Each year we search for activities and experiences that offer guests a special touch of the Maine experience. Blue Hill is convenient for exploring the small coastal villages and coastline of the secluded and beautiful peninsula or for day-tripping to Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Camden, or Downeast Maine. Hiking, biking, boating, sightseeing, concerts, galleries, antiquing, lighthouses, and island exploring are all area activities. Help with planning fabulous vacations is a specialty of the inn and available to all guests before and during their stay. Below is just a selection of special events. Specific dates are listed for some events, while others are available throughout the season. Most of the calendar events require advance reservations. Off-season availability of the Cape House suite, November-May 21 The Cape House suite, a small apartment with living room/bedroom area, fully equipped kitchen, large bath, fireplace, and deck is available year-round. The inns kitchen is closed so you must make your own breakfast or walk to one of the local establishments (dont worry, we keep the Cape House supplied with great coffee). Check the reservation calendar for availability and rates. Please call for weekly or monthly rates. Habitat for Humanity Benefit Lodging Stay in May and help us raise money for. Habitat for Humanity. This program is designed to save our guests money and raise funds for Habitat for Humanity. Reserve the Cape House between May 1 and May 23 for just $88thats half price. At check-in, well ask for a check made payable to Habitat for Humanity (for at least $35). Funds will be distributed throughout participating local chapters of Habitat for Humanity. Reservations must be made in advance and the contribution must be in the form of a check. Tax and gratuity are not included. For more information about this special offer, contact the inn. Birding in the Blue Hill Peninsula You can see lists of what local birders have been spotting at this. Wings, Waves, and Woods, May 16-18, Deer-Isle and Stonington, Migratory Birding Weekend. Local birders lead conservancy and beach walks plus boat rides to see puffins, seas birds and eagles. Island artisans and artists offer birding and nature-related originals. The 2008 schedule of events and general information can be found at the link or by calling 348-6124 or 348-2455. In June, check out the. Acadia Birding Festival on Mt. Desert Island, in Bar Harbor and at Acadia National Park, just a 50-minute drive from the inn, June 12-15. Eco-tour with the Innkeeper. Saturday, May 24 (raindate Sunday, May 25). Start with the fabulous inn breakfast at 8 a.m. By 9, well be on the road heading for. Old Quarry Ocean Adventures, with our fleece pullovers in hand. From 10 a.m.-1 p.m., well be in Capt. Bills capable hands as he shares his knowledge about the natural history of the area as we cruise through the archipelago. We might see seals, seabirds, porpoises, eagles, osprey, an active granite quarry, Stonington Harbor, Mark Island Lighthouse (and hear its fabulous foghorn), the schooner fleet, and much of the 60 islands of the Stonington archipelago. Capt. Bill will discuss natural history topics including the geology of the area, the history of the granite industry, other local history, lobster and fin fish fishing, and the local wildlife. Well even get to haul a couple of Capt. Bill's lobster traps on our way in. Ill bring the snacks and the picnic lunch. Well be back on land early afternoon, leaving you time to explore Deer Isles great hiking trails and shops. Package rates vary with room selection. Please call or email for more information. Foliage, Food, and Wine Weekend - October 16-19. Celebrate fall at its best with fine foods and wines. The inn is proud to team with the Arborvine and the Wescott Forge restaurants for this weekend. Events will be a wine dinner at the Arborvine Thursday evening, a wine tasting with hors d'oeuvres at the Blue Hill Inn Friday, and a sparkling wine luncheon at the Wescott Forge on Saturday. Blue Hill art galleries and museums will host open houses and local producers will host a farmer's market. The event culminates Sunday with a festival of live music and tastings from local purveyors. Of course, all the local hiking trails will beckon--October in Blue Hill is stunning. Inn packages vary depending upon events and rooms selected. KNEISEL SCHOOL OF CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERTS. June - August- Friday evenings and Sunday afternoons from the last weekend of June through middle of August. Kneisel School of Chamber Music is internationally known with students from around the world. The faculty, all accomplished musicians from across the United States, performs twice weekly concerts in a small concert hall nestled in an idyllic wooded setting. Concerts are usually sold out and pre-season reservations are recommended. We will purchase tickets for you upon request. Tickets are $35 per person. BIKING, KAYAKING, SAILING, ask the Inn to make reservations for you. June through September. Bike rentals are available from Rocky Coast Outfitters and The Activity Center. If you would like to rent a bike let us know at the time of reservation and we will arrange for bikes to be brought to the Inn's door for you. Carrier racks and helmets are provided. Bikes may be stored on the property during your stay. For a biking-island adventure plan to catch an Old Quarry cruise from Stonington to Isle Au Haut where cars are few, scenery is spectacular, and half of the island is owned by Acadia National Park We can help you with the details. Kayaking is available from several providers in the area for guided day trips or kayak rental. Advance reservation is suggested since the companies are small, limited to one tour at a time and