View of Willey Wharf near the head of the harbor. Photo/Tom Richardson

Long regarded as the hub of recreational boating in Penobscot Bay, Camden Harbor comes by its renown honestly. And although its preeminence has been challenged in recent years by some neighboring towns, there are still scads of reasons to visit this bustling and scenic port nestled at the foot of Camden Hills.

Packed around the diminutive inner harbor are restaurants, theaters, and parks. Throughout the season you can attend a variety of festivals and special events. For a town of only slightly more than 5,000 year-round residents, Camden squeezes a lot of living into the summer months—and a wide variety of living, too.

Take, for instance, dining. There are nearly a dozen more restaurants within easy walking distance whose menus and ambiance ranges from fancy to casual. And yes, there are several places where you can still get a decent lobster roll.

Entertainment options include Broadway musicals and art-film festivals at the Camden Opera House (which has been known to offer an opera or two as well). One-time festivals or theme weekends can range from an al fresco steel drum band with its Caribbean sound reverberating around the waterfront park to a formal chamber music ensemble in one of the local theaters or churches. The place to get information on local arts, music, and boating events is the Camden Public Library, housed in a handsome brick building at the head of tide and, again, a short walk from the dinghy landing. You can also find information at the Chamber of Commerce office next to the harbormaster’s office.

Reflections of Camden. Photo/Joe Devenney

Just idly strolling around Camden can be an event in itself. Starting with the towering spire of the First Congregational Church that many mariners see upon entering the harbor, architecture in Camden is an ongoing treat. Styles include Italianate, Federalist, Greek Revival, and post-modern “cottages” (mansions, really). For a town that was founded in the late 1700s, Camden offers a pretty good architectural accounting of itself.

Of course, all these attractions do lure quite a few people to Camden each summer, and not just boaters. The town’s resident population alone triples, and U.S. Rte. 1, which crawls through the heart of Camden, brings thousands more daily. The pedestrian, however, is king and, by law, traffic stops pretty much on demand for your comings and goings.

Maritime traffic is also brisk and overnight stays require some advance planning. In fact, the harbormaster advises that the bigger your vessel, the more advance planning you’ll need to get a berth in the coveted inner harbor. Transient slips and moorings can be arranged through the harbor’s lone marina: Lyman-Morse.

The outer harbor can be more accommodating to spontaneous visitors who have a capable dinghy and don’t mind the wakes and errant swells that creep into the surrounding waters. Contact the harbormaster to see if a transient private mooring can be arranged while the owner is away.

Even better, the outer harbor offers much better views of the Penobscot Bay boating scene to the east and the hills and mountains to the north and west. Swinging on a mooring, you might feel you have the best of both worlds, with Camden’s hubbub only a short dinghy ride away.

Note that anchoring anywhere in the immediate area is difficult because the prime spots are full of private moorings. Anchoring in the inner harbor is prohibited, so you’ll need to look farther afield to drop the hook.