Summers on Sebago Lake
Sebago Lake, Maine - photo by dawnzy
Sebago Lake is the second-largest lake in Maine (the largest is Moosehead Lake). It is located in the south-western area of the state, about 20 miles away from Portland and the airport. “Sebago” is the Penobscot Indian word meaning “beautiful water,” and it truly is one of the most picturesque bodies of water in New England.
When I was little, summer vacation in Maine meant spending as many weeks as I could wheedle, at my Aunt and Uncle’s “camp”, or cabin, on Sebago. My Uncle had a boat, naturally, and we begged on a daily basis for him to pull us (”us” being me and my cousins) behind the boat on the “torpedo” float. We’d line up on the thing, hang on for dear life, and scream our fool heads off as he dragged us along, playing crack the whip or occasionally swerving into his own wake so we could “jump” the torpedo over the waves. Inevitably, one (or all) of us would fall off, and we’d sit there, floating and waiting for him to come back around to us, wondering what could be eyeing our toes from a depth of 300 feet.
Them snapping turtles are vicious, after all.
Sunrise on Sebago Lake - Photo by dosmosis
At least once every summer, my Grandmother would rent a nearby cabin for a week or two, so that we wouldn’t have to infringe upon my Aunt and Uncle for the entire summer. Those weeks spent on the lake were the happiest memories of my childhood. We’d get up early of our own volition (during summer vacation! gasp!), snag a loaf of bread (I can hear my Grandmother now, “Hey, you kids! What are we supposed to have for sandwiches?”) and stand by the lake’s edge, ripping pieces of bread off of the loaf and throwing them to the ducks and loons. We’d eat breakfast out on the picnic table, slapping at mosquitoes who were trying to have their own breakfast. After impatiently waiting for the obligatory hour, we’d finally splash into the lake, swim out to the dock anchored about 50 feet off shore, and spend hour upon hour diving off, clambering back up, and diving off again.
Grandma would call us in for lunch, after which we’d spend a lazy couple of hours playing board games, napping in the hammock, or reading. Then it was back into the lake for a couple more hours (we never could get enough of swimming when we were little), before the whole family drove over to have a cookout. We’d stuff ourselves on lobster and steamed clams, hamburgers and hot dogs, and my Grandmother’s signature potato salad (ask me for the recipe!). My Uncle would light a fire in the fire pit, and my cousins and I would toast marshmallows and construct S’mores. We’d chase fireflies all around the yard, capturing them in Mason jars for a few minutes before letting them go again. Finally tired after a long, active day, we’d curl up in blankets on the screened-in porch and blink sleepily as we listened to the adults conversing around the fire, until we finally drifted off to sleep and had to be carried to our bunk beds.
Fireworks Rock in the middle of the lake - photo by ideologie
Every 4th of July the whole family would pile into my Uncle’s boat just before sundown. Those who couldn’t fit caught rides with the neighbors. We’d tool out to the massive rocks standing in the middle of the lake, upon which industrious pyromaniacs had spent the day hauling boxes and boxes of fireworks. The moment the sun dipped below the horizon and the stars started appearing, the fireworks were lit. For the next hour we ooh’ed and ahh’ed at the colorful explosions, mirrored in the glassy stillness of the lake as if its underwater denizens were having a celebration of their own..
Man, just thinking back on those days, I realize anew how incredibly lucky I was to have such an idyllic childhood.
It is my goal next summer to rent one of those cabins on Sebago Lake for a week or two, and treat my husband to the experience I so cherished as a child. Our children, now grown, may be able to join us as work and social schedules allow. Then we as a family can enjoy the long summer days, boating and swimming. We can feast on lobster and clams and crab and toast marshmallows around the fire. I can introduce my kids to fireflies for the very first time in their lives. How I love knowing that some things in this world never change - Sebago Lake will always be there to welcome me back to my childhood.
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Sebago Lake - photo by Rose Davies
Renting a cabin or cottage on Sebago Lake is easy and affordable. Certainly there are very luxurious accomodations that can set you back a pretty penny, but excellent options are available in the $600-$1200/week range. Pricing is dependent upon if your visit coincides with peak, low, or off-season rates. Vacation Rentals has extensive listings for homes and cabins available for rent. Kranin Real Estate is also an excellent resource, local to the area, for the entire Sebago Lakes Region (and many other lakes and towns in Maine).
Make your plans in advance - even a year ahead of your planned vacation date - in order to secure the cabin that’s right for you and your family. Properties vary in the amenities that they offer, the details of which are listed with the property rental information. Some are right on the water, some are a few hundred feet away. Some share beaches with other properties, some have a private beach. Some have cable, internet, phone - and some are truly un-plugged from the outside world. Some have canoes or rowboats, or a dock at which you can secure a motor boat (which can be rented at various locations around the lake). Some have washers and dryers, so you don’t have to run to the nearest laundromat. Some allow pets, some don’t. The properties vary in size from sleeping two to sleeping twenty or more.
They all have one thing in common; they’re located in one of the prettiest places in the world.