have just a few on hand. Rental kayaks can be delivered to some places of put-in. The waters of the area are great for kayaking with access in Blue Hill, Naskeag Point, Castine, and Deer Isle. Blue Hill's reversing falls are perfect for the kayaker wanting to experience white water at a controlled pace. Sailing opportunities vary each year. a replica of an 1800 Pinky Schooner, offers day sails for several weeks in June and late September. a 44-ft cruising ketch, sails out of Buck's Harbor for trips ranging from 2 hours to full day all season. Trimaran Cruises on Eggemoggin Reach can be scheduled for July and August. PUFFINS, WHALES, LIGHTHOUSES AND MORE - June through September. Old Quarry Adventures have specialty cruises each day of the week. Especially appealing are the Puffin Watch and Lighthouse cruises conducted on Sundays. Puffins look like the clowns of the sea and you only get to see them if you cruise to one of the two nesting islands in local waters. Maine conservationists have been diligent in encouraging the birds to nest. Visitors cannot land, but sightings from the boat are wonderful. Maine Lighthouses are mostly located off-shore. The Lighthouse cruise offers views of 5 lighthouses with narration by the Captain. Five whales may be spotted out at sea, Humpbacks, Finbacks, Minkes, Harbor Porpoise, and, very rarely, Right whales. The companies making daily trips from Bar Harbor are larger boats, most accommodating over a hundred people. Old Quarry Adventures takes a smaller boat from Stonington on Wednesdays (days subject to change.) Daily whale watching cruises are also available from Bar Harbor. Bar Harbor boats accommodate larger numbers of passengers (100-250). ECO-CRUISES AND ISLAND EXCURSION CRUISES - SUMMER. Marine Environmental Reserch Institue. (MERI) offers small boat excursions accompanied by a MERI naturalist. Trips offer learning about Maine's coastal habitats including a pristine island, sealife, and lobstering. Trips are aboard the MERI research boat. Space is limited. Weekly schedules include trips just for children. HISTORIC HOUSE MUSEUMS - Open various times...

The rooms at the Blue Hill Inn have private bathrooms, air conditioning, bathrobes, hairdryers, down comforters, and evening turn-down service. Multi-course breakfasts served in the sun-filled breakfast room; afternoon coffee, tea and pastry; and evening hors d'oeuvres are offered daily. The inn has a full liquor license and offers a large selection of fine liquors, ports, sherries, and wines. The inn's gardens have comfortable chairs and a hammock for reading or relaxing. The parlor, with its game table and small library, is another spot to curl up with a book, as is the living room with its wood burning fireplace. ROOM AMENITIES Air conditioning Antique furnishings Down comforters Fine linens Plush robes Private bathrooms with hair dryers. CAPE HOUSE SUITE AMENITIES (in addition to above) Fully equipped, modern kitchen Cathedral ceilings Raised hearth fireplace Private Deck Cable TV Telephone. INN SERVICES Full breakfast with choice of entree served by attentive waitstaff Special preparations to accommodate allergies or restrictions Afternoon refreshments Evening hors d'oeuvres Full assortment of fine liquors and wines Beverage service until 9:30 p.m. Assistance in trip planning and reservations Wireless high-speed internet, guest computers and fax access Portable telephones, free local calls, no inn surcharge on long distance calls Garden with outdoor seating Library of area guides and books by local authors Evening turn-down service Two guest living rooms. Purchase a gift certificate.

Thursday, June 12, 2008. And kayaking! I had some friends come visiting from western Mass. and we rented kayaks from the. right here in Blue Hill, and went kayaking in the. Gayle and Dana got us set up with boats, life jackets, and information about where to go and how to be safe. We were a mixed crew with a variety of experience and the bay was a great place to paddle. We stayed fairly close to the shoreline and even got out on an island for a stretch. So much to do this summer. A stopped by with information about the Antique Show, held at the fairgrounds Aug. 16. The Fisher House was designed and built by Fisher in 1814. He was the town's first minister and a very handy man--he made most of his own furniture and was an accomplished and writer. The house is open Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays in July and August. The. Schoodic Arts Festival is July 28-Aug. 10 this year and the line up of activities looks great. And the is June 20-22. How about a schooner trip? An airplane ride? Art? Music? Crafts? Eagle watching? I love a festival with a bit of everything. And the maps show where to spot big stands of wild lupine. I'm leaving the inn in Assistant Innkeeper Maura's capable hands this week as I head to the. Rusticator Restaurant at the Oakland House are collaborating with. Rich Hanson, from Cleonice. I have no doubts the results will be astounding. The location is gorgeous and Rich is an amazing chef. Again and again, guests tell me how pleased they are with the choice of restaurants in this area. The newlyweds, who had been with us three nights, just checked out today, pink cheeked from a hike on Barred Island and sitting at the new deck at in Stonington yesterday. I mentioned the inn's game shelf didn't have a yet--they bought one for us and said they'd play with me next year. So sweet! We've been taking some photos for various ads (by we I mean. Don Radovich of Downeast Dimensions. ). This is room 10, one of our first floor rooms with a fireplace. And have I mentioned the tarts?! Matt is making these amazing fruit tarts with fresh strawberries or apple. Good thing is such a great hike. Have you heard of the. Maine Birding Trail? Check