Spending Time in "Megunticook"

Long ago before white men walked the shores of Maine, the Penobscot Abenaki Indians called Camden, Maine, Megunticook, meaning "great swells of the sea". The area surrounding Camden was settled in the late 18th century and by the mid nineteenth century, Camden was a prosperous, seafaring town, second only to Rockland, Maine.

With Mount Battie in the background, the village of Camden is nestled in a small valley on the rugged coast. Over the years, because of its romantic beauty, Camden has become a destination for tourists. Hollywood has also made several movies here because of its charm. In 1992, I remember on a visit to Camden, I saw Mel Gibson at the library.

I couldn't wait to show Magi the gorgeous harbor but I knew first, I needed to take care of his "rumbling stomach". Parking the car in front of The Smiling Cow on Main Street (something one never can do in the summer), I noticed the Camden Deli, my favorite eatery, was not open. "Rats", I thought, as I looked at Magi's downtrodden face, "I best show him the harbor, otherwise he'll want to "move on". So we walked around the back of The Smiling Cow to Camden Park and showed him the waterfall flowing under Maine Street down to the schooner-filled harbor. For a good twenty minutes, his appetite was put on hold.

"Just a few shots, Bob....then we can go look for breakfast. Then we can come back here. Good stuff here, Bob."

Back on Main Street, Magi's nose sniffed the air and he pointed across the street to Boynton-McKay Cafe. "I think we can get a good cup of skinny flat white there."

Magi had his traditional 3 eggs and bacon. But I chose "Skillet !"....mushrooms, spinach, broccoli and home fries covered with scrambled eggs. It was scrumptious.

Bellies filled, we headed down to the harbor where gorgeous schooners graced the bay. Beautiful sight....a photographer's Paradise.

After an hour down by the harbor, we said good-bye to Camden. We still had miles to go and more seacoast villages to pass through on our way to Flye Point, our destination for the night.

Photos by Magi and Bob.