While Mrs. HB was here, one of the things we did was walk to the Breakwater Lighthouse in Rockland, Maine. It’s a fun {and free} touristy thing to do, plus it’s a good walk, {7/8 miles each way} across a rough stone wall that was build back in 1899 {with a 4 foot cap was added in 1901}.
There’s a small lighthouse to walkaround when you get to the end and it’s fun to imagine what it must have been like for the lightkeeper to live there all alone during the cold harsh winter months. {All alone in a lighthouse, with no one to bother you 6 months out of the year and enjoying hot soup and crackers all winter while holed up with my rug hooking and painting projects actually sounds like a dream job to me. But maybe I’m weird.}
And while I know walking across jagged and uneven rocks for nearly 2 miles isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, there is a webcam set up at the end of the breakwater facing back to the shore that’s kind of fun to look at every once in a while.
Especially when high tide is over 11 feet {the height of the breakwater} because the water goes over it at that point and you’d have to be an absolute nut to be walking out there at that time. Especially during a storm.
There were people out on the rocks walking in flip flops and we even saw two moms with babies in strollers, and all I could think was man, I must be getting old, because walking on uneven ground in bad footwear, or taking my baby out there in a stroller is just not something I would ever do.
It was a good walk though, and high on my list of things to do with guests when they come to town. Especially on a nice day.
If you do ever make it to Maine, and walk out onto the breakwater, be sure and take the time to walk the beach on either side of the breakwater to hunt for treasures. Mrs. HB and I found 7 golf balls, a bunch of pretty shells and a few bits of beach glass. 🙂
Here’s hoping you have a wonderful day,
~Mavis
Sue says
Lori would love to take that walk and love the title of your post, Mind the Gap. Ordered Mind the Gap yarn from England and made a pair of socks, the colors which represent the stops on the London tube and where the saying is “mind the gap” as you step on the tube!
Kay says
Be sure to “empty out” before you head out. I learned this the hard way.
Lisa says
LOL. That’s what we’d used to tell our son before leaving the house.
Linda Sand says
I don’t golf but I can imagine the beach being a good place to practice your drive.
Janice Gallaugher says
When I was a brand new mom (over 40 years ago) my husband was offered a job as a lighthouse keeper on the west coast of Vancouver Island. We were all ready to go until we learned that the maps we’d been given were out of date and there was no longer any road access. The only way out of there was by a very long boat ride or a helicopter. Given that the winter storms might not make either of those options feasible and I was still a nervous new mom, we chose not to take the job. I will say that this is definitely one of those times I look back on and wonder “what if”…. Our lives sure would have been very different.
Dianne says
No, no, not weird. Lighthouse ooks like a great place to spend winter with ones self. Tranquility watching the seas.
Tom Just Tom says
Ah, the memories… I limped out to the end and back (using a hastily purchased cane) because I had slipped on some rocks at Portland Head Light a couple of days prior. But I only had 4 days to visit and there was no way I was going to spend it in an ER. So we taped it up, bought a walking cane, and kept going.
It’s a beautiful place and I hope to be able to return soon. Your post brought back some great (really!) memories.
P.S. – Yeah, I’d spend the winter there, but only if it had good Internet!
Elisabeth says
I used to think lighthouse living sounded dreamy until I visited Piedras Blancas lighthouse on California’s central coast. Rugged and remote, it was a book lover’s dream, until they played a recording of the foghorn that was needed routinely on the foggy shores of San Simeon. The sound of that basso profound going off at regular intervals for an unknown period of time would have driven me mad! A romantic notion to be sure, lighthouse living, but the fantasy was completely dispelled for me with that visit!
Cheers, Mavis! Love hearing about your perambulations!
Lace Faerie says
Thank you for sharing your escapades with Mrs HB. It does a heart good to see good friends willing to cross the continent to spend time together!
And thank you for the link to the lighthouse live cam. I love peeking in on live cameras. Years ago, two of my sisters’ families and my folks were at Old Faithful and called us so we could see the kids jumping up and down waving at the live cam! It was fun to see and have that connection back before FaceTime!