The Story Behind the Travel Photos: Sunrise in Ogunquit, Maine
- Nov 9
- 9 min read
Sunrise in Ogunquit, Maine
The photos posted here have not been altered at all. These were the conditions as I took them. Phone photos are set to automatic. Cameras have been set to the color profile for landscape, manual adjustments for ISO, f/stop, and shutter speed.
There are a few places in the world where traditional vacation rules are suspended. Let’s backtrack. After speaking with many people (family, friends, people we meet on the road), I have determined that travelers who are on vacation envision several givens: sleeping late; staying up late; housekeeping services; not preparing one’s own meals; the freedom to disconnect from one’s job and even the rest of the world; the privilege of catching up upon your return (although remote working has taught us to perhaps log on just for a second or two while we’re still on vacation).
But “rules” are made to be broken, especially when one is on vacation. And rule number one, to sleep past one’s normal wake up time, aka sleeping late, is a good one to break for several reasons.
One rule travelers break for rising early is to see a sunrise. And there are several places in the world where seeing a beautiful sunrise is worth the effort of looking at a weather app the night before, setting your alarm, throwing on some clothes and dragging yourself out of bed somewhere in the vicinity of between 5:00AM and 6:30AM, depending on the time of the year.
Your first task is to know which way the sun will rise. The saying that the sun rises in the east tends to be a general statement. And since I am not as scientifically proficient as others, my process tends to be a bit amateurish. Usually, I arrive a destination after the sun has risen. So because I am in the area when the sun sets, I'll think that the general opposite direction is where the sun will rise. It helps, but there are other methods. A second method is to do an internet search for the area. Be careful using Ai: the answers are probably generated from a combination of sources, some of which may not be exactly correct. But the third method might be the best, the most helpful and the most fun: ask the locals. Granted, some of them might look at you strangely. Or they may just shrug and sigh, especially since it may be a popular past time for tourists. Or, they may tell you enthusiastically, revealing their secret favorite spots, and even tell you how to get there.
By the way, the fact that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west in the United States will refer to due east and due west. That means those exact coordinates without any deviation towards north or south. The sun doesn't set in the same exact location each season or even each month. And this information is not based on science, it's based on my personal observation. Since I go to many of the same places each year, I have been able to see sunrises and sunsets frequently. But I may not go to these places the same time every year. And that's when I notice the difference. It doesn't shift extremely dramatically. But I will notice the sun rising in a slightly different place because I am using landmarks.
This brings us to one of my favorite places in the world to see the sun rise in the morning and that's Ogunquit, Maine. First, let's talk about Maine. For those who are new to traveling or traveling to that destination, usually, Maine is not on the top 10 of people's wish list. In fact, many times, Maine is not even on the list at all. And when you mention it, those who are not nature minded, immediately think of nothing but mountains and trees (and they're not entirely wrong). Others may know about it but it doesn't trend high with social media conscious bloggers and influencers. And although Maine houses one of the United States' national park, it still doesn't resonate much with many people who like to check off the national parks as they visit them one by one. It's rarely number one on that list.
And honestly, we found it by accident ourselves. We had an opportunity to use some points with a vacation company. As we pored over the catalog, we dismissed all of the places we had been, including Virginia, Florida, Pennsylvania and even our home state, New York. We had been to every New England state except one: Maine. And so, we loaded up the car, sailed up I-95 North, misjudging the potential traffic.
Those were the days of printing out the directions from MapQuest. The estimated arrival time was a bit ambitious, leaving us to believe that we would arrive to Ogunquit in 4 hours. We had planned to arrive mid-afternoon but we found ourselves driving slowly along US Route 1, coming of the turnpike near York in the evening, long after the sun had set, thus depriving me trying to figure out the sunrise based on seeing the sunset. The road was dark, trees loomed on both sides of the road, not even casting any shadows because there were no street lights. One corner showed a pie shop, which we promised ourselves we would visit. Soon, a large playhouse came into view, with theatergoers spilling out into the parking lot. A famous old play was up on the marquee. Broadway? In this neck of the woods?
As we drove into town, we realized that we had discovered a well-kept secret: throngs of people were strolling along sidewalks lined with galleries, eateries, cafes, vintage shops and a piano bar, which had a line of people waiting to get in. We found out later that the piano bar had sessions, so people were queued up for the next set. Cars were moving slowly because there were no traffic lights and back then, even a few intersections lacked stop signs. It was an honor system. No one was in a hurry, everyone was smiling or laughing, looking relaxed. We looked at each other: where had we been? Why are we finding out about this place just now?
