Stripers - Saco River, ME

On the last day of our vacation, Gary set up a striper fishing trip with Cal Robinson of Saco Bay Stripers. Cal took us out on the ocean to check his lobster traps.



Cal explained how to tell the males from the females, and which ones he releases:



He took us by the Wood Island Lighthouse in Biddiford Pool. It has an illustrious past and is claimed to be haunted.



A couple of years ago, some people were out fishing, and a bad storm blew in. Their boat ended up on the island and has not been retrieved yet. It's the white speck on the right side of the photo.



We headed back up the Saco River, and Mags caught the first fish! This photo captures the pure joy of fishing.



Below, Cal was unhooking the saltwater striped bass.



Maggie was intensely focused as she fished...and quiet, which is not like her.



And...it pays off!



Like father, like daughter...



I was sure I'd snagged bottom when I caught this monster (29.5" and 14-15 lb). It was all I could do to hold him up for the photos.



We saw this beautiful sailboat, called "Texas", so I had to take a picture. I think we were all getting a little homesick for our beloved state.



Gary caught this monster. He told Cal not to measure it because he didn't want his fish to be bigger than mine. How sweet is that?!!



Cal fileted the fish for us. His trick was to bleed them out 30 minutes before he filets them. I don't know what he did, but they tasted great!



Even the seagulls thought so...

Miscellaneous Day - OOB & Portland, ME

OOB was full of beach roses:



Almost every day, Gary and I would take a hike. We would head north from the condo about two miles then head east to the beach and walk back.



One of the days, Mags joined us.



We saw a lobster boat...



Random image of a chocolate moose that Mags picked up at LL Bean:



We went back to J's in Portland that evening for dinner. After waiting inside for an eternity, finally finding a seat at the bar and having crab stuffed mushrooms, we finally were seated outside after a 45 minute wait. Gary and Mags were very happy to have a seat.



The view was awesome:



But...I was very happy to see my lobstah.

Touring LL Bean - Freeport, ME

Gary wanted to visit the home of LL Bean, one of his favorite retailers. We drove up to Freeport, finally found a parking space and decided to eat lunch at the Jameson Tavern.



Freeport has a lot of cute shops, and this is a great sign that we saw:



The mecca of hunting, fishing and all things outdoors:



Entering the mecca looking for shorts for Maggie, who did NOT want to buy shorts:



Self portrait while we were waiting for Gary to try on shirts:



Gary, the shopper of the day, after trying on his shirts:



And...finally, another great sign for our TX friends:

Surf6 - OOB, ME

Could we really have just been walking on the beach where a restaurant has menu items like the following?



Yes, try the lobstah. We had an audience.



Ah...but it was fun any way. How can you argue with lobstah and scallops on the beach?

Beach Walk - OOB, ME

The pier right outside of the Grand Victorian condominiums:





Beach walk preparation:



The walk begins:



Interesting lighting on the pier:



Is that a smile I see?



Could it be?



Nah...must have been an illusion created by the magic hour of light.



We can't be enjoying ourselves on the beach, can we??? But these made me smile:

Maine Wildlife Refuge - Gray, ME

I got to pick our destination on this day, and I chose to go to the Maine Wildlife Refuge. The animals are rescued and rehabilitated after being found injured. They have moose, deer, bobcats, cougars, bears, albino porcupines, bald eagles, albino raccoons and many others. It's a fun little hike through a beautiful part of Maine. Some of the pictures from our adventure are below.

Bob, the cat, cousin to Bruiser, who is a Maine coon (but due to his advancing age was unable to join us on this trip):



Tree stump camoflauged in moss:



Beautiful flowers everywhere:



Gorgeous, happy daughter having a much better day:



The synchronized duck dunks especially tickled the daughter. "Duck butts!"



Her beloved Grandpa taught her this (thanks, Dad...NOT!):



Lynx tips "try the veal":



Just some cute critters:



And finally, the fish hatchery. Where's my pole?



Rainbow trout?



At the end of the hatchery:



The hatchery is built on a hillside so that the baby fish are at the top then there are graduated pools going down the hill. The fish in each pool get progressively larger. It was very interesting.



Isn't this just the sweetest picture? Mags still likes to hold her Dad's hand.

Driving Around Kennebunkport, ME

We drove from OOB down to Kennebunkport to scope out the area. We stopped for lunch in Kennebunk at the cutest little restaurant. They had a couple of lavender Adirondack chairs out front, and I thought if would make a pretty picture if Mags would sit in them. Yellow house, purple chairs, green grass...just lovely.

Maggie, however, was tired of riding in the car and grouchy because she was hungry. She did not want to cooperate so I had to pull the Mom card and make her do it. Here are the results...not sure it was worth it. You can see how mad she is.



After we ordered, we sat down outside. It was such a beautiful (cool for us) day. You can tell Mags is still mad at me in this shot.



The name of the restaurant is "The Daily Scoop". How can you not be happy at a place like this? A little lunch, a little ice cream, great weather, we're all together...what's there to be mad about?



Hmmm...think she's still mad?



Oh...wait! She caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye.



What's that??? An adorable little ground squirrel? One who wants to share her lunch?



Or...maybe Gary's lobstah roll?



It's hard to stay mad when there's such a cute little critter scampering about.