Schoodic3: Corea, Me

Oh boy, talk about your out of the way places! Left Schoodic Point in Acadia National Park and traveled back up the west side of the peninsula. I blew by an inconspicuous road on the right with a little sign that read "Corea" It caught my attention as it read Korea but with a C. I turned back and swooped out on an outcropping of Schoodic Peninsula in Gouldsboro Bay.

I was on state route 195 but took a right to see a lighthouse indicated on my DeLorme's. I reached the cute little lighthouse and "keeper's house" but couldn't get very close. 

Photo from LightHouseFriends.com

It had a security fence (Guantanamo Bay style) with razor wire and a guard shack. A large blue camo uniformed guard politely but firmly told me I could not enter. An interior sign read "US Naval Operations Satellite Communications" Okay, I surmised this was once a lazy little post that got a big dose of post 9-11 paranoia testosterone.I left the military installation and continued to Corea. 
   

I rolled in to find a sleepy little fishing village at low tide.  It's a small harbor crowded with lobster and sail boats. It looks as though high tide adds 100 feet all around. I checked out the few narrow streets and found the only business in town.

It's not unusual to find a little grill on the coast of Maine serving lobster rolls with deck seating. There's dozens along the coast and all a pretty good. However, this one has a rather amazing collection of old, top quality photographs of the area. By "old", I mean from the 40's and 50's.  In classic black & white, they were taken by 1919 Corea-born photographer Louise Z. Young who took photos for the Bangor Daily News and herself. She passed in 2004 and her family shows the photos next to their grill in Corea. I met Robert who I believe is Louise's grandson. He runs the place along with his lobsterman dad, Joe. I also met a Colby student working there for the summer. She caught me playing hookey from work. Corea is now a highlight of my summer.