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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 seaside 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, kayaking, boating, sailing, sightseeing, concerts, galleries, antiquing, flying, visiting lighthouses, and exploring islands 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 and attractions. Specific dates are listed for some events, while others are available throughout the season. Most of the calendar events require advance reservations. May July
July 21. Fishermen's Day, Stonington, has family fun on the Stonington Fish Pier with crafts, slippery cod contest, whacky boat races, great music and lots of food! July 20 & 21 Blue Hill Crafts Fair The BHFCS is an invitational showcase of 45 of Maine's best craftsmen, many of whom have won national awards and show at the most prestigious venues in the country. July 26-27. Bucksport Bay Festival, Bucksport has something for everyone with a line up of live music, a classic car and motorcyle show, a fun run, and a kids area. August August 3. 4th Annual Blueberry Festival at The First Congregational Church of Blue Hill.This is the church's 4th Annual Blueberry Festival in the parking lot. Everything made with blueberries can be had! 7-3PM August 3. Eggemoggin Reach Regatta. Watch over 100 wooden boats vie for bragging rights as they race off Naskeag Point. September
Sept. 20-21. The Common Ground Country Fair, Unity, is a celebration of rural life. It features demonstrations, Maine organic produced foods and crafts and livestock exhibits.
October
On Saturday, October 13, you can visit us and oodles of local purveyors of fine things at the Taste of the Peninsula right here in Blue Hill. We will again this year partner with the team at El El Frijoles and Max from the Blue Hill Wine Shop to offer you a wine dinner with a Latin twist. Check with us for the full schedule. Off-Season
Area Attractions and Activities The Blue Hill, Maine, area offers a bit of everything. You’ll find a partial listing here. Sarah Pebworth and her staff will have updated information, or will find it for you, and can make recommendations and reservations for you. You may find bluehillme.com, the local chamber, and the local newspaper informative as well. Sailing Lobsters Eco-cruises Hiking Birding Chamber Music
Kayaking rentals and guided tours are available from several providers, including Castine Kayaks and Old Quarry. Advance reservations are suggested since the companies are small, often limited to one tour at a time, and have just a few rental kayaks on hand. Rental kayaks can be delivered to some places of put-in, including the boat landing just two blocks from the inn. The pristine 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. The Activity Shop is the place, right in Blue Hill, to rent kayaks. Advanced reservations assure you have the vacation you are dreaming about now. Puffins, lighthouses, and lobsters sightseeing trips are all available from Old Quarry Adventures, which has specialty cruises each day of the week, June to September. 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 lighthouses are mostly located offshore. The lighthouse cruise offers views of 5 to 7 lighthouses with narration by the Captain.
Eco-cruises are offered by Old Quarry on the Nigh Duck and on the mailboat, both out of Stonington. Fishing is possible with Dave’s Guide Service. Dave Cassidy offers guided trips and beginning fly-fishing instruction, scenic canoe trips and more.
Fly with Acadia Air Tours, which offers biplane or glider rides—a great way to see the beauty of the area. What a memory to take home! Have your own plane? There are small airports in Stonington and Bar Harbor. Hiking Island Heritage Trust Trails provides information about trails on land on Deer Isle and surrounding islands that they have preserved, including favorites like Settlement Quarry and the Tennis Preserve. Golf and Tennis Birding
Kneisel Hall 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 hall nestled in an idyllic wooded setting, within walking distance of the inn. Concerts are often sold out and pre-season reservations are recommended. We will purchase tickets for you upon request. Historic Sites and Museums The Blue Hill, Maine, area is rich in history and has preserved many homes of early, distinguished colonists. Volunteers generally staff museums and homes and the times they are open varies. As the volunteers are typically very enthusiastic about the local history, the inn can sometimes arrange for private showings with advanced notice. In Blue Hill take a tour of Jonathan Fisher's Home (the first minister of Blue Hill, inventor, eccentric, learned man from Harvard) and the Holt House, home to the Blue Hill Historical Society and a well-restored 18th century homestead. In Castine tour the Wilson Museum, with its John Perkins House, Blacksmith Shop and Hearse House, or the Historical Society at the Abbot School.
The least opened museum, but a fascinating one, is the Granite Museum in Stonington. It is generally open in July and August.
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July 4. You’ll find small town patriotism from Stonington to Castine to Bar Harbor.
July 14. 
Aug. 29 - Sept. 2, Labor Day Weekend, the 
September 14, We celebrate Maine Open Lighthouse Day. Sept. 14, coincides with Maine lighthouse tour weekend. When you check in, you'll receive a package of information about Maine lighthouses, including a state map with the history of each lighthouse. You can explore the region and find ways to spot all eight of the closest lighthouses. Whether by car, boat, or plane, catching the lights and exploring the coast during the beautiful September weather will make for a memorable trip to Blue Hill. Lights include Robinson Point Light, Isle au Haut; Saddleback Light, remote; Brown's Head Lighthouse, Vinal Haven; Goose Rocks Light, Fox Island Thoroughfare; Heron Neck Light; and Mark Island Light, Deer Isle Thoroughfare. Inn staff can assist with all your sightseeing plans.
Oct. 4-13. 
For a biking-island adventure, plan to catch an 
Five whales may be spotted at sea: Humpbacks, Finbacks, Minkes, Harbor Porpoise, and, very rarely, Right whales. Old Quarry Adventures takes a small boat, the Nigh Duck, from Stonington. Daily whale watching cruises are also available from Bar Harbor. The inn can assist you with reservations.
Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Concerts
In Ellsworth visit the 
