Tag Archives: Saco

This Week’s Highlights 11/21 – 11/28/2025.

Leave a reply
I found Maine’s 4th or 5th Virginia’s Warbler on Peak’s Island on Monday, the 24th. Or at least I was confident that I did. I returned two days later to alleviate any lingering doubt, re-found it, saw it much better, and managed to photographed it! Many other birders have seen it through the 28th among a flock of other late/lingering warblers. Details below.

It was simply another incredible week of birding. Frustrated by not having found a mega-rarity since Monhegan (in an otherwise amazing fall for vagrants), I went to Peak’s Island on Monday. It worked! It was a six-warbler week for me, highlighted of course by the Virginia’s Warbler – a new state bird for me! My “Rarity Fever” is raging now! Here are my observations of note over the past eight days:

  • Evening Grosbeaks have become more regular locally this week, with single birds, mostly flyovers, here and there.  Scattered 1 to a few Red Crossbills continue as well. Additionally, there was also a nice little surge in American Goldfinch and Pine Siskin numbers this week locally.
  • Plenty of the typical “late” migrants still around, such as Red-winged Blackbirds, Common Grackles, scattered Swamp Sparrows and Northern Flickers, Red-shouldered Hawk, etc.
  • 1 Orange-crowned Warbler, Trout Brook Preserve, South Portland, 11/23.
  • Peak’s Island, 11/24: 1 almost-definite VIRGINIA’S WARBLER with 2 NASHVILLE WARBLERS (see below) on Seashore Ave, and 1 COMMON YELLOWTHROAT at Battery Steele.
  • 1 NASHVILLE WARBLER, Commercial Street (near the cruise ship terminal), Portland, 11/26.
  • Back to Peak’s Island, 11/26: 1 VIRGINIA’S WARBLER (confirmed! Photo above) with 2+ NASHVILLE WARBLERS, 1++ Orange-crowned Warbler, and 1+ Yellow-rumped Warbler, Seashore Avenue. Complete details here:
Virginia’s Warbler on Peak’s Island, 11/2025.
  • 1 BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, 1 TENNESSEE WARBLER, 1 BALTIMORE ORIOLE, and 1-2 Gray Catbirds, Saco Riverwalk, 11/28.
  • 4-5 NASHVILLE WARBLERS (4 continuing since being found by B. McKay et al on 11/26; I had a single bird at the other end of the hillside that was likely a 5th individual) and 1 Hermit Thrush, West Commercial Street, Portland, 11/28. This has been an insane fall for “late/lingering/pioneering/vagrant” Nashville Warblers here in Maine. Interestingly, this phenomenon appears to be rather widespread, as well above average numbers of NAWA are being seen along the Northeast coast as far south as Cape May this fall. Fascinating!  
My best photo of the week was not of of the rarities, but I enjoyed this photo of one of four very cooperative Snow Buntings at Kettle Cove on the 23rd that I caught this one mid-stretch-break.

This Week’s Highlights, 11/23– 11/29/2024

Leave a reply
My photos of my highlights this week are not exactly worthy of a “cover shot,” so instead, here’s a Northern Mockingbird that posed nicely for me in Biddeford Pool on the 29th.

Winter seems to be settling in! The colder (seasonable, finally!) temperatures should produce another wave of rarities and “lingering/late” birds to find though, and that was the case for my observations of note over the past seven days.

  • 45 American Pipits and ~10 Horned Larks, Mayall Road, Gray/New Gloucester, 11/23 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • 1 female BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER, Village Crossings – Cape Elizabeth Greenbelt Trail, 11/24.
  • 1 Northern Shrike (FOS), feeders here at the store, 11/24.
  • 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet, 1 Winter Wren, 2 Hermit Thrushes, etc, Bailey Island, Harpswell, 11/25 (with Jeannette).
  • 1 WILSON’S WARBLER and 1 “YELLOW” PALM WARBLER, Saco Riverwalk, 11/29.

If you stitch together all of my photos, you might be able to make one poor photo of a whole Wilson’s Warbler. Nonetheless, it was a nice surprise that added a splash of color to the week’s birding endeavors. Trust me, the snapshot of the Palm Warbler is much worse!

  • An above-average number of species such as Northern Flickers, Hermit Thrushes, and Swamp Sparrows still continue around the area.

