Ask me what my favorite treat during summer months is and I’ll tell you, hands down, raw oysters with an ice-cold beer. One thing I never thought about was where oysters come from. On our recent trip to Scarborough, Maine, we had the pleasure of hopping aboard a work boat at Nonesuch Oyster Farm to get a private tour. We started our tour in front of the Harbor Master’s house at Pine Point. It is a gorgeous working pier and we watched lobstermen loading traps onto their boats as we all admitted we didn’t know what to expect. We were pleased to meet Sadie who would be sharing her boat and her experience with us. I love when my girls get the opportunity to see strong females that are passionate about their jobs.
We hopped aboard a 17’ Carolina Skiff work boat and settled in to the wooden benches, allowing us a close view of the water.
You’ll love watching the gorgeous scenery as you boat through stunning marsh in the river. Like fine wine, oysters will taste different depending on their environment.
Our first stop was to visit the nursery crates
where we got to see and hold baby oysters (called spat) in their floating upwellers.
We then continued up the estuary to the grow-out site to see more mature oysters. All of the stages of oysters are checked daily to make sure they’re progressing well.
We learned some cool facts about some of the local birds that hang out near the farm, including cormorants and pipe clovers.
Now it was time to taste some of these delicious treats we’d been learning all about. Sadie took oysters right out of the river for us to taste! And she didn’t just give us one or two, guests each get a half-dozen oysters to indulge on! We learned how to shuck an oyster and I learned a valuable lesson about what to look for in an oyster shell when I’m shopping for them. Game changer!
Sadie cut up some fresh shallots and mixed them with white wine vinegar to make a mignonette to go with the oysters. I’m going to be using this recipe from now on.
These were absolutely the BEST oysters I have ever tasted and you could not get fresher than this! My youngest is an oyster lover!
My oldest daughter had never had one so she decided if it was ever going to happen, this would be the time to do it. She was a little apprehensive at first…
but finally, just went for it. And she even admitted that they tasted really good!
Sadie also had some delicious homemade watermelon juice.
This was so a unique experience and I would highly recommend doing this when you are in Maine.
What is the price for this tour? $65 per person, which includes a half-dozen oysters.
Current tour schedule:
Saturday: 10am, 12 pm, 2pm, 4pm, 6pm
Sunday: 10am, 12pm, 2pm, 4pm
Tuesday: 10am
Wednesday: 10am
Tips for a perfect day:
If you are not comfortable on a boat, you don’t have anything to worry about because you are always close to shore.
Only 6 people can take the tour at once, so it’s always a personal experience.
The bottom of the boat gets wet, so only take essentials with you because you’ll have to put it on the bench you’re sitting on.
Children must be over the age of 5 to take the tour.
Weather cancellations may occur and will result in a full refund.
Meet @ Pine Point Fisherman’s Coop, Scarborough, Maine
Website: https://www.nonesuchoysters.com/
Give them a follow:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nonesuchoysters
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/NonesuchOysters/
A huge thank you to Sadie for letting us spend our morning with you. We had such a nice time learning all about oysters. My daughter will never forget having her first oyster pulled right from the river. As always, all experiences and opinions are 100% of MyTravelingKids.com