Blog

In 2013, in the middle of the national remembrance of America’s Civil War, it is right to remember that the national holiday of Memorial Day was created as “Decoration Day” – a day to decorate the graves of the fallen and to come together to remember their sacrifice for their beliefs.

Coming as it does at the end of May, Memorial Day has also become the unofficial start to the summer season. Though Spring is definitely still in full-bloom in Boothbay this Memorial Day, we know Summer is even closer than the June 21st solstice – because we’re open and welcoming our first 2013 guests.

What does folding napkins have to do with maintenance engineering? Though it was undoubtedly the first time he had ever folded a napkin in the shape of a lily pad, Steve Fife was game to find out. 

All of us at Spruce Point Inn care as much, possibly more, about the exterior of the Inn as we do about the interiors. With a spot like Spruce Point, can you blame us – or our guests – for taking every possible advantage of the beauty that surrounds us?

While Mother Nature has done her part to create the spruce-filled landscape, we accent her framework with landscaping details such as the deep bed of lilies that surrounds entrance to Bogies. We’ve focused on new plantings in the Lighthouse, Linekin and Spruce Cottage surroundings for 2013 and added a new butterfly/hummingbird garden. Now we’re just waiting for the birds, bees and butterflies to give us their approval.

You’ve seen them on postcards and posters. And you’ve enjoyed them on our front porch. The iconic slat-back wood chair, positioned to take best advantage of the view. The “Adirondack chair” is the ultimate symbol of kicking back, relaxing and melding into vacation mode. 

For the next time you stretch out on our verandah, we thought we’d give you the Official History of the Westport Chair, considered THE original Adirondack Chair.

With Earth Day on our minds and with our seasonal opening on the horizon, we thought you’d be interested in knowing a few details on how Spruce Point stays green:

Lighter Footprint Housekeeping

We started our water conservation program in 2012 and now have about 20 percent of our guests choosing the option of having their room linens changed less frequently. A small wood buoy hung on the doorknob signals housekeeping they are participating in the program. 

We celebrate the upcoming 43rd anniversary of Earth Day on April 22 with a reaffirmation of our commitment at Spruce Point Inn to environmental stewardship.

Spruce Point covers 57 acres of woods and waterfront, making our impact on the Maine coastal environment, and active conservation and protection of those beautiful places, a critical part of our responsibility as innkeepers. We love to introduce our guests to the natural environment of Maine and each time someone comments on our incredible location we are rededicated to ensuring Spruce Point remains a legacy for future generations – for all of us who live on the planet. We know that what we do at Spruce Point affects our corner of the coast, the land that surrounds us and the ocean beyond.

Executive Chef Peter Stiles is meeting with local farmers and planning menu updates. Some say that “farm to table” is passé. That it’s another food fad, so “yesterday” that chefs who still talk about “eat local” are not keeping up with the latest news. We say “hogwash” and cheer when James Beard Award-winning chef Chris Hastings, stands up on CNN’s Eatocracy blog to say he fears for the day that farm-to-table stops being the foundation for everything we do.

Some spring days, when the sheltered grass is already turning green and the tiny green noses of the bulbs are pushing up close to foundations and stone walls, we wish that Opening Day were sooner than mid-May.

With Easter falling so early this year, we look out the sunny windows of 88 thinking how much fun it would be to host an Easter Brunch here, and having the dining room filled with families enjoying each other’s multi-generational company as they do here in August.

The Vernal Equinox arrives this week (March 19) as a signal that we’re getting ever closer to opening day. We always take the First Day of Spring -- rain or shine – as a moment to mark the fact that the days are much longer, the sun definitely warmer, than they were even a month ago. It’s a good thing that that warmth and light add a little bounce to our step as we’ve got lots of things to do to make Spruce Point even better this year than we were the last time we greeted you.

A breath of fresh air. For more than a century the fresh ocean breeze has drawn visitors to Maine to escape the city heat of summer. From the smallest kids to parents and grandparents, we know that catching the first scent of the Atlantic as you turn off the interstate and onto the coastal route that winds to Boothbay is enticing. It’s one of the many senses we know go into building those coastal memories made in Maine. So we know that once you’re here, we have to do everything we can to let those coastal breezes in!