I nicknamed the beginning of our journey ‘chasing Lawrence’ as our friend always was a day or two ahead of us as we moved up the New England coast to Maine. Now it’s morphed into ‘chasing James & Jenny’ as we hunt down locations recommended by our Portland friends who we saw in Harpswell not long ago. We headed to Seguin Island based on their recommendation and also Five Islands.

Five Islands is not much more than exactly that – five clusters of granite and trees that loosely form a small harbor. Like everywhere else in Maine, it’s got a lobster shack on the dock and nearly all the boats in the harbor are working boats. Malden Island has several summer houses and those families share a private dock on the island and mainland for ferrying themselves back and forth.

The Five Islands Yacht Club maintains a few moorings free of charge, first come first serve. The dinghy dock is so close you can row. We immediately went ashore to explore.

Just up the road is the Five Islands Farm Market. Once upon a time it was a local farm, but is no longer in operation. The store, however, is now dedicated to fresh local seasonal produce, a limited number of high end provisions, local beers and cheese, and a remarkable wine selection. I know Maine has a reputation for blueberries, but the local strawberries burst in your mouth – I’ve never had better (made a great sauce over pancakes the next morning).

Coming back to the dock, there’s a hiking trail on Ledgemere courtesy of the Nature Conservancy running down the south side of the island with periodic side trails heading out to a beach and other rocky outcrops facing the ocean. The mosquitos were surprisingly sparse so we had a really nice walk in the woods.

And then there’s the lobster. The Sheepscot River has the deepest and coldest water in Maine, supposedly delivering the tastiest lobsters. I concur. The shack where you order is right over the water – they continuously pump water into holding tanks directly from the harbor and it pours right back out through an opening over the docks. When you place your order the clerk turns around and fishes one out of these huge tanks based on size.

We sat on picnic tables out back savoring our dinner, only to find out that this place was also the local weekend hangout. Groups of families and friends from the mainland and the islands began showing up with tablecloths, appetizers, wine, beer, and a festive time was had by all.