Our Impressions of the Damariscotta, Maine Area

Dave grew up in the Damariscotta area, so it is very familiar to him. Population wise, this is a very small area of coastal Maine. Many people work in the fishing industry, mostly lobster fishing.

Attractions

Pemaquid Point Lighthouse (Bristol) is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was commissioned in 1827 by John Quincy Adams. The lighthouse has inspired artists and photographers for decades. The lighthouse tower is one of the few towers that you can climb up inside. There is also a museum and a really nice small restaurant just outside the park gates.

Reny’s Store (Damariscotta) is a “Maine adventure”. Reny’s is an old style “department store” selling everything from clothing to food to everything in between. The Damariscotta Reny’s is the original one of many stores. It is a true Maine shopping adventure.

Damariscotta River Cruises is a unique way to see the Damariscotta River and all of the oyster farms of the banks of the river. Many options are available for a boat ride, including a sunset cruise, and a wine and oyster cruise.

Food and Drink

Borealis Breads (Waldoboro) makes their own breads and pastries. They also make sandwiches. Everything is really good.

Moody’s Diner (Waldoboro) is definitely a tradition. Their logo and play on words, “I don’t get hungry, I get Moody”. Moody’s has been around for years. The food is always good and filling. If you want one of their amazing whole pies, you have to call 24 hours in advance, or you can buy a frozen, uncooked pie if you forget to call. Single slices are always available.

Musgonus Bay Lobster Company / Reny’s Lobster Pound (Bristol) is the lobster in the rough restaurant we go to when we are in the area. Casual dining. Inside and outside seating. Outside seating is right on the working docks where the lobster fishermen bring their lobsters into the co-op to sell. You can’t get fresher lobsters than that!

Round Top Ice Cream (Damariscotta) is locally made. It has been around for years, and is always good. I had rhubarb sorbet for the first time this year. Excellent!

Schooner Landing (Damariscotta) is a casual restaurant in downtown Damariscotta. Inside and outside eating is available. Full bar. During the summer there is live local music every Thursday, Friday and Saturday afternoon from 4 – 7 p.m. Schooner Landing is on the Damariscotta River. It is the same area the River Cruise leaves from.

Update: Schooner Landing was completely destroyed by fire on 9/1/24 and has been rebuilt.

Shaw’s Wharf (New Harbor) is another popular lobster in the rough restaurant. It has mostly inside seating, but it, too is on the waterfront. A little more expensive than Reny’s, but you can also get fried seafood here (but not at Reny’s).

Home Base: The Campground

For us, a campground is not our destination. Our RV is self-contained. Except for water, electric and sewer rarely do we use campground services or amenities. We are explorers, not campground reviewers!

We stayed on site 23 at Duck Puddle Campground in Nobleboro. This is a family run campground with HUGE bonfires and live music every weekend. Much of the park sites are seasonals, but they have been increasing the number of transient spots as well. Most of the transient sites we stay in are fairly unlevel side to side. There are two newer sections which are more level but they are VERY close together (awning to awning). The staff was friendly. Simple check in. Our back in site was a FHU (water-electric-sewer) on uneven gravel. While our site was supposed to be 50 amp, the electrical service was 30 amp at best. Good Verizon cellphone coverage. We had an open sky for our satellite.

We tried Pemaquid LAKE Campground. We were told there were sites big enough for our 35’ motorhome. We drove in and immediately drove out. ALL of the sites were MUCH too narrow or too short to accommodate our motorhome. It seems like most of the larger sites are reserved for seasonals.

We have also tried Pemaquid POINT Campground on several occasions. It is more out of the way from family and friends, but the campground is nice. It is very close to Pemaquid Point and New Harbor in Bristol. We have nothing bad to say about this campground except the distance.

Fun Facts

A fun fact about Damariscotta:

• Damariscotta is the oyster capital of New England.
• Francis Perkins summered in Newcastle, the next town over from Damariscotta. She was FDR’s Secretary of Labor and the first woman to serve as a cabinet secretary. She was the driving force behind the New Deal, credited with formulating policies to shore up the national economy following the nation’s most serious economic crisis and helping to create the modern middle class. She was responsible for expanding factory investigations, reducing the workweek for women to 48 hours per week and championed minimum wage and unemployment insurance laws.

Some fun facts about Maine:

• Maine is the only state that shares its borders with only one other US state. It is bordered by New Hampshire to the west and south.
• 90% of the country’s lobster supply comes from Maine.
• 99% if the blueberries produced in the US come from Maine.
• Donut holes were invented in Maine. The first donuts in America (introduced by the Dutch) did not have holes. They often cooked unevenly with the center staying raw. While working as a 16-year-old crewman on a lime-trading schooner in 1847, Capt. Hansen Gregory, from Rockport, Maine came up with the solution of punching a hole in the center.
• Overall, Alaska is the coldest state in the country. As far as the lower 48 go, Maine is the coldest state during the spring. Wyoming is the coldest state during the summer. North Dakota is coldest state during the fall and winter.

Yes, the numbers below are accurate. As someone who has lived in this area for decades, the housing market has been flooded with people fleeing CA, CT, MA, NY, OR and WA. During and since covid, it seems like there are more license plates from theses 6 states than from Maine. No local person earning $47,000 a year can pay $407,000 for a house.

As of 2/26:

	Bristol	Damariscotta	Nobleboro	Waldoboro
Population:	2,834	2,300	1,753	5,154
Founded:	1765	1848	1788	1773
Elevation:	121 ft.	50 ft.	59 ft.	72 ft.
Average Income:	$129,333	$59,659	$47,678	$66,072
Average Housing:	$551,464	$389,900	$407,768	$328,212
Average Age:	61 yrs.	49 yrs.	45 yrs.	53 yrs.

Websites:

Damariccotta Region Chamber of Commerce
www.bristolmaine.org/
www.damariscotta.maine.gov/
www.nobleboro.maine.gov
www.waldoboromaine.org

Summary

This is an area we have been back to many times. It is an extremely busy area in the summer and almost deserted in the winter. Covid has somewhat changed the quaint flavor of this area. Many people from other states who fled to Maine during covid, have stayed.

Since beginning our full-time journey to discover the country, we have found something to appreciate in every city and town we have passed through. We hope you enjoy reading about them as much as we have enjoyed discovering them!

Your partners in travel,
Kathryn and Dave
RVing Nomads

It’s a lifestyle

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• We have visited each town, attraction and restaurant we are writing about. • No person, business or attraction has paid us for an endorsement. • AI has not been used to write any of the content of this blog. • All the photos in this blog were taken by Dave or Kathryn Harrington.