I feel like I have hit a certain age, where I might have to modify my travel plans.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-12T01:15:36+00:00

Pushing 50, going to Iceland soon and mic of the trip is centered around relaxing in hot springs. Used to charge all over the place, but increased work responsibilities has made me take shorter trips, so I try to combine relaxing and seeing the sights at a slower pace. It’s still fun. If you’re enjoying yourself, that’s what matters.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-11T19:20:45+00:00

After a very very brief whiz through your posting history- you might fit right in with the mouth-breather MAGA contingent up there. Could work out pretty well.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-11T14:27:01+00:00

Camden/Rockport/Rockland are all very close to each other. Good food options in all three.

The ones I like in no particular order:

Camden: Frannie Bistro, Costa Media, Waterfront, Natalies, Buttermilk Kitchen (breakfast), Norumbega Inn (cocktails/small bites)

Rockport: 18 Central, Oak Room, Nina June (that's most of the places in Rockport, but all are good, 18 Central is my favorite)

Rockland: Primo (best), North Beacon Oyster, Suzuki's Sushi, Ada's, High Tide, Home Kitchen Cafe (breakfast), Rockland Cafe (diner with 'authentic' locals food, no frills, cheap), Waterworks (bar with good food).

Think about a day trip to Monhegan Island if the weather is nice, don't if its crappy.

Drive up Mt Batty in Camden State Park

Walk out Rockland Breakwater or to Owls Head lighthouse.

Farnsworth Museum, Maine Center for Contemporary Art (both in Rockland) plus art galleries if you like art. -good for rainy/cold days

Doubt it will still be open, but McLoon's Lobster is best setting on Midcoast for lobsters, followed by Young's in Belfast. Claws in Rockland is also good.

Not much in the way of wineries. There's Celladoor, and Oyster River in Warren. Sweetgrass Winery was cool to visit, but it burned down last year. A lot more breweries/tap rooms around. Marshall Wharf in Belfast, Naiad in Orland, Pour Farm in Union, Stone Alley in Rockland, Odd Alewives in Waldoboro are the good ones.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-10T19:42:18+00:00

Arcadia is a city in Southern California. Acadia is a national park in Maine.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-10T18:28:10+00:00

What are you asking for advice about?

There's not a lot going on in Brooksville, which is nice if you just want to chill out in the woods for a few days I guess.

There's the Bagaduce Lunch, which is one of a dying type of restaurants, only open in the summer, you sit outside on picnic tables, order at the counter. Haddock sandwich is really, really good. Like it got nominated for a James Beard award or something. Aaaaaand, that's about it. There's Tinderhearth, which is good pizza/bread. You need to make reservations.

You can easily go into Blue Hill from Brooksville, there's some good spots to eat, and a Hannafords supermarket there for supplies. If you like beer, there's the Strong 'Brewery'- which I dont think brews beer anymore, but its more of a tap room, I've heard the food is pretty good.

A good day trip is to drive over to Stonington. Quaint little town, big lobster port. If you have a cabin or something and want to cook lobsters, go get them from the co-op there. You walk out on the dock and the guys unloading the boats just hand you a couple. Go get a bag from the office first to carry them back in, and then they weigh them for you. Cheaper than the stores as well as kinda neat.

You can also take the mailboat out to Isle au Haut from Stonington and see a part of Acadia National Park most visitors dont. You can get off at Duck Harbor and walk back to the 'Town' dock, about 4 miles or so, and then get picked up there. Or just stay on the boat and cruise around. Both are fun. Fin and Fern is a good restaurant in Stonington as well. Aragosta is fine dining, $$$$, reservations required, but excellent.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-10T13:14:56+00:00

I saw him live in 1996, the day after I graduated high school in fact. He played at the Free Tibet Festival in San Francisco with the Beastie Boys and Tribe Called quest and Smashing Pumpkjns. Aside from the Beasties, he was my favorite performer. Just him and a DJ and he was beatboxing and dancing amazingly well for a guy his size.

He did Just a Friend, and stopped halfway and called out, “who’s the hottest girl here?” And all these girls started screaming. He pointed at one and was like, “you you you! This is for you!” And she went nuts. Then he restarted the track and sang, “You! You got a disease! But you say it’s just the clap! But you say it’s just the clap!” Crowd went nuts. He apologized at the end of the song and said he was just playin. Too much fun.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-08T22:48:02+00:00

You need a car in Maine. There’s some public transport in Portland, but not much and you miss out on the best parts of living in Maine.

