Reid State Park

Beautiful views, pebbly beach, cold water.
The perfect Maine beach. Never seems to get crowded, but you also don’t feel all alone. Plenty of places to walk and explore and the younger ones can play in the surf or on the rocks.
The facilitates were also very nice and clean.
I have this one on my list of favorite beaches.

It was a tad chilly in September a week after Labor Day but the sights were gorgeous and there were hardly any people around — mostly retirees and parents with small children.
I saw a fuzzy caterpillar on the path from the parking lot to the water. :)
No mosquitoes when I was there (whew)

Mosquitos everywhere beware!

What a breathtaking place! At first, I was kinda hinky about going to a state park that cost us so much to get in (28 bucks for 4 adults and two kids) But it was SO worth every penny. Just walking around on the rocks was fun, but the waves were huge when we were there, so that added to the beauty, and the surfers were out, and it was all just… stunning. We were there for memorial day weekend, and it was cold cold cold, but I would do it all over again.

70 degrees, very few people. A most glorious 3 hour meandering in the off season.
No bugs yet (march 18) so that only added to the pleasure of it. Extraordinary views no matter where we went.
Just delightful.
Maybe next year we’ll have snow so we can snowshoe it. Just so much terrain to cover you could never get tired of it!

I’ve been going to Reid since 1999 and can never grow tired of the place. Every day is something different, but my favorite is still to beach comb and rock scramble at low tide and go down to the Little River where the water is warm. There’s rarely a crowd and plenty of sandy beach. New restrooms, a lagoon, snack stand, wild life, bird watching, swimming, woodland hiking trails, surf fishing, and clamming — it’s all there.
This year a seal pup treated me to over an hour of fun by beaching itself on the rocks at low tide. You never know what you might see.
Tips: There are starfish under some of that kelp. You can dig for clams at the end of the Little River at low tide and take home plenty for everyone. The water is cold. There is a day use fee for Maine State Parks.

So many fond memories from my childhood take place here. This was the go to spot for family outings when I was younger. Half-​mile and Mile beach offer plenty of good sandy beach that is mostly free of the Old Orchard tourists. The thing I love the most is the giant rock outcrop between the two beaches, and the additional areas of rocky shore around the park. The tourists can have their sandy beaches, but give me waves smashing against rocks that I can climb and jump on and I am at home.

Perfect summer day in Maine involved laying out on the glittering rocks, watching the tide lap against the shore, walking along the beach, swimming in the lagoon, getting up close and personal with the strange and beautiful algae. Also, Five Islands Lobster is just a few miles away.

When I was young, my parents didn’t believe in overnight summer camp. Fast forward 12 years later and I’m reliving what could have been those childhood memories. only this time ’round, it’s way better.
We laid out on these gorgeous, sparkly rocks for some sun, while picnic-​ed with fresh local blueberries from a blueberry stand we drove past on the way up, overlooking the true blue open waters of the Atlantic. We lazed, we ate, we lived. Walking along the beach, we came across algae covered rocks, that looked like mounds of hair; barnacles; seashells and snail shells; and even a dried crab shell. I named him Herman. Biology class was never this fun.
Elizabeth was way up ahead of us when she told us of The Lagoon. How could we not check this out? The only schedule we were on, was our own. So, we followed her rock-​hopping, until we reached shallow waters. The air was cool and the warmth of the sun was beating down when we made the decision to go for a dip. The shocking cold had us tip-​toeing until the water reached our bare stomachs. And then. on the count of three, ONE, TWO, THREE!.. we were under. How refreshing! We splashed, we played, and we knew it was time to go when a crab skittled over my foot. Twice. Had I gone to summer camp at 12, I’m convinced I would have been more brave.
To note:
— There is a mile and a half-​mile beach on the park grounds. The mile-​long beach was on the other side of The Lagoon.
— New bathrooms, change rooms, and outdoor showers
— Admission into the park: $ 6.50 per adult

GORGEOUS! Tidepools, sandy beaches, dunes, miles to walk.