Lubec Maine - An Underrated Travel Destination

Situated on the US/Canada border, Lubec is the Easternmost town in the US. What started as a small fishing village in 1780 on the Lubec Narrows, has blossomed into a quaint and charismatic coastal town just waiting to be explored.

At the peak of the fishing industry in the 1920's, Lubec was home to over 30 smokehouses and 20 canneries. These smokehouses cold-smoked Herring for shipment across the world. 

During it's hey-day they would ship over 100 million cans of smoked Herring a year! But after declining demand, and government regulations, the industry slowly collapsed.

McCurdy Smokehouse

Starting in the 1890's the smoked fish industry thrived in Lubec. By the mid 70's, McCurdy's stood alone, the last smokehouse still curing herring for the US and overseas countries. After they closed in 1991, the commercial herring smoking industry completely disappeared in the US.

It's now a museum, seemingly frozen in time. The tools of the trade still sit where the workers put them over 30 years ago. 

It's amazing to see the old footage of this place. There was a very vibrant and close-knit community here. This place supported over 20 different families at one point in time. It's great to see that they're attempting to preserve it's history and heritage.

But it's becoming harder because what's left of the very last smokehouse in the US is sinking! In fact it's sunk several feet since it was built in the last 1800's.

So when you're in Lubec, do us a solid and stop on by and give them a visit. If you're reading this from afar, consider visiting their site and dropping a donation!

https://www.mccurdysmokehouse.org/

Watching Seals at the Lost Fishermans Memorial

Right down the road you can find the Lost Fishermans Memorial. This place is powerful, listing the names of 105 fisherman from the area who have died.

From here you can also watch the seals in the harbor, and you can witness the amazing tidal changes (among the highest in the world).

HD & Sons Seafood (Shore Thing)

We continue on our quest to find the best seafood in Maine, this time stopping in at HD & Sons. The place looked closed, and the inside was a bit run down. Really just plain and boring, but this totally adds to the character. It's not a negative thing!

The food was amazing!

The Haddock Burger was freakin ginormous, and the crab roll was really good too.

Klondike Mountain

This 46 acre preserve was once owned by a local family who had a farm here near the base of the 150ft tall mountain. Many trees were planted here, most of which have been well taken care of over the years.

The small trail leads up to a small summit which affords panoramic views of the surrounding waters and inlets.

Cutler Bold Coast Scenic Trail

With 96 miles of shoreline in and around Lubec, there's no shortage of amazing and scenic hikes to be had. Along the famous Bold Coast of Maine you can find several trails traversing a diverse array of ecosystems.

Moss-lined trails are the feature here! And also A LOT of mud. I mean, being directly on the coast, it totally makes sense. There's just not a whole lot of times in the year that this area is dry.

We didn't hike very far here, mostly because this trail along the coast was covered in mud.

Quoddy Heady State Park

The star of the show! The trails and views from Quoddy Head are unmatched along the Maine Coast. Miles and miles of rugged coastline with a trail placed precariously along the edge. The sound of the waves crashing, and the fact that you can see Nova Scotia from here made this a very awesome hike!

Moss-lined trails, rocky cliffs, and a fern-gully like feeling made it feel like another world. 

Just be prepared; there's SO MUCH MUD (this seems to be a recurring theme here). We recommend muck boots instead of hiking boots on this one.

Once you're done hiking the trail you can check out Quoddy Head Lighthouse, and next to it, the marker for the Easternmost point in the US!

Boot Head Preserve

The Maine Heritage Trust Fund saved this 700 acre plot of land from a proposed 30-40 lot sub-division in 1988. It's a great feeling knowing that very large swaths of land have been preserved for future generations to admire.

The trail that goes around the preserve tops out at around two miles, and features stunning coastline views and cobblestone beaches.

Honestly, we were really said to leave Lubec. There's something very, very special about this place. Time seems to slow to a crawl here, and the town is overflowing with character and charisma.

If you're looking for a quieter alternative to Acadia National Park, this is it!