With over 3,000 miles of rocky shoreline, there’s a reason why Maine is known for its lighthouses. With 65 historic lighthouses, the state has the second largest collection in the United States, bested only by Michigan.

Join us as we explore 12 lighthouses in Southern Maine and one in New Hampshire as we do a coastal Maine road trip through York and Cumberland Counties admiring these beacons of history and being amazed by the powerful crashing waves of the Atlantic.

Transcription

We got our start early with Easter Brunch at Ultramar in Cape Porpoise, a little seaside community in Kennebunkport. We actually just discovered this restaurant roaming around, but learned that it is well renowned for their seafood. Which we’re willing to bet is brought in fresh from the pier next door.

For Easter, they pulled out all the stops with a massive buffet including a raw bar with sushi and oysters; a carving station with ham, lamb and prime rib; a build your own salmon bagel station, plus lots of great sides and a dessert bar including a chocolate fountain and ice cream machine. Brunch was soooo good and at $65 for all you can eat, a pretty good price point. I highly recommend Ultramar and their sister restaurant Lost Fire.

Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse

From the park you can also see the Southernmost Lighthouse in Maine, Whaleback light, but we’ll cover that once we get a little closer.

We packed up on this gloomy Spring day, passing through Portsmouth and crossing the bridge into Kittery Maine.

Whaleback Light

We made a pitstop at Lil’s Cafe in Kittery’s Small Downtown area for some espresso and lattes.

We continued onward to Fort Foster State Park which is a 25 minute drive from Great Island Commons in New Hampshire.

At the park you’ll find the remnants of Fort Foster which was built in 1898 and manned until 1946 just after WWII.

This is a sizable park with lots of history, trails and play areas. But we were there for the newly renovated fishing pier and the stunning views of Whaleback Light.

The lighthouse is 75 feet high and was built in 1872 to help guide ships into the Piscataqua River.

Nubble Light & Boon Island Lighthouse

It was a 27 minute drive to the next lighthouse, Nubble Light. Now’s a good time to mention that the real scenic route on the Maine Coast isn’t route one. Outside of a few areas, Route One is pretty commercialized. If you’re looking for quintessential cottage core Maine, you want to stick to the state routes that hug the coast. This will add considerable time to your trip since these routes follow the windy and sometimes hilly coast.

We stopped at Long Beach in York for our first sighting of Nubble Light and to admire the absolutely INSANE waves crashing against the shore.

We continued on our way to one of the top 5 most visited and striking lighthouses in Maine. The Lighthouse on Cape Neddick is 41 feet high and was built in 1879. This lighthouse has the unique feature of being on an island right off the coast where the lighthouse keeper would use a cable car to get to the island and back.

Cape Neddick has a second lighthouse viewable from shore. Over 6 miles off the coast of Maine is Boon Island Lighthouse, the tallest light house in New England at 135 feet. Built in 1811 the lighthouse rises like a solitary beacon being bashed by fierce ocean waves.

Lobster Point Lighthouse

Our next destination was a 21 minute drive along Shore Drive to Ogunquit, the famed Maine Beach Town. Lobster Point Lighthouse isn’t actually a functional lighthouse used for navigation and at just 20 feet, it’s not too impressive. But it’s a worthy stop on your lighthouse journey. Being the off season we were able to park right next to the light, but this will be impossible during warmer months and we recommend walking Marginal Way to view the lighthouse.

Goat Island Lighthouse

There’s a pretty big gap in lighthouses, possibly because Ogunquit and Wells are mostly sandy shores without as many dramatic cliffs. 31 minutes later we arrived back where we started in the day at Ultramar for Goat Island Lighthouse on an island right off the coast. The lighthouse was built in 1859 to mark Cape Porpoise Harbor and stands 25 feet high.

Wood Island Light

Next up, we drive through Biddeford Poole to the East Point Audubon Sanctuary a 20 minute drive away through idyllic beach communities. Not only is the sanctuary a beautiful park, you also get the best views of Wood Island Light which was built in 1858 and is 47 feet high, marking Saco Bay and the entrance to the Saco River. Nearby, you can also view Stage Island Monument, which isn’t a lighthouse, despite its looks, but is actually a day beacon serving a similar purpose. You can also visit the island in the summer through the Friends of Wood Island with trips departing from Camp Ellis on the Saco side of the harbor.

Cape Elizabeth East and West Lighthouses

There’s another large gap between lighthouses. Feel free to stop by Brew England in Biddeford and say hi! This is also an opportunity to explore Old Orchard Beach on your way there too. We drove 51 minutes to Twin Lights State park and as the name suggests you get to see two lighthouses. Note, that both lighthouses are on private property so you can’t really get up too close. Admire from afar. Cape Elizabeth East and West Lighthouses were built in 1829 to help prevent ships from running aground accessing Portland Harbor. They were both de-activated in 1924 and subsequently sold.

Also, for the Noah Kahan fans in the audience, Crescent Beach State Park is next door.

Portland Head Light & Ram’s Ledge Light

Thankfully, Cape Elizabeth is filled to the brim with lighthouses. Fort William State Park is just a 14 minute drive away and is home to the most photographed lighthouse in the World. Portland Head light was completed in 1791 and is Maine’s Oldest Lighthouse. At 80 feet it stands as a beacon guiding ships into Portland Harbor.

But wait, there’s more! Rams Ledge Island Light, sits just over a mile from shore and can be viewed in tandem with Portland Head Light. This lighthouse was built in 1905 making it one of the newer lighthouses and stands at 77 feet high. Like Boon Island Light we saw earlier, the lighthouse is dramatic, jutting suddenly out of the water with ravenous waves crashing along its rocky shore.

Bug Light & Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse

Just a short 10 minute drive away we arrived at Bug Light Park for two more lighthouses. You’ll also have some amazing views of the Portland Skyline which is worth the visit in itself. Bug Light was built in 1855 and at just 25 feet, it’s on the smaller side. Not to be outdone on the other side of the park near the community college is Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse. This light was built in 1897 and is 54 feet high. The weather turned for the worse, so we only took photos from afar. If the weather is nice, it’s a quick walk to the pier where the lighthouse is accessible to see up close.

Conclusion

Well that will about do it, we visited THIRTEEN lighthouse, and that’s just less than the lower third of Maine’s Coast. So 13 out of 65 total lighthouses that are still standing. If you’d like to see a part 2 of this video continuing up the coast, please please like and subscribe and comment below.