Dispatches from vacation

And everything I read while we were away

Jul 17, 2024

Last Wednesday, we departed our house on a sweaty morning to catch the ferry to Vinalhaven. When Dean and I started talking about our summer vacation earlier this year, we started thinking about how we wanted to feel. Did we want an exciting trip? Did we want to completely veg out? Did we want to go somewhere to see people we know?

We landed on wanting to completely veg out. I was getting coffee with a friend a few weeks ago and we got to talking about the difference between a trip and a vacation. A trip is very active. It's a packed itinerary with lots to see and do. It's fun, for sure, but it's something you come home from needing a few days to recover. A vacation, on the other hand, is quiet and slow and filled with large pockets of downtime. Lounging on the beach, getting lost in books, no real plans.

"Yes," we said, "that." Our last few excursions have been great (London, Los Angeles, family visits), but we both have been feeling the day-to-day busyness of life and work, so we wanted to go somewhere that would alleviate that.

I took to the internet. We've lived in Maine for almost three years and are committed to exploring more of it this summer. Why leave the state where so many people come for their summer vacations? I started researching options on different islands off the coast of Maine and eventually came across Vinalhaven, an island 12 miles off the coast of Rockland. We found a small cottage that was within our budget, booked it, and eagerly anticipated six days for ourselves.

So, on Wednesday, we set out. We tied the kayaks to the top of the car, loaded the cooler, and threw some extra sunscreen and sweatshirts in our bags (you never know what the weather will be). After a very empty and scenic ferry ride, we got onto the island mid-afternoon. I expected that scene from Jaws, where hoards of tourists pour off a boat onto a summer island.

It was exactly the opposite. What we quickly learned is that Vinalhaven is a sleepy summer town. It's not designed for tourists; it's a working lobstering community with a deep history of year-round residents and summer people who also have deep connections to the island. There is a real community feel to the island and, honestly, only a little to do. In a good way.

Which was perfect for us! We didn't want to make a million decisions or feel like we were missing out on anything. I love that there is just one coffee shop downtown and that we got to go there a handful of times (the one spot with reliable wi-fi on an island with abysmal cell phone service). There are only a handful of restaurants, so we visited our favorite twice. There are endless beautiful nature spots to explore, but you get a fantastic view no matter where you are.

It was a simple vacation, and we spent most of it reading books on the deck of our cottage, walking the trails of the island, and embracing the lack of wi-fi and cell phone service. We truly got to disconnect, and it was so good.

If you’d like to read on, here's what we did! We learned that many businesses do not have an online presence or have an inaccurate one, so it really was about exploring and seeing what we found…

What we did in Vinalhaven

Wednesday, we arrive on the island and settle into our cottage. We enjoy a late afternoon snack and drink on the deck before heading downtown to the harbor market to pick up a few essentials we forgot. We grab a beer at The Sandbar, a cozy dive bar, where we watch the local after-work crowd filter in. Then we stop by The Pizza Pit to split a pizza for dinner before returning to the cottage and to crash into bed at 9pm.

Thursday is overcast, foggy, and rainy all day long because of the hurricane. We venture out in the morning for coffee and pastries and spend a few hours poking around the small shops downtown. We discover, to our delight, that there is a bookstore on the island. It's a second-hand bookstore run by the library and has a fantastic selection of crispy, salty paperbacks. We spend the afternoon reading at the cottage before heading out to dinner at Dot & Millie's. They are out of the one vegetarian dinner option, so we enjoy some cocktails and a delightful spread of appetizers.

Friday, the sun is blazing when we wake up. We bring the kayaks down to the dock but realize the tide is too low and it's too windy to enjoy a paddle. So we make sandwiches and head out to hike Tip Toe Mountain. There is truly no bad view on the island, and after we finish our hike, we eat lunch overlooking the rocky coastline. After that, we drive to Browns Head Lighthouse (I love a lighthouse!) and spend some time walking around. We head back to the cottage, read for a little while, and then Dean makes us a delicious dinner on the deck of vegetarian pot pie.

Saturday is, again, foggy and overcast when we get up. We go downtown to check out the local Flea Market that happens every Saturday and (again) enjoy some pastries while we browse the stalls. We also stop by the Swap Shop and visit the library. We've learned that the library is an integral part of the community, which warms my heart. We then head to Lane's Island Preserve and walk the trails while we take in the moody, misty coastline. By the afternoon, the fog has burned off, so I lather myself in sunscreen and park it with my book in a sunny spot on the deck for a few hours. We check out Skål, the island's speakeasy, for a pre-dinner drink and then back to Dot & Millie's for another delicious dinner.

Sunday is the best weather day we have; the sun is shining, and it's warm all day long. We have a slow morning and then pack sandwiches to head to the beach for a few hours. We sit out, read, dip our toes in the water, and head back to the cottage in the late afternoon. We start to pack up and make one of our favorite salads for dinner while we watch The Parent Trap, which I downloaded to my phone when we had wi-fi earlier in the day.

Monday is our last day. We have a final breakfast at Sherry's and are lined up for the ferry by 9:30 to catch it back to Rockland. We feel relaxed, restored, and sad to leave, but also ready to go home and see the kitties. We get into Rockland around noon, where we pop into hello hello books, one of the bookstores on my Maine bookstore bucket list before we make the final leg of the drive home.

I could go on and on about this vacation and share sooo many more photos, but I'll leave it here for now. Mostly, it reminded me of the value of rest, meeting yourself where you are, and doing what you need when needed.

What I read in Vinalhaven

The Wedding People by Alison Espach. I read this in 24 hours, and it was a fast five-star read for me. I loved Phoebe's character and couldn't wait to see how the story was going to turn out. It was funny, smart, and, though dark at moments, the perfect kind of book I love to get lost in.

The Carousel by Rosamunde Pilcher. When we were at the library bookstore, I came across a little stack of vintage Rosamunde Pilcher paperbacks from the 80s with the most beautiful covers. They were $1 each, so I snagged all three and breezed through The Carousel. What I loved most was Pilcher's writing of the English seaside. The novel felt timeless, comforting, and cozy.

The Cliffs by J. Courtney Sullivan. I got about 85 pages into this on Friday before I decided to set it aside. It might be a DNF for me, but I'm not sure yet. I found the writing clunky, and the characters felt like caricatures to me (this is, perhaps, because I read it after spending time with Espach's characters, who are so fantastic). So we'll see if I give it another go.

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore. I read about half of this on Sunday while we were at the beach and was so intrigued I can't wait to finish it. I will say, however, that reading about the spooky woods while you're on an island surrounded by nature was maybe not the best idea. Moore excels at writing some truly spooky sentences, but I like that she balances it with exploring the Van Laar family history and dynamic.

Just One Taste by Lizzy Dent. I started this on Saturday night because I needed something feel-good to read before bed after creeping myself out with The God of the Woods. I’m only about 50 pages in, but I’m already loving it, which I already knew I would.