The most exciting part of our time in Georgetown was who we were able to spend our time with – my parents!!! They made the long drive from Michigan to Maine to spend four days with us and Meg was even able to take a day off!!

We started our time together with a bike ride on the Androscoggin Riverside Trail, a 2.6 mile paved path that fallows the river and unfortunately the highway. The trail was nice, but the road was so loud that it made it really hard to enjoy the ride or talk to one another. Afterwards we headed to the campus of Bowdoin College to have a picnic lunch and let the boys spend some time at the Longfellow Playground. The playground was a lot like the one the boys loved so much in Smuggler’s Notch, VT. It was made of logs and had lots of creative plays to climb, swing and spin. We finished our exploring for the day with a trip to Reid State Park, just a few minutes away from the cabin my parents were staying in. The park rewarded us with huge swells crashing on both sandy beaches and rocky outcrops. We took a short hike, found some interesting sea shells and then headed out for a pancake dinner at the cabin.

On Friday we were lucky to have Meg join us as well! We began the day with a ride on the Kennebec River Rail Trail, a 6.2 mile paved trail along the Kennebec river (and thankfully mostly away from the road). We did not bike the entire trail because it does have a half mile section toward the middle of the second half where you have to ride on a narrow shoulder along a busy road. After our bike ride we had some lunch and then went to Rocky Ridge Orchard to enjoy some ice cream, cider and donuts before we went apple picking. The food was tasty and the orchard had a decent variety of apples to choose from. The boys had a blast trying out different kinds of apples and using the picking pole to get out of reach apples.

On Saturday we were fortunate to avoid the nasty storm they were predicting and got the chance to have a fun day in Freeport. We started with a trip to Wolfe Neck’s Farms at Wolfe Neck Center, where Finn spent the morning catching escaped chickens and we hiked around the campground we will be staying at next week. Afterwards we headed just next door to Wolfe Neck State Park where we had some lunch and then took a nice hike through the state park that we have visited many times now throughout our years of travel to Maine. The park has an awesome rocky shoreline and beautifully groomed trails that cut through the coastal pine forest. After our hike we headed into a very busy downtown Freeport to check out the new flagship LL Bean store that just opened a couple of weeks ago and go to Gabe’s favorite Maine attraction: Wicked Woopies.

Sunday the weather finally caught up to us, but we made the best of a cold, windy rainy day. In the morning we drove to Pemaquid Point where we had camped a few weeks earlier to visit the picture-perfect Pemaquid Point Lighthouse. Unbeknownst we just happened to visit the lighthouse right at a king high tide (the highest predicted high tide of the year) giving us a rare opportunity to watch storm fueled waves crash over the rocky shore that surrounds the lighthouse. After climbing the lighthouse and getting a view from the top of the tower we made the short drive to LaVerna Preserve to hike through the coastal forest and along the craggy shore. This was our third trip to the preserve and it did not disappoint. Afterwards we made our way back to my parents cabin and said our good-byes for now and wished them a safe trip during their drive back to Michigan the next day.

Monday evening we headed out into the bay next to the campground at low tide. The bay completely drains out as far as the eye can see! It was fun to muck our way through the sand and silt looking for sea creatures.

On our way out with the camper on our way to Freeport we stopped by Reid State Park with Meg so she had a chance to walk the beach as well!

What makes this stay especially interesting is that we came here immediately after our inland Freeport test, where my average symptom score was 32. In Georgetown, with much more direct exposure to the ocean, my average fell to 7. There are still plenty of variables we can’t control, but that is one of the strongest contrasts we’ve seen on this trip. Our time in Georgetown was really wonderful. My symptoms were extremely low, we got extra time with Meg during the long weekend AND we had my parents there to hang out with!