Kayaking in Maine

[cruzbound]

Need some help - we will be in Portland Maine on Sunday, October 5th, and are looking to go kayaking. One problem I am running into is there are no city car rental places open on Sunday and I do not want to have to go to the airport to get a rental car. Does anyone know of a tour operator or company that does kayaking excursions? I really do not want to book with the cruiseline as we find that it tends to be too crowded and we get more bang for our buck if we use a private company not contracted with the cruiseline. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

I am also looking to possibly kayak in Halifax and will post the above questions on the Canada board but if anyone reading this for New England knows about Halifax too, information would be welcomed.

 

Thanks!

[jstducky]

Does your cruise stop in Bar Harbor? There are lots of kayaking options from there. I kayaked out of Bar Harbor a few years ago and it was wonderful. The views spectacular.

[sopo pirates]

L.L. Bean's is offering kayak tours in downtown Portland - just a short walk from your cruise ship to their "booth" on Commercial Street at Long Wharf. http://www.llbean.com/outdoorsOnline/odp/courses/kayak/portland-harbor-tour-maine.html (they also offer kayak, fly fishing, clay and archery lessons at their Flagship store in Freeport).

[cruzbound]

Thanks for the information. I will check into it. I would really like to get out a little in the wilderness but I don't know if that can happen in Portland. Thanks for the tip on Bar Harbor - we are stopping there too but we wanted to rent a car and do Acadia so kayaking there is kind of out. I am still hoping to find some kayaking in Halifax and then maybe in Portland we can just do the lighthouses or something like that. I appreciate all the feedback and welcome more.

[Host Caroline]

The last time we were there Portland outfitter had kayaking in Casco Bay... lovely setting.. out to EAgle Island etc. We are doing Schooner in Bar Harbor after a drive up to Cadilla Mtn. I hid the kayaking stuff from the DH :eek: . There is kayaking in Halifax but they have to drive you a ways (maybe over to Dartmouth?) to start... IMHO takes up too much time in that divine city with so much to offer that you can get to "on foot" from the pier.

[cruzbound]

The last time we were there Portland outfitter had kayaking in Casco Bay... lovely setting.. out to EAgle Island etc. We are doing Schooner in Bar Harbor after a drive up to Cadilla Mtn. I hid the kayaking stuff from the DH :eek: . There is kayaking in Halifax but they have to drive you a ways (maybe over to Dartmouth?) to start... IMHO takes up too much time in that divine city with so much to offer that you can get to "on foot" from the pier.

Hi Caroline,

 

I couldn't find a company called Portland Outfitter when I goggled it. Do you happen to have a website link for them? I did find a company called Maine Island Kayaking - has anyone used them before? They did answer my email very quickly which is always appreciated. Any other information would be great. You suggested not kayaking in Halifax - could you make some suggestions on what we should do? This is the only port I do not have anything planned yet. It looks like kayaking in Portland, renting a car in Bar Harbor and doing Acadia National Park, and renting a car in St. John and driving to the sea caves and Fundy Trailway Park. I am open to taking a cruise excursion in Halifax - the only one that is kind of interesting is a double decker bus tour, that you can get on and off of at stops and it also takes you to Peggy's Cove. Any other recommendations you could supply would be great.

 

Thanks!

[SailBadtheSinner]

cruzbound wrote ………….. renting a car in Bar Harbor……………

 

 

There are no car rental agencies in BH. The nearest one is at the local airport, the Hancock County-Bar Harbor Airport http://www.bhbairport.com/index.html. This is off island and about 20-25 miles away on 2 lane state roads.

 

I’ve read on these boards about customers wanting to be met at the dock and being driven to the agency, having the car left at the dock and dropping the car off at the dock. I don’t recall how either of these worked out You could also take the free bus (seasonal) http://www.exploreacadia.com/ to the airport and return. That would be route #1 from the BH town green to the airport, 45 minutes out, and return 65 minutes.

 

To me, renting a car would be too much of a PITA. You have limited time in BH, use it wisely. Anyway there are 2 independent tour companies in BH:

Oli’s Trolley - http://www.acadiaislandtours.com/

Acadia National Park Tours - http://www.acadiatours.com/

 

Or you could just ride the free bus around ANP. Get off where you want and get back on the next bus. The downside to this is, it is not a tour and it doesn’t go up Cadillac Mountain :(.

 

 

 

SBtS

 

 

 

 

 

[SailBadtheSinner]

I found this at the North American Homeports board about car rental at BH:

 

Question:

Can anyone tell me if Enterprise Rent a Car at the Bar Harbor Airport offers delivery or pick up for rental car service. They and Hertz seem to be the only service in Bar Harbor.

 

Answer from smeyer418:

Yes they will pick you up at the pier and you can leave the car by the cruise tender terminal with the keys in it! They are at the airport …………

 

[cruzbound]

I found this at the North American Homeports board about car rental at BH:

 

Question:

Can anyone tell me if Enterprise Rent a Car at the Bar Harbor Airport offers delivery or pick up for rental car service. They and Hertz seem to be the only service in Bar Harbor.

 

Answer from smeyer418:

Yes they will pick you up at the pier and you can leave the car by the cruise tender terminal with the keys in it! They are at the airport …………

 

Thanks for the information. We are going with Enterprise. We are crossing our fingers that everything goes well with the tender, from reading the posts that seems to be a hold up sometimes.

[TravelMamaTips]

Although I haven't done the kayak trip myself, the trips offered by Maine Island Kayak seem to be very convenient if you don't have access to a car. Take the Peak's Island ferry (Casco Bay Ferries leave from the Maine State Pier just one pier over from the Portland Ocean Terminal) to Peaks Island. The home base for Maine Island Kayak is situated there.

[MEcruzr]

Here's the schedule for the Peaks Island ferry...

 

http://www.cascobaylines.com/schedules/fall_peaks.htm

 

Be sure to look at the SUNDAY schedule. Scroll down and you can see the return times, too. This ferry leaves the island to come back to Portland on time... don't miss your return trip. ;) The trip doesn't take long... you can see it from the cruise terminal.

 

Here is what I found on the Maine Island Kayak website: "Half Day Trips are $65 per person, Full Day Trips are $110 per person and include a picnic lunch Trips meet at 9:45. Take the 9:15 ferry from Portland."

 

Here's how to contact them:

70 Luther Street, Peaks Island, ME 04108

(207)766-2373

info@maineislandkayak.com

 

Go here for more info on booking a trip: http://www.maineislandkayak.com/reservations.html

 

This company has a good reputation among the islanders of Casco Bay. I'm from an island a little further down the bay!