 Recent Highlights, 2/24– 3/1/2024

1 Reply

I decided to pay another visit to the Spotted Towhee at Fort Foster on the 25th, 99 days after I first found it there on November 19th!  I had some good quality time with my buddy, but it could have showed itself better for me.

I enjoyed a few good birds on several outings this week, making for a nice list of highlights for the season. Here are my observations of note over the last seven days:

  • 1 immature male Lesser Scaup, Freeport Town Wharf, 2/24 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • 1 continuing SPOTTED TOWHEE, 1 Winter Wren, 1 Hermit Thrush, 1 Merlin, etc, Fort Foster, Kittery, 2/25. Photo above.
  • 1 immature male KING EIDER, The Nubble, Cape Neddick, 2/25/2024.
  • 2 BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS, Reid State Park, Georgetown, 2/26 (with Jeannette). Are these early, late, or just overwintering? Park has been closed for almost two months, so winter observations from here are lacking.
  • 2 Common Grackles (FOY), East Point, Biddeford Pool, 3/1.
  • 1 SNOW GOOSE, Saco Riverwalk, 3/1. Presumably same bird that has been reported from nearby Laurel Hill Cemetery.

TOURS AND EVENTS:

Thanks to everyone who came out for the Book Release part for the 2nd Edition of Birdwatching in Maine: The Complete Site Guide on Thursday (2/29) at Maine Beer Company!  It was great to see everyone there.

By the way, the book is now available here at the store and your favorite local bookstores everywhere.

BRADBURY MOUNTAIN SPRING HAWKWATCH:

We get underway for the 18th season on Friday, March 15th. We’ll be welcoming Zane Baker back for his record-shattering 6th season! Hopefully all of the Turkey Vultures and Bald Eagles will not have moved through by then.

Recent Highlights, 12/9 – 12/15, 2023

Leave a reply

I had a nice photo session this morning with White-throated Sparrows at the Saco Riverwalk. I enjoyed watching them extracting the seeds from crabapples, the opposite of true frugivores that consume the flesh and cough up or poop out the seeds.

It’s been a productive seven days, with this week’s highlights being decidedly wintery in nature. ‘Tis the season!

  • 7 Red Crossbills, Florida Lake Park, Freeport, 12/9 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • 1 CLAY-COLORED SPARROW, Hunter Road, Freeport, 12/9 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).

It’s never a good sign when you must circle the bird in your attempt at a documentation shot! I got one shot off before it flew.

  • 2 Red Crossbills, our property in Durham, 12/10.
  • 39 total WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS in scattered small groups, and 54 total Pine Siskins, Long Falls Dam Road, Somerset County, 12/12 (with Jeannette).
  • 1 Northern Shrike (first of season), our property in Durham, 12/13.
  • 1-2 Swamp Sparrows, Tidewater Farm Preserve, Falmouth, 12/14.
  • 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Saco Riverwalk, 12/15.

NOTES.

Since we’ve had a mix of “the birds are back!” and “there are still no birds at my feeders” at the store recently, I wrote an updated blog talking about the season and the inconsistencies we are seeing with overall feeder activity, which is posted here:

Why There Are Not (or, maybe there are now) Birds at Your Feeders, December 2023 Edition.

Recent Highlights, 11/26 – 12/8, 2023

Leave a reply

I finally went back this week, this time with Jeannette, to revisit the Spotted Towhee that I found at Kittery’s Fort Foster on 11/19. We were treated to two sessions of it feeding, both of which provided longer and better views than on the first day.

Maine’s First Confirmed Spotted Towhee at Fort Foster!

Early December is often a time with another pulse of rarities being detected as birds concentrate at fewer seasonally abundant food sources, like feeding stations, and concentrate along the coast and other migrant traps. At the very least, it’s a time for unusual “late,” “lingering,” or “pioneering” birds that brighten up a cold, gray winter’s day.  This was often the case for me in my relatively limited birding over the past two weeks, with the following observations of note:

  • 1 Gray Catbird and 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Capisic Pond Park, Portland, 11/30.
  • Sabattus Pond, Sabattus, 12/1 (with Dan Nickerson):  380 distant scaup, 272 Common Mergansers, 238 Ruddy Ducks, 209 Mallards, 8 American Black Ducks, 8 Common Goldeneyes, 7 Buffleheads, 4 GREEN-WINGED TEAL, 3 Common Loons, 1 Belted Kingfisher, and 1 RUSTY BLACKBIRD.
  • 1 Chipping Sparrow, King Road, Lisbon, 12/1 (with Dan Nickerson).
  • 3 Ruby-crowned Kinglets and 2 Field Sparrows, Saco Riverwalk, Saco, 12/3.
  • 1 Hermit Thrush and 1 Swamp Sparrow, Elphis Pond, Biddeford Pool, 12/3.
  • Southern York County Coast with Jeannette on 12/5:
  • 1 continuing drake NORTHERN SHOVELER, Legion Pond, Kittery.
  • 1 continuing SPOTTED TOWHEE (photo above), 2 MARSH WRENS, and 1 Swamp Sparrow, Fort Foster, Kittery.
  • 2 American Pipits and 1 Horned Lark, Seapoint Beach, Kittery.
  • 1,000+ Black Scoters, The Nubble.
  • 60 Sanderlings, Ogunquit Beach.
  • 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Auburn Riverwalk, 12/7.
  • 1 drake BARROW’S GOLDENEYE (first of season), 74 Lesser Scaup, and 2 Greater Scaup, Lake Auburn, Auburn, 12/7.
  • 1 Red Crossbill, over our property in Durham, 12/8.

Meanwhile, at our feeders in Durham, a nice uptick in sparrow activity including up to 14 Dark-eyed Juncos, 4 continuing White-throated and 1-2 continuing Song Sparrows, with our first American Tree Sparrow arriving on 11/22 before the store, and 15 Dark-eyed Juncos, only 1 White-throated Sparrow, and a return on 12/6 of an American Tree Sparrow after the storm. 40-50 American Goldfinches and 1-2 Purple Finches continue daily, but this week, we only had Pine Siskins in the woods and not at the feeders.

Since we’ve had a mix of “the birds are back!” and “there are still no birds at my feeders” at the store recently, a wrote a new blog talking about the season and the inconsistencies we are seeing with overall feeder activity, which is posted here.

Why There Are Not (or, maybe there are now) Birds at Your Feeders, December 2023 Edition.

ISSUES and ADVOCACY:

The amazing birding and migration site – especially for fall “morning flights” – in the Mid-Coast is once again under direct threat. Birders need to help convince the state to find an alternative location for a massive new port and its infrastructure. Our most significant places of concentration for migratory birds need to be protected. Here is our Statement in Opposition to a New Port on Sears Island in Searsport.

This Week’s Highlights: December 10 – 16, 2022

Leave a reply

At least one Ruby-crowned Kinglet continues at the Saco Riverwalk as of 12/15 (I had three here last week). This one does not seem particularly happy about it, however.

Being short-staffed in the weeks before Christmas is not a good recipe for lots of birding time when you work in retail!  Luckily, my three mornings out and about were all quite productive for mid-December.

  • 1 DOVEKIE, 14+ Razorbills, 3 Black-legged Kittwakes, etc. in one hour of seawatching at Dyer Point, Cape Elizabeth, 12/11.
  • 1 Field Sparrow, private property in Cape Elizabeth, 12/11.
  • 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Mill Creek Park, South Portland, 12/11.
  • ~140 RUDDY DUCKS, 1 drake Green-winged Teal, 1 drake Northern Pintail, 52 Lesser Scaup, 19 Greater Scaup, etc, Sabattus Pond, Sabattus, 12/12.
  • 2 Red Crossbills, private property in Freeport, 12/13.
  • Scattered tarrying Turkey Vultures this week included a high count of 4 over the store on 12/13.
  • 1 continuing GRAY CATBIRD, 1 continuing Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and 1 continuing Wood Duck, Saco Riverwalk, 12/15.

This Week’s Highlights: December 3 – 9, 2022

Leave a reply

The still-unfrozen waters of Sabattus Pond were fantastic this week. One of the highlights was this continuing drake Canvasback.

So-called “half-hardies” dominated my highlights away from a still-productive Sabattus Pond, as if often the case this time of year.

  • 1 adult Iceland Gull, Yarmouth Town Landing, 12/3 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • Sabattus Pond, 12/5: 1 continuing immature male EURASIAN WIGEON, 1 continuing drake CANVASBACK, 1 PIED-BILLED GREBE, 1 1st winter Iceland Gull, ~350 Ruddy Ducks, 3 Northern Pintails, 2 Ring-necked Ducks, 1 Horned Grebe, etc.  Full waterbird list here.
  • 1 Winter Wren, 1 Hermit Thrush, 1 Northern Flicker, and 3 Red Crossbills, Bailey Island, Harpswell, 12/5.
  • 1 Evening Grosbeak, our yard in Durham, 12/6.
  • 1 Fox Sparrow, feeders here at the store, 12/6-7.
  • 1 Gray Catbird, 3 Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and 1 Swamp Sparrow, Saco Riverwalk, Saco, 12/9 (with Allison Anholt).

I take a lot of photos this time of year of birds with Multiflora Rose stems in front of their faces. Like this – and every other – Ruby-crowned Kinglet shot from the Saco Riverwalk on 12/9.

This Week’s Highlights: November 19 – November 25, 2022

1 Reply

I had a nice photo session with the late-season shorebirds at Biddeford Pool Beach on the 22nd, including this Dunlin – one of 54 present that day.

With the colder weather, we’re starting to see “late/lingering” migrants concentrating at the coast, and a smattering of rarities around the state. My observations of note over the past seven days included the following:

  •  1 Red Crossbill, Highland Road, Brunswick, 11/19 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • 2 Rusty Blackbirds, our feeder in Durham, 11/19.
  • 391 Ruddy Ducks, 1 White-winged Scoter, 150 distant scaup, etc, Sabattus Pond, Sabattus, 11/21 (with Jeannette).
  • 1 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, 1 Field Sparrow, 2 Wood Ducks, etc, Saco Riverwalk, 11/22.
  • 1 YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, South Point Preserve, Biddeford Pool, 11/22.
  • 1 Gray Catbird, 1 Chipping Sparrow, 1 Black-bellied Plover, 2 Ruddy Turnstones, etc, etc, Biddeford Pool environs, 11/22.
  • 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, here at the store, 11/23.
  • 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Wolfe’s Neck Center, 11/25.

This Week’s Highlights, 12/4-10, 2021

Leave a reply
Maine’s third-ever GRAY KINGBIRD has been delighting birders since late last week,

My observations of note over the past seven days were as follows, almost all of which were from a tremendous Tuesday morning, as previously reported:

1 male COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, 1 “WESTERN” PALM WARBLER, and 1 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, Saco Riverwalk, Saco, 12/7 (with Jeannette).

1 continuing GRAY KINGBIRD and 24 Dunlin, Fortunes Rocks Beach, Biddeford, 12/7 (with Jeannette). Photo above.

2 SNOWY OWLS, Mile Stretch, Biddeford, 12/7 (with Jeannette). Photos below.

1 continuing male CAPE MAY WARBLER, Biddeford Pool neighborhood, Biddeford, 12/7 (with Jeannette).

1 Turkey Vulture, over downtown Biddeford, 12/7 (with Jeannette).

4 Red-winged Blackbirds were at the store on 12/9 (observed by Jeanne Farrell).

1 Snow Bunting, Pott’s Point, Harpswell, 12/10.

7 Horned Larks, Stover’s Point, Harpswell, 12/10.

With the exceptions of Tuesday and Friday mornings, my birding was limited, local, and exceptionally slow!  The complete lack of irruptives (other than an average number so far of Snowy Owls) south of the boreal transition belt, along with continued relatively-mild conditions that limit concentrations (including at feeders and of waterfowl) make for slim pickings on those short morning outings and dogwalks!

Good owl photos are of birds looking relaxed and ignoring you.
If it’s staring right at you with big open eyes, you are too close!

Where to Eat Lunch when Birding York County

Leave a reply

IMG_7127_edited-1

Whether it’s here on this blog (especially in trip reports), on our store’s Facebook page in posts recounting a birding outing, or elsewhere, people seem to enjoy hearing about where Jeannette and I eat lunch while out birding. In addition to finding “good birds,” we do enjoying finding new places to eat. It’s part of the adventure, and especially when we are out of town, it helps us to explore and appreciate a place for more than just the birding. And apparently, feedback suggests that you have an interest in hearing about these places. Or does it just say something about what you think of my writing about birds!?

In fact, I have often been asked to write some sort of “eating while birding” book, website, or article. Maybe someday the idea will develop, but for now, I thought I would hash out a little list of my favorite places to eat while birding in Maine. And I thought I would start with York County.

