Summer Travel: New Harbor Has Everything Your Maine Vacation Needs

If you want to experience Maine the way it's portrayed in movies and on post cards, your best bet is to visit New Harbor. The area often referred to by locals as Pemaquid offers everything a summer vacation Down East should include - history, food, sightseeing, beaches. With everything you dreamed Maine would be, all in one place, it's the perfect weekend getaway.

Located a few miles south of scenic Route 1 and the town of Damariscotta, Colonial Pemaquid is a fascinating stop that captures the history of settlers and traders on the Maine coast. Active archaeological digs continue on the site amongst the remains of an early colonial village amongst the remains of an early colonial village, which was first settled by the British in the 1600s. A centuries-old burying ground is also on the site, with distinctive gravestones dating back to the early 1700s.

Visitors to Colonial Pemaquid can also tour Fort William Henry, a 100-year old replica of the first stone fortification built by the British in New England. The Pemaquid area was on the frontier for generations, at the edge of British territory and a repeated target of Indian invaders and their French allies. Each side, in turn, overran Pemaquid over the years. The British spent a relative fortune (reportedly two-thirds of the colony's entire budget) to construct the original fort in 1692, only to have it fall to French and Indian forces in 1696. The nearby Fort House, built for the family of the commander of a replacement fort constructed years later, is an example of Revolutionary Era architecture.

In the nearby town of Bristol is one of the most-photographed lighthouses along the rocky Maine coast. Built of whitewashed rock walls and set behind a white picket fence, the Pemaquid light is a favorite of photographers, many of whom favor a dramatic look upward from the rocks below. The lighthouse is one of the most accessible along the Maine coast. In good summer weather, visitors can climb the tower for a look out over the ocean. The quaint keeper's house is the site of the Pemaquid Fisherman's Museum, chronicling the history of one of Maine's major industries. But the house's most unique feature is a one-bedroom apartment, which tourists can actually rent by the week.

The town of New Harbor is perhaps the most picturesque in the state. Chances are, when you've seen a postcard of a small bay with lobster boats floating by a dock, you've been looking at a picture of New Harbor. This is the site where Paul Newman and Kevin Costner filmed the movie Message in a Bottle in 1998. It is a working harbor that has changed very little in generations.

Some of the scenes for the movie were filmed at the most popular restaurant in the neighborhood - Shaw's Fish & Lobster Wharf. Even if you've watched the movie, you might not recognize Shaw's at first, though. The producers of the film thought the building would look better if they painted it white. Once filming was over, however, it went back to its traditional red, which is how you'll find it today. Of course, the most important thing you'll find is fresh lobster, which you can watch being off-loaded from boats. Then you can pick your own from the salt water tanks and wait for them to steam it for you. Or, you can try their well-known lobster roll or the tender fried clams.

After a hearty - and authentic - Maine seafood lunch, what better way to spend the afternoon than lying on the white sand beach? Located in Bristol, the quarter-mile Pemaquid Beach is a rarity in the part of the state, where most of the coastline is craggy granite. Here you'll find clean, fine sand, and a great place for kids. The beach includes a snack bar, changing rooms - even hot showers. Plus, the beach pavilion includes a nature center called "beachcomber's Rest," where kids can learn about the ecology of the beach, get hands-on with sea creatures, even enter sand castle contests.

The Pemaquid area, which includes New Harbor and Bristol, is just a 90-minute drive "down east" from Portland, Maine and three-and-a-half hours from Boston, making it convenient for weekend travel.