here you’ll take Route 131 from Route 1 in Thomaston. Click here for full directions. The road curves with the meandering St. George River, passing saltwater meadows, clapboard farmhouses, a few small art galleries, and the cluster of weathered buildings that is Tenants Harbor. When you arrive in Port Clyde, you will see signs directing you to the Monhegan Boat Line dock.

We hope you’ll plan to spend a little time ashore here before or after your trip. As you stroll around, it’s not hard to imagine how things might have looked back in the early 1800s, when the village was young and most Port Clyde families were involved in shipbuilding. Later, the most important source of income was catching and canning seafood, and you can still buy tinned sardines bearing the Port Clyde label. While the local canning industry is gone, Port Clyde remains primarily a working harbor, filled with the rugged boats of local lobstermen and fishermen.

You might see some of these hardy mariners loading traps or bait onto their boats at the docks behind the Port Clyde General Store. Be sure to stop into this wonderful old purveyor of staples, sundries, and homemade treats. Please also visit the gift shop on our dock, where you’ll find mementos of the coast and Monhegan Island. A number of noted artists — including Greg Mort, Gary Akers, and Barbara Ernst Prey — also live and/or work in the area. Their work captures the essence of Maine, so be sure to ask if studio showings are being offered while you’re here.

If you’re hungry for pizza, crab rolls, or steamed lobster, you can eat your fill at a local restaurant. Ready for a little hike? It’s a nice round-trip walk of about two miles from our dock to the Marshall Point Light, which has stood watch since 1833 on the eastern side of the harbor entrance. You can also drive out to the point. The view of Mosquito Island and smaller nearby isles is beautiful, and the keeper’s house is now a small museum. On the way to the lighthouse you’ll also find Herring Gut Learning Center, a marine science education center which includes oyster and finfish hatcheries, an aquaponic greenhouse, marine touch tanks, and a reference library.

It will be our pleasure to welcome you to Port Clyde as well as to our boats. You’ll discover a little bit of unspoiled Maine here, and take home old-fashioned memories with you.

Catch you back here tomorrow!