Way Downeast

I’m Sarah Craighead Dedmon. Welcome to Way Downeast, where I’ll share small-town stories and big conversations -- about the people, communities, struggles and successes of Washington County, Maine.

This place produces almost all of the nation’s wild blueberries, sleigh loads of balsam Christmas wreaths, and some of the most iconic seafood in the world. it’s the ancestral homeland of the Wabanaki Confederacy and home to the easternmost lighthouse in the nation. It’s big, the size of Delaware and Rhode Island put together, and its vast rural wilderness makes It an outdoor enthusiast’s paradise, with countless miles of hiking, biking, snowmobiling, and ATV trails, to say nothing of its pristine rivers, lakes, and coastline. It doesn’t have the sandy beaches of York or the affluent history of Camden, and Rockefellers didn’t spend their summers here.

But what it does have is remarkable.

I’m talking about Washington County, Maine. 

If you’re familiar with Maine, you’ve probably heard the word Downeast, a term that generally refers to an area beginning in Hancock County, then extends across all of Washington County and beyond.  But, Washington County is unique. 

So in recent years, locals have looked for language to reflect that. Today, many people know us as the Bold Coast, a name that celebrates our stunning rocky coastline. And an increasing number of Mainers know that there’s Downeast, and then there’s Way Downeast.

That’s Washington County.