out this great birding resource. A guest from Florida told me about it. I hope your June is going well, too, and that you'll visit us soon. Friday, May 23, 2008. The opening of the inn for 2008. The magic of it all continues. The lilacs opened just as the inn did. Beautiful, fragrant, and purple, they are a full week earlier than most around here. Every day I wonder around the garden to see what's come up and marvel at it all. Lupines are just beginning to flower in the warmest spots, on schedule for the lupine festival, June 20-22, on Deer Isle. We've had guests in from England--Wayne, Sally, Kerry, and Jazz; Italy; and Canada, as well as Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Massachusetts, and even Maine. As I tell my Wisconsin guests, go visit my brother's place in Cassville, WI, Whitetail Bluff Camp and Resort, and tell him his sister sent you and said to put your drink on her tab. Barbara and Bridget, up from Natchez, Mississippi, needed a ride into Stonington so I offered to take them and, shucks, I ended up kayaking with them at. Old Quarry Ocean Adventures. We had a perfect Maine day to be out on the water. We toured around Camp Island, Devil's Half Acre--where we stopped for lunch and met some clammers--and Grog Island. We saw bald eagles and a baby eagle in a big nest, double-crested cormorants, and black guillemots. We saw at least one rock full of sunning seals. So often a bobbing seal turns out to be a buoy instead. Rj Miller and Linda Miller kayaked with us. He's a photographer and she's an amazing paddler who, from the bow, kept their tandem kayak still and in a good position while he snapped shots. We--our guide, Brigid, the Mississippi gals, and I--got to be kayaking models. Those of us in wetsuits were happy to have skirts on. The Millers are from Wisconsin so I got a nice fill of the Midwest accent and conversation with people who know what delight a fried cheesecurd is (is putting pictures of fried cheese on your blog a silly thing to do? They aren't very photogenic, are they?). The eggs in the nest by the Cape House door hatched! I've seen at least one little fuzzy head. I thought I'd give them all a few days and then try to sneak a photo with a zoom lens and a step ladder. Recent guests left me the nicest note: This is one of the most charming cottages we've ever stayed in--complete with a nesting bird at the entryway! I can't believe I haven't told you this yet! All last summer guests would ask about the safe in the main parlor and I would say it didn't open and hadn't been opened in years and the combination was lost and we needed to help us. Then! Matt, the grandson of the previous owners, Don and Mary Hartley, came back to work and mentioned that he knew the combination! I actually jumped up and down I was so excited. It turns out that Don had kept the combination in his wallet, which got picked one year. Fortunately for us, Matt had memorized the combination long before then when he was just a kid. We're going to keep our extra secret recipes in there. We have so many sweet spots to enjoy in the garden. On a warm day it's the perfect place to bring iced tea and a cookie. Yesterday they were the browned sugar cookies, which used to be my favorite treat. Now Matt's been making tiny tarts--this week with fresh strawberries. And guests are loving the crabmeat quiche... Monday, May 19, 2008. The local land trusts. I tell all our guests to visit Barred Island (shown here), Blue Hill Mountain, the Tennis Preserve, Caterpillar Hill, the Good Life Center, Settlement Quarry. What do all these places have in common? Island Heritage Trust. on Deer Isle, or the. Blue Hill Heritage Trust have helped protect them in some way. These organizations are dedicated to conserving land that makes this area what it is, places that are essential to the character of Downeast Maine. The Blue Hill Inn is offering guests a deal--when you visit us, from June 1-June 20, and take part in the Land Trust Special, room rates are $125 a night, with $25 going to the local land trusts. Plus, the inn will match the donation so Island Heritage Trust and the Blue Hill Heritage Trust will receive twice the donations. We'll give you directions to our favorite spots and we'll all feel better knowing we've done our part to help protect them. Call us to make your reservation or for more details. Saturday, May 10, 2008. The inn opens May 21! Two eggs! Shannon, of Mountain View Painting, reported seeing two eggs in the nest at the Cape House. He has been very busy making the inn look fabulous--shutters are up, clapboards are washed and painted--the inn looks great. Tomorrow he'll be painting the front doors red. Spring is looking mighty good at the inn. This photo is looking out from the Cape House living room area onto the private deck, draped in willow tree. One of the trees in the orchard is already flowering--I'm eager to see what type of apple this early bloomer produces. July will be my first full year as innkeeper here at the Blue Hill Inn so I'm still getting to know the yard. The lovely hosts at the invited innkeepers from around the area for a party. Michael is an amazing chef--we had a dinner of hors d'oeuvres, my favorite. You know someone special is in the kitchen when guests are raving about the grilled vegetables, not to mention the Thai beef salad, the chicken satay, the potstickers... For dessert, I had to try his truffles with pistachio nuts. If you're stopping in on your way to Blue Hill, consider stopping off at the Hartstone, if just for a meal. New assistant innkeepers and I took a field trip to Deer Isle to see. Nervous Nellie's Jams and Jellies and to pick up some jam for the inn. What a fabulous playground of amazing sculpture (by husband. ) all over the property. And the jams! You can try a wide selection o...