The first question anyone will ask you in Searsport, whether you’re checking into a motel or tearing into a boiled lobster, is “Where are you headed?” As though you’re not already someplace.
Thus, it’s easy to feel a little sorry for Searsport, or to find yourself humming a few bars of Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck in the Middle With You.” But instead of “clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right,” they’ve got Camden to the south of them, Bar Harbor to the north — two major tourist zones. But Searsport makes the most of it. “We’re a great base for people going to Bar Harbor and those who want to explore Camden and Rockport, since we’re in the middle,” says innkeeper Anita McLellan of the Homeport Inn. “We get the overflow when they have events,” she adds. Bonus for those who hunker down here: Restaurant and lodgings prices are more reasonable in Searsport than in the big-name tourist haunts. Hang around a bit, and explore the funky antiques shops, great parks, good eats, and terrific marine museum, and you may forget all about where you’re heading next.
Click here to read the full story by Diane Bair and Pamela Wright in the Boston Globe