Daytrip to Biddeford
There are a million reasons why we love to live in Maine, but a beach day in August is certainly among the top ten. Nothing cuts the humidity of a warm salty breeze like diving through a wave, dipping a few feet below the surface, and cooling off in the big blue. We didn’t know it would be so sweltry when we set out for our Daytrip to Biddeford and the beaches, so we were grateful our itinerary allotted ample beach hours to splash and relax between the delicious meals downtown.
For our August Daytrip, we took it down a notch — especially compared to our July Daytrip, where we kayaked 12 miles to visit Damariscove — enjoying the luxuries of long meals and leisurely strolls along the coast. We left Portland in the morning and sauntered down to Biddeford to try brunch at Jackrabbit Cafe. Their Scandinavian-inspired pastries caught our eye and couldn’t resist the rest of their menu. We started with an heirloom galette and some coffee while we waited for the kitchen to open at 10:30. When it was time, we placed our order for some soft eggs and the chicken katsu sandwich — a Japanese-style fried chicken sandwich with cabbage and gravy. After tasting our delicious appetizer from the pastry case, we added a few more for brunch dessert. Cam loved the maple buttermilk tart and I cannot stop talking about the Semla, a cream puff with a layer of whipped walnut butter and plum jam — you can imagine why!
Planning ahead, we picked up bagel sandwiches from Rover for our picnic lunch. This has become a staple for any southbound trips as their sourdough bagels are perfectly chewy and their toppings, insatiable. We learned about their roasted tomatoes years ago, where they throw sheets of tomatoes into their wood fire oven as it cools down from baking the bagels and lets the fruits caramelize in its warmth, bringing umami to a simple bagel and cream cheese sandwich. It was hard to wait for lunch to dig in.
With breakfast in our bellies and lunch bagged up, we made our way to the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge. You may have seen signs for this throughout Southern Maine since it’s spread out over 50 miles of coastline in York and Cumberland counties. These separate parcels were intended to preserve the special salt marsh and marine estuary coastline found in Southern Maine. For this excursion, we visited Timber Point, which winds along the Little River towards Timber Island, which you can walk to at low to mid-tide. Unfortunately, the timing and tides didn’t align for us to explore the sandbar across to the island this trip, so we wandered over to the historic homes and soaked up the views there.
The sun was getting increasingly excruciating, so we didn’t stay long on Timber Point and jetted back to Curtis Cove for a swim and lunch. Before laying our picnic blanket, we were swapping beads of sweat for drops of salty ocean water. It felt amazing. The late August ocean strikes again. We wandered back to the blanket and dug into our bagel sandwiches. I made it about halfway through mine before needing another swim. What a nice feeling to have unscheduled time and the ocean for a playground. As the tide went out, the waves rolled in. With crests hitting four feet, our inner child came out to play as we bodysurfed wave after wave, riding until we were beached. My hair was often the first down the wave, twirling like a cyclone collecting sand and shells along the way. I’d flip it back and dip my head under to reset before hopping on the next swell. While I had every intention of soaking up rays on the beach, I guess I’ll never be able to resist good surf or games in the sand.
Blessed with fine hair in moments like this, I did my best to tame the mop that had formed on my head with some long dunks underwater and called it quits for the day. We packed up our beach belongings, scuffed the sand off our feet, and made our way back to Biddeford for a cocktail before our dinner reservation. As we were leaving the beach, a familiar sound grew. We crested the dunes to find the ice cream truck and ran to catch a cold treat. Fun fact, driving the ice cream truck was my first summer job! I was delighted to see they still had the creamy coconut frozen fruit popsicle — the most refreshing in my opinion!
In Biddeford, we circled back to Round Turn Distilling, a spot we visited on our Winter Escape trip earlier this year, for some gin cocktails — my spirit of choice! This lovely botanical was the best way to chill out after a hot day. I got their house Negroni while Cam tried their Tom Collins cocktail special of the week! They started this rotating cocktail club in the peak of the pandemic as a way to connect with the local community over a shared drink, afar, and have kept the tradition because it was such a hit!
At 6 pm, it was time to check in for our dinner reservation at Magnus on Water. We’d heard many wonderful things about the whole dining experience and were looking forward to a lovely summer night in their new garden seating. Among the flowers, we glanced through the menu, struggling to find things that didn’t make us salivate. We started with some cocktails from their unique and impressive bar program. Cam tried the happy camper, a bourbon cocktail, and I enjoyed their take on a Negroni using Round Turn’s coconut gin, which was deliciously different from the traditional one I had just tried. We put in an order for some appetizers of sourdough, dilly beans, and marinated mushrooms. With heirloom tomatoes being in their peak, we loved their rendition of a Caprese with pesto, anchovies, and a sheep and cow milk blended cheese. For dinner, we tried both entrees — Cam savored the light, flavor-packed hake, while I made my way slowly through their duck special. To cap off such a wonderful evening, we split the dessert — a milk chocolate brownie topped with a layer of mousse, blackberries, and a hibiscus meringue. By this time, the sky was filled with stars overhead and the warmth of the day lingered in a gentle breeze. While the pace of this Daytrip was a little slower than others, we couldn't be more grateful to fill our time and bellies with the incredible cuisine.