One Week on Cape Cod in Photos: July 2021

I’m taking a quick hiatus from my Maine recaps to share a few snapshots from our annual summer trip to the Cape. Most of you probably know by now that we spend a week on the Cape every July, and this is a trip we hold close to our hearts.

As much as I love exploring the world, coming here is an actual, true vacation. We don’t really plan anything, we slow down and don’t pack a ton in like we do when we travel to other places for the first time. We take naps, we sleep in (well, I do, Josh’s body doesn’t allow him to sleep late). It’s just easy, relaxing and carefree and full of beautiful scenery.

Since we do the same thing every year for the most part, no explanations are really needed. If you’re at all curious about our favorite things, I would suggest you hop on over to this post here.

At the end of this post, I also have links to some other posts you may find helpful, as well as a shopping guide for some things that are featured in this post. Take a peek at the very end if you see something you like. 

Maine Lighthouse Road Trip: Lubec | West Quoddy Light

I recently went on a solo road trip up and down the coast of Maine. If you'd like to take a peek at some other posts from this adventure, you can follow these links to see some more beautiful scenery and lighthouses:

Itinerary Overview | Breakdown of All My Stops

Portland & Arrowsic Lighthouses 

Boothbay Harbor & A Puffin Cruise

Acadia National Park & Bass Harbor Lighthouse

In past visits to Maine, Bar Harbor is the furthest North we've ever stopped to explore, so I was pretty excited to drive all the way up to Lubec, which is the Eastern-most point in the continental U.S. My biggest motivation for making the trek up here was West Quoddy Lighthouse. I've seen pictures online of this little lighthouse for years, and have wanted to see it in person ever since, so once I read more about Lubec, I was even more convinced I had to drive up here. It's just over two hours from Bar Harbor, and honestly, even though I only spent a night here, it was a trip highlight for sure. I'm so looking forward to telling you all about it.

Maine Lighthouse Road Trip: Bar Harbor & Acadia National Park | Bass Harbor Light

I recently went on a road trip up and down the coast of Maine. If you'd like to take a peek at some other posts from this trip, you can follow these links to see some more beautiful scenery and lighthouses:

Road trip overview of all my stops

Portland & Arrowsic Lighthouses

Boothbay Harbor & a Puffin Cruise

After two days in beautiful Boothbay Harbor, I was off to Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park. This was my third time in Acadia, and honestly, it never loses any of its appeal. If anything, it makes me appreciate it even more. Whenever we're here, we only ever stop for a day or two, and this trip, I was only here for two days. It's never enough time, and one day, Josh and I want to camp in the park for a whole week and really see as much of the it as we can. The coastline is seriously breathtaking, and even the town it calls home, Bar Harbor, is such a fun place to visit. I love this part of the state more with every visit, and had a wonderful two days here.

Maine Lighthouse Road Trip: Boothbay Harbor & A Puffin Tour

I recently got back from a coastal Maine lighthouse road trip, and today, I’m sharing my time spent in Boothbay Harbor. If you’d like to catch up on other posts from this trip, you can pop on over to these links:

Entire Road Trip Destination Overview

Portland & Kennebec River Lighthouses

Acadia, Bar Harbor & Bass Harbor Lighthouse

I’ve wanted to visit Boothbay Harbor for years. A lot people who I've spoken to over the years have said they thought I would love it, so I decided to dedicate two days to this stop. I didn't plan much, except for a boat tour, which I'll get more into down below. So I really spent most of my time meandering through the town, snapping some photos, and just being completely relaxed and in the moment. 

