Campobello and the Burnham Tavern

During the last century several wealthy families discovered a small Canadian island, Campobello, and turned it into their private retreat. One of these was the family into which our future president, Franklin D. Roosevelt, was born. He grew up spending his summers here and through him, his "beloved island" became known to many Americans. Today, Campobello is an international park, administered jointly by the USA and Canada, the only such park in existence. It is dedicated to the perpetual friendship between the two countries to which FDR was committed.

We first went to the far end of the island, Quoddy Point lighthouse, for some spectacular views and possible whale spottings.



The beach near the lighthouse, and our whale spotter in action.

The coastline of the island is gorgeous! We then took the 30-minute ferry to nearby Deer Island to see the "Old Sow", the hemisphere's largest whirlpool. If you're like we were, you never heard of it before now. But there it was on our map, so we went for it! This arial view gives a much better idea.

One of the main features of the island is the Roosevelt Cottage, now the park.

Here Theresa, one of the park hosts, gave us an informative tour of the cottage. Campobello is only a short drive across an international bridge, and requires only picture ID. It's well worth your time if you're ever in this part of Maine.

We left the next morning along US 1 on our way to Acadia National Park. We stopped momentarily in Machias, Maine for a look at the Burnham Tavern, possibly remembered by any history buffs as the site of the first naval battle of our Revolutionary War. In this tavern plans were laid for the battle. Click here for the very fascinating story.

Rog and Meg