S’Wanderings: Cape Ann, Massachusetts – Rockport

Posted by on Sep 11, 2013 in Art, S'Wanderings, S'Wicked Blog, Travel, Whimsy

We spent the second day of our two-day adventure in Rockport. Rockport is picture-postcard, practically designed for sightseeing and touristing. We visited the popular downtown area, crammed with shops, galleries, boutiques, and restaurants.

A pretty downtown Rockport street

A pretty downtown Rockport street

I had a few must-visit shops on my list, for the sake of this blog, and I’ll be sharing those with you in my next two posts, but Rockport in general is a lot of fun to explore without any particular place in mind.

So we did that, too.

We got into town early enough to get a decent parking spot in the thick of things, and then got down to wandering. We saw a pretty view down an alleyway, and headed that way, to a little marina area off Back Harbor. Rockport is filled with these little picturesque nooks and crannies.

Off of Back Harbor, Rockport

Off of Back Harbor, Rockport

Then, we poked around some of the side streets, and finally headed down Bearskin Neck out to the point, admiring the cool signage and nifty shops all along the way.

Rockport strolling

Rockport strolling

We also admired the wiring in Rockport, and wondered how the heck they sort it all out after a bad storm.

Rockport wiring

Rockport wiring

At the end of Bearskin Neck, there are sweeping vistas of Rockport Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean.

Rockport Harbor from then end of Bearskin Neck

Rockport Harbor from then end of Bearskin Neck

There’s also a curious building on the site of the Old Stone Fort.

Old Stone Fort site

Old Stone Fort site

After admiring the view, we walked back down Bearskin Neck, and explored some of the small side streets and wharves, as well as some other Rockport sights, including the iconic Motif No. 1, which has been painted, photographed, and sketched by just about one bazillion people, including me.

Motif No. 1

Motif No. 1

Rockport kayaks

Rockport kayaks

Clever marketing

Clever marketing – “Psst… Movie Stars Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds sat right here, come inside for proof!”

Letter A - Rockport

This post is brought to you by the letter A.

Somewhere in there, we got hungry. We didn’t want to go too far afield, so in the interest of time, we decided to eat at a touristy-looking place right on Bearskin Neck, called 7th Wave Restaurant. And, yes, it was priced in tourist dollars. But, the food was really tasty; a good clam and haddock chowder and Caesar salad with salmon. The views were pretty, the service was friendly, and the restrooms were handy. (I know; there’s that restroom thing, again.)

On our way down Bearskin, we found the Lauri Kaihlanen Gallery, and were able to speak with Lauri, himself. He’s a super-nice guy, and helped us pick out a couple of small, brightly-colored, whimsical prints to take home as souvenirs of our trip.

Kaihlanen Gallery, Rockport

Kaihlanen Gallery, Rockport

To end our day in Rockport, before the drive back home, we enjoyed a scoop at The Ice Cream Store, also right on Bearskin Neck. There are lots of flavors, the ice cream is delicious, and they have a few tiny tables with nice views of Back Harbor.

The Ice Cream Store, Rockport

The Ice Cream Store, Rockport

And, yes, I did make it to The Paper Mermaid and Toad Hall Book Store, which were the two specific destinations I had in mind when we decided to stop in Rockport. But, those two get their own posts, soon to come.