When we woke up Saturday morning it was 1 F. The weather forecasters were promising a balmy 12 F by afternoon, but with wind speeds that were sure to give it a feel of - 13F. And they weren't wrong (well, it never did reach 12 F, but cold is cold is cold, so I won't quibble!). We decided to brave it, which lasted about as long as it took us to walk from the house to the car and thus we found ourselves heading to Freeport, ME and Bean land. LL Bean that is. Freeport, ME, with the original, flagship LL Bean store(s), is just 25 minutes up the road from Portland and is Maine's shopping Mecca. The whole town is like a giant outlet mall with every store and brand you can think of housed in old historic buildings and homes.
It's not all shopping however. Freeport actually has quite an extensive history. Freeport is located on ancestral lands of the Abenaki Nation and it's location on the coast with it's rich natural resources made it the site of a 90 year war between European colonists and the Native Americans, the Anglo-Wabanaki Wars. After the French and Indian War in 1763, colonization of the area began to take hold in earnest and Freeport became a major crossroads, a ship building and maritime center and by the 1850's a shoe making center as well. Cue Llyod L Bean in 1905 and his canny ability to seize upon an opportunity (bootmaking and selling by catalogue) to make himself a household name and making Freeport probably the one Maine city you knew off the top of your head. ("Freeport History." Freeport Historical Society, 17 Mar. 2021, https:/www.freeporthistoricalsociety.org/freeport-history/.) History lesson over. : )
After an hour or so of wandering through the various LL Bean stores and several hundred dollars later, we were finally decked out in the proper attire: Coats rated to -30 F, long underwear, wool socks, wool sweaters, gloves, hats, scarves, boots, etc. We looked like Ralphie's little brother. (Or in Kenny'e case, like Kenny! LOL! Don't worry, he did not meet his demise.) But we were warm and so made our way to the Jameson Tavern, circa 1779, for our daily requirement of lobster and then on to our Maine adventures.
Fast forward to Monday. That winter storm that brought half the middle of the country and east coast so much snow and cold temps? Well, it brought us temps in the 40's and rain. A lot of rain. Upon which we realized neither of us had even thought to pack a rain jacket or wellies. Sigh. You'd think as a Michigan girl I would have remembered how fickle winter weather by large bodies of water can be. As I write this the cold temps are back and it is snowing... LL Bean is going to get so much of my money y'all!
I did manage to get a few pictures over the last few days. The Portland Head Lighthouse was one of the highlights of our explorations over the last few days. Oh and I have kitchen appliances now! No more cooking on a two burner portable cooktop.
Until next time!
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