Mill Pond Stories |
• When Sherry and I drove over the bridge in Damariscotta Mills, Maine in 1986 we had no idea of what was to transpire. We were married and opened the inn in May of 1986, and we have the experiences of 65,000 guests. Our guests are now our extended family and the stories with them are what we have decided to share with the world.
• I'm not sure if it was the friendly face greeting you, with ice cream in hand, when you arrived after a very weary 9 hour drive, or the warm coziness of a comfortable bed. I'm not sure if it was the smell of bacon and coffee in the morning, or the sun shining thru the windows, while seagulls sang & birds darted in and out at the feeders. I'm not sure if it was Jaggers' thumping tail and friendly nature, or the easy & fun conversations with Sherry and Bobby. I'm still not sure it is was having an impromptu wine & cheese party with their neighbors (and,by the way, they won't sell me their house either!) and ending up getting a barbeque together, or just being lured into that "I should be living here in Damariscotta" syndrome.
No matter what it might be it, the time spent with Sherry and Bobby was wonderful. They are, in deed, very gracious hosts. While Bobby shares scads of information with you in regards to trips, local history/lore, dinner suggestions, etc., Sherry makes sure that you are very comfortable and at ease in their home. Their home is just lovely and has that charm of Maine cottage living showing that Sherry has "just the right touch".
Thank you so much. I've missed being in Damariscotta for the past 14 years and it will never be that long again for a return trip. My first stop, without hesitation, will be at your doorstop with baggage in hand, waiting to be greeted by the friendly smile with ice cream in hand!
• If you are looking to leave the cares of the world behind and enter a world of beauty...please rush to the Mill Pond Inn. The innkeepers are in a class by themselves. Gracious hosts,you want for nothing. This is not a business, but a home that is warm, inviting and fun to be in. I hope some day to return...
P.S. If you leave your PJ's hanging on the bathroom door...they will be returned to you!
• How to begin to tell you what a wonderful time we all had at your beautiful inn! The inn is wonderful - clean, comfortable, lovely, and your superb hosting was a treat. We so much appreciated your giving us such good information about things to do and not just that, but planning those things and driving us around to do them! That's surely something you do not get at a Holiday Inn. Our whole family enjoyed our stay with you so much and the blueberry pancakes were just exquisite. What a treat it was also to meet John and Ellen Whalley and see their magnificent studio. And, the music evening was just great! We left with so many wonderful memories (not to mention all the great pictures) and even the kitchen sink! (Well it was actually a bar sink, but who would have thought!)
Please, if you are ever in Cincinnati or anywhere near us, give us a call and stay with us. We have plenty of room for guests and would love to be your hosts. And remember, Bobby, we are not that far from the tallest three-story building in the world!!
We will be back someday to stay with you and we do thank you so much for our wonderful 50th anniversary celebration.
With our best wishes for a great future,
• A totally wonderful place! Elizabeth and I were made to feel as comfortable as if we were in our own home. The inn is warm and welcoming, the property absolutly tranquil and transfixing, and Bobby and Sherry are two warm and wonderful hosts who make you quickly feel as if you have known them for years. The Mill Pond Inn is a special place you will look forward to returning to time and time again.
• Once upon a time....(isn't that how every fairytale starts?)....there was a little inn nestled on a sweet pond in Maine, surrounded by lush fragrant flower beds. Each room was cozier and more well appointed than the next and the common rooms beckoned from below, "Come sink into our cozy chairs and read, ponder and relax. Come kick back on our deck in the Damariscotta lake breeze". Ah come on! This is a little TOO PRECIOUS isn't it? Well don't worry this little inn's owners add plenty of piss and vinegar and salt to our story. I arrived with my son at midnight stressed out and desperately in need of a cozy bed for a weeks stay. Greeted warmly by the nightmanager Leon (no bitterness shown at our very very late arrival) we were whisked up to our lovely room overlooking the pond. As we both sank into our fluffy beds I passed out to the sweet scent of the just picked bedside flowers. Grateful but cynical by nature I wondered what the light would bring. Well...it started even before my eyes opened with the smell of rich coffee and special sausages from Boston and just about the best breakfast served up by Bobby in the warmth of the inn's dining room. Charlie and I and the rest of the guests were regaled with Bobby's hilarious stories as we luxuriated in our china plate of french toast bathed in warm Maine syrup. WOW! Then Sherry appeared. Funny, smart and warm, I thought (hmmm no need to sightsee... these guys are so cool and fun and interesting I think I'll just stay here and not move). So if you are considering coming to Maine and you need a place to stay book The Mill Pond Inn. You will leave a much less stressed out, much fuller in every way, and with two new friends. Thank you Bobby and Sherry. Charlie and I had a blast! We will definately be back hopefully soon and with the rest of our family! love,
p.s. Thank you for caring for me after I dropped Charlie off at Kieve. I needed it!
• Good Morning! I smell something cooking. I think it is the smell of sausage and those wonderful blueberry pancakes, coming from the kitchen of Sherry and Bob. Yum!
We will never forget the wonderful breakfast's we had during our stay and your warm hospitality. The boat ride around such a beautiful lake, was a terrific experience. We even saw an Eagle, we never would have seen, if Bob had not pointed him out. We will ALSO never forget, how Bob got up extra early, so that we could have a good breakfast before an early flight and even helping us with our luggage.
We do hope to come back and see you soon. Thank you for a most enjoyable stay.
