Mystery Harbor August: Lunt Harbor, Frenchboro, Maine
I was reading your magazine online and the minute I saw your Mystery Harbor I laughed out loud. We are sitting on a mooring in said Mystery Harbor as I type! The dead giveaway is F/V Heritage with its flagpole off the stern and its U.S. flag flying as well as the Lunt dock where we’ve fueled up in the past with both diesel and lobster rolls. This is a beloved harbor with all of the wonderful trails to hike on the island, the shingle beaches out by Richs Head, the sunset trail that can be accessed from multiple entrances near the harbor and a post office to mail snail mail. Tomorrow we make the jump to Nova Scotia on our way to Newfoundland.
Jane Davin, M/V Uhuru
Cushing, Maine
Spotted a rare flower there
Looks like Lunt Harbor, Frenchboro, Long Island at dead low tide. Wonderful place with hiking paths (one labeled Interstate 95). Spotted a rare Pogonia wildflower [in the orchid family] on the way to Little Beach and on our anniversary enjoyed lobster at Lunt’s Dockside Deli. Fortunately we were on a Lunt mooring during a mild nor’easter (harbor open to the north; wind was out of the northeast).
David and Rosie Trentham
Bryant Pond, Maine
Headed there on a whim
I think this looks a lot like Frenchboro, on Long Island, right around dead low tide. I had heard of it but never been there until one afternoon, making little progress toward Little Cranberry Island from Bar Harbor, we decided to head off and go out there. We felt our way in, worrying about where we might spend the night, when suddenly another yacht let go of a large orange ball within spitting distance of Lunt’s wharf. We picked it up, and when we got into the float and asked a lobsterman if he thought it would be all right to stay on it overnight, he said, “Oh, yeah, he won’t be back for three days.” Oh, yeah, all right!
Frenchboro is far enough from the mainland so that when you’re out there you feel like you’re really “out there,” in another country. There are only about 50 year-round residents, making one worry about the viability of the schoolhouse in the village. Most of the southern portion of the island belongs to the Nature Conservancy, and there are wonderful walking trails with spectacular views. It’s beautiful. And if you’re looking for lobster on the pier, there’s no place like Lunt’s. Be sure to visit the lovingly maintained historical society, and for the perfect trifecta, get there for the annual lobster festival!
Arthur Watson
Washington, D.C.
Damaged by storms
The July edition Mystery Harbor has to be low tide in Lunt Harbor on the island of Frenchboro. We have been visiting for years. The harbor has a wonderful eatery, Lunt’s Dockside Deli, that serves fresh lobster dinners on an amazing deck overlooking the harbor. The service is friendly and all the helpful residents of the island welcome cruisers. The extensive hiking trails are some of the best of Maine, and the sunsets through the harbor entrance are spectacular. Another amazing feature is the way in which the harbor empties at low tide (your photo) and then refills entirely. (above). I am writing this response as I am coincidentally sitting on a mooring in the outer harbor, by the entrance. Sadly, this past winter’s storms caused substantial damage to the waterfront, many homes, and the Deli, which is closed for the season. On behalf of the folk who live there and its many visitors, I hope this amazing destination is completely rebuilt and restored.
Michael S. Benjamin
Brookline, Massachusetts
Exceptional hiking
My wife and I believe that the Mystery Harbor in the July issue is Lunt Harbor at low tide; aka, Frenchboro, on Long Island, to the east of Swans Island. The island is small, with around 50 people living there year-round, mostly involved with lobstering. We recognize it from the derelict wharf in the foreground and the semi-derelict, but still used, wharves on the left. At the distant end on the left is Lunt’s Dockside Deli, with season-by-season managers and varying hours. Lunt’s maintains several moorings in the outer part of the harbor at reasonable rates.
We enjoy a visit every year as the island maintains a number of hiking trails around the perimeter and across the center. The one going clockwise from the ferry dock follows a relatively flat path with rugged cliffs of pink granite along the north shore often pounded by big waves.
David Jones
Brooklin, Maine
An authentic Maine experience
Visiting Lunt Harbor has been a regular stop during our summer cruises in Maine. It is one of the few harbors south of Schoodic that is unspoiled and has an authentic Maine feel.
Christos Calivas
Rockland, Maine
Site of a Norman Rockwell moment
This is Lunt Harbor, Frenchboro, Long Island. As a resident of Swans Island it’s a quick jump for dinner at Lunt’s Dockside Deli, but one that usually includes a trip home with limited visibility due to looking straight into the setting sun. One time while walking around the harbor we were joined by a 10-year-old boy who was trying to catch his golden retriever, Buddy. Buddy thought this was a great game, and had no intention of being caught. He was having a great time swimming in the inner harbor and rolling in the mud. To this day we still quote that young man as he pleaded with his dog, “Buddy, please come back!” It was a true Norman Rockwell moment.
A more harsh memory is from a January night that I went to Frenchboro as part of the Swans Island Fire Department. We were dispatched to provide mutual aid for a structure fire just out of view to the left of this picture. The temperature was in the single digits and I remember going through sea smoke on our way there. That was a long night and one of the few times I wasn’t overheated wearing turnout gear.
Charlie Wiegle
Swans Island, Maine
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