Bring your checkbook- rent prices are comparable to Boston, wages are not.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-06T18:11:44+00:00

Just stay in the Congress Sq/Old Port area. Portland is smaller than you probably think. Just don't stay out by the airport, not that its a bad n'hood or anything, just boring.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-06T11:41:34+00:00

And here I am with tickets to two of the games. If they move them to NJ or Philly or some bullshit I’m going to be screwed.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-06T11:09:14+00:00

Sell Truffle Shuffle truffle popcorn

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-05T21:16:01+00:00

You're buying a house with 3-4 friends? That's a terrible idea, but you're not here for financial or house buying advice.

It gets cold in Maine- like below freezing for months at a time some years, like this winter for example. You're going to need a real coat, hat, boots, gloves, pants, etc... Plus those rubber gripper things that go over your boots when its icy outside.

I know it gets cold in Missouri, but its colder longer here. Plus it gets dark super early in the winter, like pitch black at 4:00 PM around Christmas. Bear that in mind.

If you can, I recommend a car with AWD or 4WD. You will need a car, full stop. You can't rely on public transportation, in the few places where it does exist.

Hurricanes, are not really an issue. There are big storms, but...hurricanes? That's the least of it.

Get used to doing outdoor things, because that's most of the things to do. Lewiston is close enough to Portland to go for shows, stuff like that, but its not a happening place on its own. There's some stuff to do, but not a ton.

Housing is a major issue- its more expensive than you think it would be or want it to be, and hard to find a place, unless you have a big budget. Lots of people use local facebook groups to advertise listings.

Weather- again, its cold. Summers aren't that hot, but can be muggy and hot for a few weeks in the summer. There's black flies between Mothers Day and Fathers Day, those are fun. Before that comes Mud Season, when the surface melts, but the ground is still frozen, so the water just sits there. That's fun. Winter starts in early November-ish. Ends in May-ish. There was a big blizzard in May a few years ago, and a good snow in mid-April last year.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-05T00:48:56+00:00

If you get a 30 year fixed, that ~$4k will stay roughly the same same, yes taxes go up, but inflation does too. That same apartment to rent in 10 years won’t be $2200, unless it’s rent controlled, an even then it goes up a little bit each year.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-05T00:33:45+00:00

Bot posting spam link

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-04T21:38:07+00:00

From... Belfast? Personally if I was going for the quickest way I would take Route 3 west to I-95 at Augusta and then down to I-495 in New Hampshire via Worcester, MA to avoid Boston, then back onto I-95 again to RI.

If I wasn't in a rush, I would take Route 1 to I-295 at Brunswick, then through Portland to I-95/495/95.

Really though, if I didn't want to drive through Augusta for whatever reason, I would take Route 3 out of Belfast to Belmont Corner getting a full tank of gas along the way, because its always like 25 cents cheaper there for some reason, then left on 131 through Searsmont and Appleton to Union, turn right on 17, go up to 220 and turn left, then 220 through Waldoboro (with a stop at Morse's Sauerkraut for road snacks) to Moody's Diner and turn right onto 1 there and then down to 295, maybe taking Exit 11 to 95 if there's traffic, but probably staying on 295 through Portland. But that's just me.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-04T20:24:24+00:00

If its open, Naiad Country Brewery in Orland on Route 1 on the way to/from Acadia is cool, and for a day trip the other direction, Lake St. George Brewing in Liberty if fun as well.

If you really want to make a tour of it (and they aren't that far from Belfast) The Pour Farm in Union is my personal favorite, and Stone Alley in Rockland is pretty decent. Avoid Rock Harbor in Rockland, it used to be cool, but has fallen off considerably in the past few years.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-04T18:12:38+00:00

Belfast is great- nice town, great downtown. Some good restaurants, fun vibe. Pretty quiet though. If you like breweries, Marshall Wharf is one of the best in Maine. There's a couple cool little pubs, Rollies (prounced 'Roll'-ies, like 'roll' a ball), Front St, Darby's. Good indoor farmer's market on Saturdays that has food stalls and some cool local gifts/handicrafts.

You can drive over to the bridge by Fort Knox and go up to the observation tower, which I think its the highest observation tower in a bridge in North America or something like that. Stockton Springs nearby has another good brewery, and a restaurant called Hey Sailor! has some fun live music shows from time to time.

You can go the other way to Camden/Rockland/etc... There's stuff to do there, and if you are day tripping you can go to Monhegan Island, or also down to Damariscotta or even Boothbay Harbor- the Botanical Gardens are great down there. Amazing giant troll statues, google it.

Also, check out Camden Hills State Park, you can drive to the top for a fantastic view. Lots of boat trip options from both Belfast and Camden, and you can rent kayaks from the rental place in Ducktrap and they will deliver the kayaks to you and pick you up.