• We were so happy to receive a weekend at Mill Pond Inn as a very special wedding present. We saved it for our one-year anniversary, and we were enchanted! The hospitality! The natural beauty! The blueberry pancakes! Such a warm, comfortable and completely delightful experience. Thank you, Sherry and Bobby, for providing the perfect place for us to be together, after one whole year of marriage!
• Tony and I flew into Boston with no fixed plan of what to do or where to go. The world was our oyster for the next 14 days. The only thing we had pre booked from England was 3 nights B&B in Boston and a hire car. Both of these proved a disaster so we decided to head north. Tony's daughter Charlotte and husband Ed had travelled round New England in 2007 for two weeks and their advice to us wherever you go make sure you go to Mill Pond Inn. They had completely fallen in love with the place and Sherry and Bobby. They should know as Ed manages a 5* hotel in England. So we rang ahead and luckily for us Sherry answered and had a room free. We arrived slightly dejected from our stay in Boston and were so relieved to be welcomed by Sherry. She took us to the edge of the pond with it's wonderful view just as an eagle flew overhead. The setting the room and Sherry's welcome was just what we needed yet more was to come. We met Bobby!! He is a character. A mine of information that he is only too willing to share. Together they form an amazing team.
Suffice to say we planned to stay for one night and stayed for six in all We had the most brilliant holiday largely due to their kindness, sense of fun and advice of where to go and what to do. If you are planning a trip to New England you won't have experienced it trully unless you go to stay at Mill Pond Inn!! We will be back!
• Our children were 4 and 6 when we found the Mill Pond Inn. Now at 18 and 20, after years of happy summer times many of our memories include Sherry, Bobby, Dusty and Jagger. We have always considered the Eagles Nest our own nest. We have woken up to sunny warm mornings and winter blasts of snow and wind. Always the same delicious smells to get us downstairs for breakfast, Bobby's stories and Sherry's suggestions of how to spend the day.
Like others, I will never forget the courage Sherry gave us to drop off our son at Kieve. We remember the boat rides - one to Wavus for fireside story telling,jumping off the dock into the silky water, the kids riding in Bobby's beloved Gray Ghost to pick up blueberries, Lu LU'S Hot Dog Heaven, trips with Bobby to Reny's for school supplies, Sherry's talents for cozy fresh decorating, her delicious smelling choice of soap, the thwack of Dusty's and then Jagger's tails, all the Sherry hugs and above all,the warmth and affection that explodes from Sherry and Bobby for their guests (who all become friends)and for each other. They love people and people love them.
• I've been to the "Inn" many times. On at least three occasions, I brought "Ms. Right" with me. Well, maybe it's time to bring the fourth one!
Sherry and Bobby are the most gracious, down-to-earth hosts on the planet and the "Inn" itself in out of this world. If you want to truly relax, visit soon. The season doesn't matter -- it's beautiful there all year round. If I had to live anywhere except here, I'd be in Damariscotta, Maine, in a minute.
• We'd never visited Maine before. Folks warned us about the 'cool' reception we would receive. However, it was my lifetime dream to roll down the country roads of Lincoln County, where my ancestors settled some 300 years ago. I had recently learned some of my distant Sidelinger cousins, among others still live in the area. When I discovered the Sidelinger family Bible, in the German language, is archived at Nobleboro Historical Society, my husband put his foot down. Our adventure to Maine commenced!
Cool reception, indeed! Ha, Ha! Maine folks are the coolest! I think they started the 'rumor' that they are not friendly to non-Maine residents, so they won't get overloaded with visitors - They don't want to be "just" another tourist trap! My husband and I were treated as though we had always lived there - Right from the get-go, at our first grocery stop in Portland.
Upon our arrival at the Mill Pond Inn, Bobby greeted us as if we'd been old fishing buddies of a lifetime. The smooth music of Hans Olson played in the background, as we all sipped wine on the back porch overlooking the pond. A newlywed couple rowed by, waving and thanking Bobby for the great wedding reception buffet he and Sherry hosted in that very spot only a few days earlier.
Three nights and four mornings later, we wished we could spend the whole summer with Bobby and Sherry at the Mill Pond Inn. I will always associate the Mill Pond Inn with discovering many sites of my family pioneers: Conrad Heyer - first white child born in Lincoln County, the Light family - who operated the ferry, the Hatch family - homesteaded here as result of escaping as a patriot soldier taken prisoner by the English (he jumped off the ship) and established his farm on what is now Camp Kiev, and of course the Sidelinger family - my people who started it all, with the family Bible saved now at Nobleboro Historical Society, which finally brought my husband and I to Maine for the first time.
Lincoln County, Maine - and especially the warm, relaxed atmosphere of Bobby & Sherry's Mill Pond Inn, are among the coolest places on this old earth! We will be back!
• We began staying at The Mill Pond in 1993 and have been many, many times since in spring, summer and fall. We always feel so relaxed and fortunate to know about this special place and its exceptional hosts.
• My first stay at the Inn was as a single woman who had just broken up the latest romance, about 15 years ago. I was running away over the July 4th weekend, but rather than being left to mope around I was made to feel very at home by Bobby and Sherry. Sherry had errands to do, and I was sent off with Bobby to attend the Round Pond parade - an experience in itself and not to be missed if you are there on the 4th! All in all a very memorable weekend.
Now my husband and I enjoy a few days there each summer, where we get to enjoy the superb location and the great company as they are both very funny people! Ask about the "secret" lobster pound - Maine heaven!
