Where the Hills Meet the Sea

Saturday, I had the rare chance to experience one of those times where you can't help but get lost in what you see around you. From the rocks at Ocean Lookout in Camden Hills State Park, on the first sunny day in a week, it seemed like the whole world was right in front of me.



Meredith popped out of bed rearing to go at 7am on Saturday morning, and I'll have to admit, I was not exactly mimicking her excitement. While I rolled around somewhere between Candyland and a beautiful tropical beach, Meredith went in search of a yoga class that did not exist. Luckily, the Dunkin Donuts (I know, I know, but there are no Krispy Kreme's up here and if you just give them a chance, they are not that bad!) was on her way back to our place, and after one bite of a Boston creme pie, I was ready to fall out of bed and follow her to her favorite town in the entire state.

Two hours north of Portland lies one of the most incredible towns there can possibly be in the entire nation, or even world for that matter. Literally, "Where the Hills Meet the Sea", the quaint streets of Camden magically wrap themselves around a small cove at the foot of mountains. Seemingly untouched since its founding in 1771, this small hamlet has that perfect quintessential New England coastal village feel.



To better enjoy the town, Meredith and I decided to tire Orvis out first, by taking him to Camden Hills State Park. After two hours of hiking a windingly-steep trail to the top of Mount Megunticook, Meredith, Orvis, and I were sidetracked from our destination and captured by the incredible views from Ocean Lookout. While we could have spent hours lying on giant rocks in the sun, overlooking both the town and the sea (shrouded by a heavy fog), our stomachs finally got the best of us and we high-tailed it back down the mountain to find some food in town.







Unknowingly to me, Meredith had already settled on a place to eat. Richard Russo, one of Meredith's favorite writers, chooses the Camden Deli to brainstorm his next piece of small-town fiction. Luckily, Mr. Russo has great taste in sandwiches and Meredith and I were able to enjoy a delicious BLT while overlooking the wooden boats dotting Penobscot Bay. It's hard to describe a town as cute as Camden, Maine, where even the public library is hidden largely underground to preserve the colonial look of the old library building on top. The shops crowd Main Street, sloping with the curve of the road, and the backs of every restaurant have incredible views of the bay. Even the Megunticook River flows straight through town and empties into the bay over a beautiful waterfall, surrounded by a perennial garden, for all to enjoy.





I could spend hours talking about this town, but I will leave it at that. Already, Meredith and I are counting the days until we return to Camden, which has now become my favorite town too. If I could take any of you to only one place in this entire state, it would be Camden. It's the truly perfect place to breathe easy.