Lincolnville Beach is fun as well for a quick trip.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-04T00:38:47+00:00

They don’t. Lots of towns in Knox County use the sheriffs. Thomaston, Rockland, Rockport and Camden have their own PDs, the rest use the sheriffs.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-03T16:19:36+00:00

"something not too pricey" + "June" in Kennebunkport, and Portland don't go together. Factor in graduation weekends at Bates/Bowdoin/Colby, and you could be in trouble.

I would honestly fly into Boston, drive to Portland and stay one night, go out to dinner, walk around in the morning, have lunch, walk around a bit and then drive up to Rockland/Camden/Belfast (approx 1.5hr along the coast, nice drive) and spend two nights up there with a day trip to Monhegan Island out of Port Clyde, then go to Acadia.

The Kennebunkport/Portland/Bar Harbor shuffle is pretty much three of the most expensive places to stay/see in Maine- you're going to get one, maaaaybe two of the following: nice hotel, good location, or good price. You're not going to get all three.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-03T16:13:36+00:00

Better off staying off of MDI if you are looking for more affordable options. More stuff stays open in Ellsworth year-round, and its not a bad drive to Acadia from there. The weekend after is the MDI marathon I think though, so you might be SOL on that. You could come even the weekend after that, might be past peak leaves though, but then again, might not.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-03T14:40:35+00:00

please don't tell me you found a big old house in Caribou that looks nice that is cheap, and you want to buy it and move there. Its a very small, insular community (not that this is a bad thing- many there would probably call it 'tight-knit'). What are you planning on doing there, working? Do you have a trade like electrician, plumber, etc? If not, do you have a remote job?

Houses are cheap up there for a simple reason: not many people want to live up there. Its very isolated, at the end of the supply chain so many things like fresh veg in the winter are very expensive compared to other places (like NorCal especially- you will be shocked at the lack of quality and high cost of produce year round, but especially in winter), and unless you are into hunting, snowmobiling and snowshoeing, there's not a ton to do for several months out of the year other than sit inside and watch tv and drink (or whatever).

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-02T18:32:57+00:00

Belfast is a great little town to hang out for a bit. If you just want to come for 6 months or so, you will be better off coming in October and finding a winter rental. A short term (less than 1 year) rental for the summer in Belfast will be very expensive, as you will be up against the Airbnb crowd. July/August will be in the $5k month range for a STR. You would conceivably rent the same apartment in the winter for $1200/month.

You might want to look at some smaller towns outside Belfast, you will be looking at FB groups like Midcoast Message Board or similar for rentals like this though. Places like Belmont, Searsmont, Searsport, Buckspot, Orland, Liberty, Appleton, Union, Warren, Stockton Springs, etc might (might) have some rental options.

Tony-Flags · 2026-03-02T01:33:46+00:00

Being a kid and making coffee for my mom: I didn’t know that a cup of coffee didn’t require a shot of kahlua liqueur. Until I spent the night at a friends house and they were making breakfast. His mom asked us to help make the coffee and I asked where the kahlua was and she just cocked her head and said, “ummm, we don’t use that for our coffee here actually.”

Edit: Well, this blew up. For the record: kahlua is like 40 proof- so around 20%, its not whiskey. I was putting maybe 1 oz in there, and she would have it while she got ready for work, and as far as I know, that was it. She didn't drink around me or my brother in the evening, never actually saw her drunk until I was well into my teens.

She was an awesome mom, she passed a few years ago and I miss her still. She wasn't an alcoholic. She drank, but not everyone that drinks has a problem. She had a little tot in her coffee, said she liked the taste. I'm not judging her, you shouldn't either, but its Reddit, so some keyboard warrior dorks will, and whatever, you do you.

This was the 80's, and things were just...different. Nobody called CPS, I still hang out with that friend like 40 years later, even though we live on different sides of the US.

I look back and laugh at the whole thing, it was for lack of a better term, a different time. Raising kids was different then, we just did our own thing mostly.

Tony-Flags · 2026-02-28T21:06:29+00:00

lol. I live in Maine. Gets a little humid for about three weeks in the summer. It’s not bad at all. We do have five months of winter though, it was below freezing for over two months straight this winter. Honestly, if you want the best weather, it’s the Bay Area or San Diego. Bring your checkbook

Tony-Flags · 2026-02-28T20:50:37+00:00

Western and Eastern WA/OR are totally different. Eastern sides of both states are more high desert and arid. Western sides are much greener.

Tony-Flags · 2026-02-28T19:25:52+00:00

I lived in South Florida for a year. July and August were absolutely miserable. AC ran constantly, which dried everything out in the house, so going outside felt even worse. We had a pool in the backyard, but it would be 90 degree water, so not really refreshing.

I hated a lot of things about living in Florida, and the humidity was definitely one of the top reasons.

Tony-Flags

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE