A Taste of Germany
The makers of Morse?s sauerkraut have opened a market and caf? for schnitzel fans in Waldoboro.
By Andrew Vietze
Morse's sauerkraut has always been a bit of a phenomenon. Who would think there would be great demand for sauerkraut eight miles inland from Route 1 in the rural midcoast? Somehow, the company has managed not only to survive but prosper, selling the sour delicacy - fermented cabbage - from a small, red, gambrel-roofed barn on Route 220 in Waldoboro. Of course it helps that the town has a deep German heritage, and it was many of these locals that kept the business afloat. Morse's has done well enough that it's expanded over the years, especially since it was purchased by the husband-and-wife team of David Swetnam and Jacquelyn Sawyer in 2000. "We had people coming in with a label in their hand from some German celery root asking us if we could help them find it," explains Sawyer. "So we opened a Bavarian pantry." Now you can find all sorts of European epicurean esoterica here. And since 2003 the couple has been serving sit-down meals as well. "It seemed like a good idea," says Sawyer. "If you're going to come all the way out here, you might as well have something to eat." Hidden behind a door on one side of the barn, almost like a speakeasy, are five booths, each high-backed enough to allow for privacy. Festive lights are strung up above, and there are crocks of sour mustard and garlic pickles at each table. The menu is loaded with Bavarian and European favorites - the classic Reuben, the schnitzel, the borscht, the homemade pierogies - with a few Down East twists. Somehow it all manages to make sense. "In Maine it's a natural," says Sawyer. "Brown bread, beans, kraut - you have that for Sunday dinner. People around here grew up with this." Prices are very reasonable - entrees are in the $7-$10 range - and you could fashion a nice meal with a few of the $1.89 appetizers (German potato salad, sauerkraut balls, Maine baked beans). Traditional Bavarian fare served in a barn on a Maine back road? Just be glad you found it. The restaurant is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week. Call 866-832-5569 for details. Make Way for McCloskey
Remember Sal and her blueberries? Remember that cute bear cub? If you do, you'll want to be at the Stonington Opera House on August 24 at 7 p.m. for a showing of original 16 mm films of the classic children's books by Robert McCloskey, including Blueberries for Sal and One Morning in Maine. Call 207-367-2788 for details.
Portland Waterfalls
Most people don't realize that the Portland area has two significant waterfalls. Thanks to the work of Portland Trails and the eager environmental engineers of the Maine Conservation Corps, you can easily see both. Last year Portland Trails took several steps toward its goal of creating thirty miles of multi-use trails in and around the Forest City. The nonprofit group worked on a variety of projects, but two trails stood out: the Starbird Lane Trail and the Presumpscot River Trail. Both merit a look-see by hikers, strollers, and waterfallophiles. The Starbird Lane Trail traverses fourteen acres of wetlands behind Starbird Lane and Winding Way off Brighton Avenue in what's arguably the wildest section of town. It links Portland Trails' already existing Capisic Brook Trail to Maine Audubon's beautiful Fore River Sanctuary. Wander one end of the half-mile trail and you'll end up with nice views of Capisic Pond, the largest freshwater basin in Portland. Follow the Starbird Lane Trail in the opposite direction, and you'll find yourself at the Fore River Sanctuary, the home of Jewell Falls, the city's only natural waterfall. The Presumpscot River Trail is Portland Trail's first trail-building effort in Falmouth, following the river of the same name along a surprisingly wooded course and allowing for a gander at Presumpscot Falls, a bird-watching hotspot. For the full details on Portland Trails visit the organization's Web site at www.trails.org, or just head out for a hike.
Raven Art
Bernd Heinrich is fast becoming one of the best-known naturalists to write about Maine since Thoreau. In the past two decades he's written a dozen books - A Year in the Maine Woods, The Trees in My Forest, and Winter World: The Ingenuity of Animal Survival, among others - and acquainted readers with the habits and habitats of geese, ravens, bees, and owls. While Heinrich was in the field studying he was also photographing and drawing the critters around him. The sketches and pictures he made during his time in the woods form the core of a show at the curious L.C. Bates Museum on the campus of the Good Will Hinckley School on Route 201 south of Skowhegan. Housed in a beautiful 1903 Romanesque brick building, the museum is filled with dioramas of Down East animals; collections of tools, plows, and sleighs; archeological pieces; and art by contemporary Maine artists. This last is where Heinrich comes in. The naturalist is a 1959 alumnus of Good Will Hinckley, and he selected the Bates Museum as the only site in the state to show a retrospective of his work, which includes drawings he did at the school as a boy. Call 207-238-4250 or visit www.gwh.org for details.
Archeology for Amateurs
Samuel de Champlain supposedly visited a Wabanaki village when he pulled up along the Down East coast in 1604. Champlain, of course, was the French explorer who literally put Maine on the map in the seventeenth century. Archeologists from Bar Harbor's Abbe Museum will be scratching around in search of this site of contact during the week of August 14 to 19, and anyone with an interest in archeology (and $500) is welcome to join them. The Abbe is conducting an archeological field school that week on what they believe is the site of the village Champlain called Chouacoet. (We know it as the shore of the Saco River in Biddeford.) Participation is open to the general public, and no experience with a shovel or trowel is necessary. With tuition at $500 and room and board $270 it's not cheap, but it has vacation-of-a-lifetime written all over it. And you never know what you might dig up. Call 207-288-3519 or visit www.abbemuseum.org for details.
Movies in the Park
Remember the drive-in? Remember the sit-in? Portland's Downtown District is sponsoring a combination of the two in Movies in the Park, which runs Monday nights through mid-August. Fun flicks will be shown at dusk on a big screen in Congress Square. Bring a lawn chair, a blanket, and some popcorn. Maybe even make out. For details visit www.portlandmaine.com
Prowl with the Owls
Families enjoy visiting the Maine Wildlife Park to marvel at the resident moose and the cougar. The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife's animal rehabilitation center in Gray functions much like a zoo, and crowds come out to see the wild inhabitants of the Pine Tree State as they heal from whatever injuries befell them. Most people are unaware that IF&W hosts a variety of outings and educational programs open to all ages. A fine one is coming up on August 20, when there will be an owl prowl from 8 to 10 p.m. Wise though they may be, owls can often be tricked into coming close by experienced naturalists. And if the wily birds don't materialize, the park has plenty of owl displays to see, so it's a can't-fail evening. Unless it rains, in which case the event's called off. Admission is $5. Call 207-592-1541 or visit http://www.state.me.us/ifw/edu cation/wildlifepark/index.htm.
Acadia Tribute
George B. Dorr lends his name to many places on Mount Desert Island - a trail, a mountain, and a museum in the original headquarters of Acadia. And well he should; the wealthy Bostonian, who made his fortune in the textile business, practically invented the place. Actually, Dorr did more than anyone else to make Lafayette - later Acadia - National Park a reality (he even served as its first superintendent). The George B. Dorr Museum of Natural History on the campus of the College of the Atlantic has a tribute to the man - "Acadia's Founder and First Naturalist" - which should be required viewing for the park's three million annual visitors. The exhibit, which runs through September 24 at the nifty college museum, explores Dorr's role in putting together the national park system's "crown jewel." Call 207-288-5015 for details.
