HARPSWELL: THE ISLANDS

Peninsulas are for slow driving—about 25 mph, if we’re taking the pulse—so after exploring Admiral Robert E. Peary’s Eagle Island, we trek north, in order to turn around and head south again, this time to Harpswell’s islands: Great, Orrs, and Bailey. Soon we’re at H2Outfi tters, a kayak-rental center where a few years back we paddled these waters near the Cribstone Bridge linking Orrs and Bailey, and a bald eagle flew so close we could feel its beating wings.

The bridge is lacy granite, stacked like kids’ blocks, the only one of its kind in the world. It’s also the backdrop for Morse’s Cribstone Grill, a shingled cottage draped with buoys on the Bailey Island side of the bridge. Outdoor tables line the pier, and a server is fending off a seagull. Then, “He got a crabmeat roll!” a kid sitting at the table next to us shouts.

“The crabs have been really good lately,” our server nods.

“I’ll have what he’s having,” I reply, invoking When Harry Met Sally ’s infamous line. Everyone’s eager to share peninsula favorites, and we gather recommendations. “It’s a misnomer that Mainers are taciturn,” another customer notes. “Once they start talking, they don’t stop.”

We do reach land’s end, however, at the tip of Bailey Island, where there’s a spectacular view and a handsome sailboat rounding the point. We share the beauty with a gift shop, a statue dedicated to Maine fi shermen, and a healthy bed of poison ivy, posted: “Grown in Maine, 100% Natural, Sold Here.”