We arrived in Maine and checked into our prebooked accommodation at the beautifully named Starlight Lodge at Rockport, only to discover that there were only three beds in the room, not the five we needed. No problem, as the manager was very accommodating, removing two of his camp beds from his mobile home and putting them in our room for us. After that, it was straight off in search of the lobster rolls for which Maine is so famous. We found a great little place down on the Rockport harbour where we could sample some local seafood delicacies. We met an elderly couple from Philadelphia (at the restaurant pictured above), who looked at our family with an almost palpable wistfulness – we brought back memories of their holidays abroad with their now grown children. We encountered a lot of Americans vacationing in their own country as we travelled about. Without exception they were exceedingly friendly, helpful and curious about us, wanting to engage in conversation.
We were becoming a little travel weary, being close to the end of our trip and so decided upon what an online travel article by Virginia Campbell from New England Today called the prettiest walk in New England. It also stated : Its not a long walk – about two miles or so – but it has great variety. The walk binds together two of New England’s most beautiful villages, Rockport and Camden. As one kind of loveliness slowly changes into another, the walk progresses the way a story does, from beginning to middle to end. It was indeed a lovely walk, past very beautiful houses, gardens and bucolic farmland. The sun was shining and it was one of those days when you feel so blessed to be alive.
We found a cute little cafe overlooking the harbour with great coffee, a resident cello player and an on-site bakery to begin our journey. We liked it so much, that we returned the next morning for Portia’s birthday breakfast. Reuben coped with the boring parts of the trip (shopping and cafes), as usual by propping himself in the doorway to read. Once we arrived in Camden we had a lovely time poking around the attractive little shops, enjoying the harbour, sampling more Maine cuisine, and going on a harbour cruise, which unfortunately was largely obscured by the sea mists for which Maine is known.
Once we had finished our harbour cruise, it was getting late and little legs were tired, so we caught an Uber (so easy and convenient when travelling) back to Rockport. And so ended our delightful day exploring a tiny picturesque corner of Maine. Next stop Boston!
It’s unanimous! The whole family agreed that visiting this island in Lake Huron, Michigan (which is so big, it’s like an inland sea), was the highlight of our trip. I was inspired to visit here by reading a post on Mackinac Island by 
There is an eight mile circuit road around the island which is incredibly fun to cycle. The weather was quite overcast and rainy on the days we visited, but even this did nothing to dampen our enjoyment. The girls and I completed two circuits, we loved it so much! There are also very intriguing roads going off through the heavily wooded interior of the island. The boys went off exploring here on a mission to find the skull cave in the afternoon. There is nothing quite like the freedom of riding a bike with the wind in your hair (something we’ve largely lost in Australia due to our draconian bicycle helmet laws). Heck, you don’t even need to wear a helmet to ride a motorcycle in the US!
Another great local business to visit was 
We spent a very short time in Mandurah and only just scraped the surface of some of it’s attractions, but it was a very pleasant experience and definitely worth a visit or a detour to browse Paper Planes Co or to dine at the delightful Flics Kitchen. We stayed at the Quest apartments (easy walking distance into town) and really enjoyed their swimming pool right on the canal, as well as the lush gardens.
Have you visited Mandurah before? Did you enjoy it?