Our lodging was a couple of miles from the main "downtown area." We passed a few interesting places we decided to consider for breakfast, wondering why they were closed. We came from the land of the 24 hour diner, with breakfast available anytime of the day. Only the Wall Street area might have had some places that closed at 2PM, opening only for breakfast and lunch.
We quickly realized that the busy area we had just passed was confined to about two square blocks and it was dark again. Technically, we were in Wells, the next town over. We would find out during the next few days that the towns flowed into one another quickly. Since it was dark, we couldn't see signs until we were up on it, illuminated by the headlights. In fact, we were actually going to be in Moody Beach, which, believe it or not, was a small section of Wells, which is a small town itself. Who knew?
Luckily, the MapQuest printout actually had landmarks for us to look for, so just past the sign for Wells, was our turn off. We checked in, unloaded the car, and decided to head back to town. Once there, we discovered the one problem Ogunquit had: parking. Now we understood the crowds. People stayed closed to the main area so that they just had to park their cars at the hotels and then walk everywhere. We knew for next time. And although we had yet to park the car, we already knew there would be a next time.
A sign pointed to Ogunquit Beach and we turned down the appropriately named Beach Street, where we found a parking lot. Since it was after dark, parking was free at that time but we quickly noted the (seasonal) hours and prices so that we would have the information for the next day. We also noted another breakfast place across the street. The beach could be heard and we went to the area where we noticed rocking chairs set up to face the water. Odd. Usually, people bring their own chairs to the beach and any sitting areas would be benches if there was a boardwalk. This was more like an open air overlook.
We walked back up to the town, discovering a village market, a bakery, a jewelry shop, a couple of ice cream shoppes and delightful gift shops: one located within one of those old sprawling houses and one housed in, of all places, an old church. We slowed our pace, not only because everyone else was strolling, but because it seemed the thing to do. We had discovered the reason for Ogunquit: it was the best place to do everything while doing nothing at all.
A couple of hours later, we were excited about exploring the next day. A couple of us got up early to walk or run for exercise and my question about the sunrise was answered. Although it was about 90 minutes past sunrise, the direction was clear which way was approximately east: at the beach. OK, I had my answer. To the beach I would go. More exploring revealed little public entrances to various parts along the stretch of Ogunquit Beach. And the sign before the beach parking lot revealed one of Maine's secrets: Ogunquit meant "Beautiful Place by the Sea." Actually, you're basically on the Atlantic Ocean, but while quibble with the Abenaki indigenous peoples and their language?
But the best was yet to come. It was time to drive around and explore Wells, Moody Beach, Ogunquit and York. It would be difficult to get lost. Route 1 was the main road, in and out of the area and efforts to find alternative ways to circumvent the traffic only led to winding roads that lead back to...Route 1. We would learn that week to have patience at main intersections (remember, no traffic lights and in most cases, no stop signs) and we would learn which times of the day would avoid us sitting for 10-20 minutes inching our way to and from town.
It was one of these detours that led us to Perkins Cove, one of the jewels of Ogunquit. It started at a fishing village, morphed into a shared area with artists and is now a shopping and dining area, still with some focus on the arts. More about Perkins Cove in another blog article!
Wandering around the cove led us to the edge to view the ocean, which revealed a path. And now we had discovered, albeit from the opposite direction, the best place to view the sunset in Ogunquit, Maine. Marginal Way, aptly named, is a walkway along the edge of the ocean, about a mile or so long. We had parked our car back in Perkins Cove (not cheaply, by the way) and started walking. The next thing we knew, we were back in town! A tradition was born. We found the path that led to Shore Road, which led to Main Street. A couple of small roads winded down to the beach parking lot. We learned our way around Ogunquit, where to park (that problem would be solved a few years later) and to see the sunrise from Marginal Way or Ogunquit Beach.
Be prepared to be subject to the whims of nature: cloudy conditions, rain, rough waters splashing surfers around, calm waters that reflect the sun, windy conditions (hold onto your tripod). The sunrise will look different each and every time. The sun and colors will look pale, vibrant, saturated, gray, barely there or blinding you. It's an adventure every time.
Check your favorite weather app, look at the next day, find the sunrise time (you may have to scroll down for that), figure out where you are going and how to get there (in later years, we have been staying at hotels right in town, near entrances to the beach or Marginal Way), relax and enjoy. Oh, you won't be the only one there.
You will be surprised how many people break Vacation Rule Number One: Sleep Late.
Happy Travels.
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