Many travel great distances to see the first rays of sun touch the iconic lighthouse in Lubec, Maine. There’s also a lot more to do in this area once the day begins! Join me as I share my walk in Maine’s easternmost town. Our visit began at Mowry Beach Preserve. This 48 acre preserve offers not only 1.2 miles of beach, but also a 1,700 foot long boardwalk that takes you through scrub woods and over wetlands. Parking is available at the trailhead at the end of Pleasant Street. There you will see a kiosk to start your adventure!
We began with the boardwalk, which kept my paws nice and dry as we explored the sphagnum bog and cattail swamp. There are also places to sit along the way if you’d like to quietly watch the birds, butterflies and other wildlife who call this area home. This is a .80 mile in and out trail, that ends at the Lubec Consolidated School. However, because school was in session, and we could hear children in the distance, we turned around so as not to interrupt their studies.
Next we took a stroll along Mowry Beach. This beach is popular with bird watchers, and offers views of Lubec Channel and Campobello Island, which was the summer retreat of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. We also had the pleasant surprise of seeing two seals enjoying the water that day. During low tide tree stumps from a primeval forest can be seen, but unfortunately we didn’t correctly time our visit.
From there we followed the beach to where there is street access, and continued our visit with a neighborhood stroll along Lower Water Street to Stockford Park. Located just south of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt International Bridge to Canada, it is a stop along the Maine Sculpture Trail. There we marveled at “Beyond the Horizon,” by Valerian Jikia, from the Republic of Georgia. This massive work of art was commissioned through the Schoodic International Sculpture Symposium’s artists in residence program. According to the artist’s statement, it “compounds the water, sun and rainbow, to create a sculpture with positive energy” for all to enjoy. It is said when the wind hits it just right you can hear music. But all I heard was a little dog barking at me.
I was pleasantly surprised to find this stage at Stockford Park, with the most delightful and whimsical mural of Lubec by Sherry Ashby! During the summer there are concerts here sponsored by the Lubec Area Musicians Philanthropic Society and Cobscook Bay Music to benefit local charities. I should tell Llily Llama to make a note of that for future visits to the area.
It was from here we retraced our steps through the neighborhood, and along the beach, back to our car. Lubec is very much a walkable downtown, but I was still recovering from my surgery. Therefore, we thought it would be best to drive to our next destination, the Lost Fisherman’s Memorial on North Water Street. The Lost Fisherman’s Memorial Park provides a place of “peace, reflection, and pride honoring those fishermen from both Washington County, Maine, U.S.A. and Charlotte County, New Brunswick, Canada who were lost at sea in pursuit of their livelihood.” The monument created by Jesse Salisbury is engraved on 3 sides with the names of individuals who lost their lives between 1900 and the present day, with space for more names to be added. Located next to the working waterfront, it is a poignant reminder of fishermen’s hard work and dedication to the sea.
All the places we visited on my walk about in Lubec, Maine are dog friendly. Dogs must be on-leash, and waste must be cleaned up and removed. To learn more about Mowry Beach Preserve visit the Downeast Coastal Conservancy. Additional information on Stockford Park can be found at VisitLubecMaine.com. There is a website on the signage at the Lost Fisherman’s Memorial that lists the engraved names, but it does not appear to be active. For further information visit LubecME.gov.