I ended up absolutely loving it here. It’s a small little fishing village that has an authentic feel, while also easily catering to tourists with cute shops, restaurants, and plenty of rustic seaside scenery to be had. It was a place that forced me to slow down, go for walks, crack open a book, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Maine Lighthouse Road Trip: South Portland & Arrowsic Lighthouses

I recently posted an overview/itinerary of my entire road trip route through the coast of Maine, where I hunted down lighthouses and that glorious coastal scenery this state is known for. If you'd like a quick overview of my entire journey, you can find that by clicking on this following link:

Road trip overview of all my stops

Boothbay Harbor & A Puffin Cruise

Acadia, Bar Harbor & Bass Harbor Lighthouse

Today's post is all about my first 24 hours, and I packed in a good amount of lighthouses. My adventure started in Cape Elizabeth/South Portland, where I saw two of the three lighthouses that call this area home, as well as a lovely little beach I stumbled upon. I got into Portland in the late afternoon, so didn't have as much time to explore everything as much as I would have liked before the sun went down, and even had to skip one of the lighthouses, but I still had such a beautiful evening taking in all these sites.

Maine Coastal Lighthouse Road Trip Itinerary Overview

I just got back from a truly amazing adventure through the coast of Maine where I spent 10 nights and 11 days exploring little towns on the water and getting my fill of lighthouses. Did you know that Maine has 65 lighthouses? I didn't, until I started to plan this trip. Some of them are accessible by land, and many of them are on smaller islands, and are only accessible by boat or ferry. But, there is absolutely no shortage of them to see, and plenty of beautiful, pine tree-lined coastline to take in during such a beautiful drive through the state. 

I was lucky enough to visit 10 lighthouses, and also see a couple from the water, during my trip. Planning out my itinerary was a challenge and it took me a lot of time to figure out the best route so that I covered a lot of ground while also dividing up my driving time each day so I didn't feel like I was spending too much time in the car. So, I thought I would do a little overview post of my itinerary in hopes that it will help someone out there retrace my steps for the perfect coastal Maine lighthouse road trip.

Solo Traveling the Massachusetts North Shore: Newburyport and Plum Island

This past November, I took a little solo adventure through the Massachusetts North Shore region. If you'd like to catch up on all the beautiful little towns I was able to explore, you can click on these links:

Marblehead

Rockport

Gloucester/Manchester-By-The-Sea

Salem

On my way home after a wonderful few days exploring the North Shore, I decided to squeeze in one more little side excursion: Newburyport and Plum Island. I didn't really have a lot of time because I still had my drive home ahead of me, but I was up yet again before the sun, and drove off to Newburyport to walk around and get a quick little feel for the town, and then off to explore Plum Island, which I've heard was so beautiful.

Solo Traveling the Massachusetts North Shore: Salem Day Trip Itinerary

This past November, I took a little solo getaway through the Massachusetts North Shore region, and if you'd like to explore some other beautiful little towns with me, you can catch the links here:

Marblehead

Rockport

Gloucester/Manchester-By-The-Sea

Newburyport/Plum Island

Welcome back, friends. Let's talk about Salem, MA, a town that's known as the Halloween hot spot of New England. This was my second time visiting Salem, and as I mentioned in a prior post, I was last there about six years ago the weekend before Halloween so we could really experience the whole spooky season vibe. It's such a fun place to visit during the month of October, but be forewarned - it's busy. And I mean, BUSY. The streets were packed with people, parking was a nightmare, and it was hard to get tables at restaurants. Especially on weekends. But, there certainly is just something about Salem in October that's unique and quite an experience all on its own.

Despite having had the quintessential experience in the thick of Halloween celebrations, I've always wanted to go back, pretty much any other time of the year, to see Salem in a different light. And I'm laughing as I type this because this trip, I went back the weekend after Halloween - and it was vastly different. Far fewer crowds and plenty of room to walk around. I was there on a Saturday morning/afternoon, and the foot traffic definitely picked up by noontime, but I felt like I had more space to wander and really take it all in. 

