Camden Hills State Park is also only a few miles outside of Camden, but in a different direction. There were some camping spots, but mostly people use the park for day hiking and biking trips. We checked out the park because a mile and half is all it takes to drive to the top of Mount Battie. At the top there is an amazing 180 degree view of the coast and the harbor and town of Camden. We stayed at the top for a while because the view was so good.
We contemplated picking up lunch in town and coming back to the overlook to eat, but as we were leaving we stumbled upon the other half of the park on the other side of the highway. This section of the park is near the water and has many picnic areas. We found a path near the water and after picking up lunch from the local grocery store in Camden, returned to eat while overlooking the ocean. We both agreed that the view from Camden Hills is surprisingly better then at Acadia National Park.
The corner grocery store, French and Brawn (since 1868), was a nice find for future visits. The store isn’t very large when you first walk in, but in the back they have tons of pre-made salads, sandwiches, and a full deli, bakery, and coffee. We’ll definitely buy breakfast and lunch from there if we ever come back. Also surprising was that the prices for food didn’t seem very high compared to home. My big salad was only five dollars and my fresh baguette, only a dollar and a quarter.
After lunch we went back to our room for a few minutes to rest before our two-hour sail around Penobscot Bay...