Perhaps if you find this of interest, other counties will follow. If not, well, then I know what my next project won’t be!

Let’s start with a little background about the food choices we make. We don’t eat fast food unless we’re desperate, and we avoid chains as much as possible. We’d rather eat at a local establishment – for all of the reasons from economic impact to healthier food (sometimes) to the simple idea that food should not be the exact same thing anywhere you go. We love “fine dining,” but for lunch, we’d rather have a good meal, have it reasonably quickly, and get back to birding. We’ll relax at dinnertime. We also very much believe that “great food” and “inexpensive” do not have to be mutually exclusive!

We bird York County regularly, and we often spend at least half the day doing it. Therefore, we tend to find lots of places to enjoy lunch. They tend to be clustered, however, around where we go birding, and where we end up around lunchtime during our birding routes. There are lots of places we haven’t tried, such as in Kennebunkport, that we just don’t tend to bird near. In other words, this list is by no means a comprehensive review of the “best” places to eat lunch in the county – it’s just our favorite places to have lunch when we are birding our favorite spots to bird.

With that in mind, I present to you, for your reading pleasure and/or future reference, our favorite places to eat lunch when birding in York County, Maine (listed roughly from south to north, no other particular order).

1) Loco Coco’s Taco, Kittery
36 Walker St
Sun-Tues: 11am to 8am
Wed-Sat: 11am to 9am

If Kittery is our only birding destination of the morning, then there’s no question where we go for lunch. We’ve hit fallouts at Fort Foster so amazing that we spend all morning there alone. Or perhaps we end up studying or photographing shorebirds at nearby Seapoint Beach. It’s also a tradition for dinner as we head back from a whale watch out of Rye, NH or a NH Audubon pelagic.

While the carne asada tacos are the best around, neither of us can resist the chili rellenos burrito. Also, a tamale or two to go is the perfect mid-afternoon snack to fuel the rest of your birding day. And we always get a piece of Tres Leches cake for when we get home!

2) Flo’s Steamed Hot Dogs, Cape Neddick
1359 US Route One
Thurs-Tues: 11am-3pm
Closed Wed.

For people who eat so little processed food, it might come as a surprise to those who know us well to find out that this is our most-frequent lunch destination in York County! In fact, we’re here often enough that Kimmie somehow remembers exactly what we order. Once a month, we spend a day birding from Kittery through Wells, and this is our lunch destination most of the time. It didn’t hurt that on our first visit when we first moved to the state and we were birding the area, we popped into the unassuming, but so-crowded-you-know-it-has-to-be-great little building and found the Travel Channel filming!

There isn’t much on the menu. In fact, it’s just one item: steamed hot dogs. While the House Special and the Loaded are popular, for Jeannette and I, we stay simple: just Flo’s famous relish, nothing else. It just works. And if we’re going to eat hot dogs, it’s once a month, and it’s here! (Note: no bathrooms!)

3) Jamaican Jerk Center, Cape Neddick
1400 US Route One

Once or twice each summer, we skip out on Flo’s and head here for a little Caribbean fix. While we have yet to visit Jamaica, we do love the food and flavors of the region, and this little roadside shack serves it up well. The jerk chicken is great, and we always get a couple of patties for lunch the next day. The place doesn’t look like much, but the food is fantastic!

4) Village Food Market, Ogunquit
230 Main Street
Sun-Thurs: 6:30am to 8pm
Fri-Sat: 6:30 am to 9pm

When we don’t make it as far south as Flo’s while birding the Ogunquit shoreline and productive neighborhoods and thickets, then we head here. It’s also the traditional stop for us during the Southern Maine Christmas Bird Count, our territory of which includes the center of town.

I’m sure there are plenty of good things on the menu, but I never order anything other than the grilled veggie Panini. Lots of veggies, lots of cheese, and just enough grease to make this one of the more gut-busting (in all the good ways!) vegetarian sandwiches around.

5) Congdon’s Family Restaurant and Bakery, Wells
1090 Post Road (US Route One)
Winter – Thurs-Sun: 6am to 3pm.
Summer – Open 7 days.