Solo Traveling the Massachusetts North Shore: Gloucester & Manchester-By-The-Sea

This past November, I took a little solo adventure through the Massachusetts North Shore region. If you'd like to catch up on all the places I visited while on this trip, you can find the links here:

Marblehead 

Rockport

Salem

Newburyport/Plum Island

During this trip, I was on a mission to see as much as I could in a very tightly-packed three and a half days. And while I did cover a lot of ground, I will be honest, I didn't see as much of Gloucester and Manchester-By-The-Sea as I would have wanted. I was only in each of these towns for about three hours, so, as you can imagine, I didn't see it all. But, I will say, what I did get to experience, I loved. Manchester-By-The-Sea, especially, really surprised me with its beauty. So for today's post, I don't have a lot of information to share, but I do have some snapshots from some really lovely seaside moments from these two great little towns.

Solo Traveling the Massachusetts North Shore: Rockport

Hey guys, it's been a minute since I posted about my time in Marblehead while solo traveling the North Shore last November. Before I knew it, after getting back, the holidays were already in full swing and I took some time to just be in the moment, and also, reflect on this whole, crazy year. But I'm back, feeling refreshed and so excited to talk about the rest of my trip, starting with Rockport.

If you'd like to see all the other towns I visited along the way during this trip, you can catch those recaps here:

Marblehead

Gloucester/Manchester-By-The-Sea

Salem

Newburyport/Plum Island

Exploring Motif 1. Photo by Nina Weinstein Photography. 

Solo Trip to the Massachusetts North Shore: Marblehead

This past November, I spent a few days solo traveling the North Shore area of Massachusetts. If you'd like to read about all the other towns I visited, you can find the links here:

Rockport

Gloucester/Manchester-By-The-Sea

Salem

Newburyport/Plum Island

It's been about six years since Josh and I last visited the North Shore of Massachusetts, and for the past year or so, I've been itching to get back. When we last visited, our focus was a Halloween getaway in October to experience Salem. We had a lot of fun, but little did we know just how crowded and chaotic it would be (rookie mistake). To escape the crowds in Salem one afternoon, we decided to take an impromptu drive up the coast and ended up in Rockport. We only spent a few hours there, but I completely fell in love with it, and I think those few hours were some of the best of our entire adventure. We stayed in Marblehead that trip, but because the entire weekend was pretty last-minute, and because we were so focused on Salem, we didn't research anything to do, and ended up not seeing even a sliver of what Marblehead had to offer. Since becoming more familiar with New England, and constantly researching new places I want to experience, I came to realize that our North Shore visit years ago barely scratched the surface of what is an absolutely breathtaking part of the state. You guys know how much I love the Cape and Islands, but my goodness, the North Shore can easily rival it. There's miles and miles of rocky coastline, history that dates back to the 1600's, with houses that are still standing from that time, small-town charm at every corner and salty air along the way. I was so excited to come back and really see it this time. 

Photo by Nina Weinstein Photography.

Martha's Vineyard Travel Guide: 3-Night Itinerary in September | Plus Nantucket vs. Martha's Vineyard

Recently, Josh and I spent a week exploring Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, and you can read about our 4-night stay on Nantucket here.

After four pretty perfect days on Nantucket, we hopped on a ferry to Martha's Vineyard. It had been about three years since we last visited, and we've previously done a day trip and another 3-night stay, and have loved it each time. So, needless to say, we were excited to get back.

Travel Guide: 4-Night Nantucket Itinerary in Late September

Well, friends, we planned on spending our anniversary this year having a romantic dinner overlooking the cliffs of Positano, drinking wine in a small cottage outside of Pienza with views of the rolling hills and vineyards, and gazing at the canals of Venice, but that obviously didn't happen. When we learned in early July that the EU wasn't going to be allowing U.S. tourists to cross the borders, we sadly canceled our Italy trip, and began to come up with a new plan. Because our anniversary and Josh's birthday are so close together, this time of year is our favorite for traveling. But with the uncertainty of the world, we decided it was easiest, safest and most worry-free to stick with something more local, and something we were familiar with. And honestly, it turned into such a memorable trip.

Photo by Georgie Morley Photography.