Most of our birding in the Wells area is done in the winter, and on days that this local institution is closed. But if we’re looking for shorebirds in Webhannet Marsh in the summer, or looking at Least Terns and Piping Plovers at Laudholm Farms in the midst of the breeding season, then Congdon’s for “second breakfast” it is. And donuts to go…which, come to think of it, it’s probably best for our health that it’s not always open. Also, during the warmer months, we often follow up a lunch at Flo’s or the JJC with a little mid-afternoon snack here, just because, well, donuts! And forget the cool, trendy places in Portland, these are the real deal – nothing too fancy, just sweet, tasty, and wicked good!

6) Custom Deluxe, Biddeford
1040 Main St.
Tues-Fri, 11am to 2pm.

This is the newest addition to the list, having opened just last fall. Most of our birding lunch stops are quick and cheap, but when we want something just a little “finer,” then this is where we now go. Don’t be surprised to see me here with a tour group or private guiding client sometime this summer. I’m still desperate for another option for a Sunday lunch in the area, unfortunately!

The first visit a couple of weeks ago culminated in the yeast donut with frozen maple mousse, applesauce, and smoked cheddar that a friend and I split for desert (see photo above). Thank goodness we split it, or we would still be in a food coma. It was fantastic, but I was already sold on the place after devouring the house-made noodles.

7) Saco Island Deli, Saco
110 Main St
Mon-Fri, 8am to 4pm.

There are now so many options in the Saco-Biddeford area, that I don’t get here – my favorite sandwich shop in Maine – nearly as often as I used to. Unfortunately, they are closed on weekends, including Sunday, which for whatever reason, I usually when I find myself birding Biddeford Pool or the Saco Riverwalk (in the fall).

However, during the week, and especially when out with clients, there are few better sandwiches anywhere in Maine. You see, the owner, Mark is from New Jersey. That’s what makes the sandwiches so good. Say what you want about my home state, but we know sandwiches. I have not yet had a sandwich here I didn’t like, but in the summer, I always go Primo Veggie – a massive sandwich layered with razor-thin sliced veggies, piled high – nearly too big to get your mouth around: “Double portion of fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, cucumbers, roasted red peppers, kalamata olives and fresh basil leaves drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette on a rustic roll.” This is no lame, afterthought vegetarian option, this is a beastly vegetable meal. But if you want to be really cool, ask for the off-menu Jersey Joe (and expect to have lunch for the next day) to fully understand just how seriously New Jersey takes its sandwiches.

7a) The Run of the Mill, Saco
100 Main St
Sun-Thurs: 11:30am to 9pm.
Fri-Sat: 11:30am to 10pm.

If I am in the Biddeford area on a weekend (when the Saco Island Deli and Luis’s Arepera is closed), especially when it’s cold, I head over to Run of the Mill. After a frigid bout of seawatching at East Point, nothing is better than a piping hot bowl of their Mac & Cheese. The beer cheese soup is another good option, although for me it depends on which cheeses are used.

8) Luis’s Arepera and Grill, Saco
213 North St.
Mon-Thurs: 11am to 8pm.
Fri: 11am to 9pm.

Like the Saco Island Deli, I long for this place to be open on weekends. However, it’s a short enough run south from Scarborough Marsh, or close enough off of the highway (via I-195 to Industrial Way) that I can swing in while heading north from a hotspot like the Kennebunk Plains. And since Jeannette and I discovered their authentic Venezualean cuisine only this summer, it is now a regular stop on our birding agenda, and is definitely deserved as a destination on its own.

An “arepera” is a place that makes the quintessential Venezualean dish, the “arepa.” Luis’s website describes it as “Similar to both a traditional Gordita and Pupusa, it consists of a thick corn tortilla that is fried until golden brown before being filled with a variety of different ingredients, ranging from tangy shredded chicken to meltingly tender braised beef. “ We usually get the “Pabellon Criollo” (traditional with shredded beef and plantains) or one of the veggie options. But no matter what, we simply have to split a side of fried yucca.

Honorable Mention:
(Dinner) Funky Bow Brewery’s “Growler Night” (Lyman)

It’s funny, there seems to be a pattern developing of heading to the Kennebunk Plains at dusk for Whip-poor-wills on a Friday or Saturday night…which just so happens to be when this off-the-beaten path brewery opens up, fires up the brick oven, and serves pizza to go with their hop-a-licious brews.

So let me know what you think, and definitely let me know if there are places I need to try!