Westport Island offers seclusion and a quiet, coastal lifestyle
Flanked by the Back River and the Sheepscot River, Westport Island stretches 9 miles from its northern to southern tips. This quiet island town lies just south of Wiscasset and U.S. Route 1. “Westport Island is more of an undiscovered area; you have to want to be there,” says Randall “Randy” Miller, a former Westport Island resident and current real estate associate at Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty. “It’s sort of secluded, with no grocery or convenience store, and nothing really to do besides boating and things like that.” Fishing is a popular trade and pastime, especially for lobster and striped bass. The year-round population totals about 1,000, and about 89% of residents are homeowners. But in the summers, some vacationers seeking the quintessential coastal Maine experience intermix with locals. Westport Island supports a peaceful, private lifestyle, with an overall CAP Index Crime Score of 1 out of 10, significantly lower than the national average of 4.
Westport Island’s waterfront properties and wooded lots
Cape Cod-style homes and luxury waterfront properties along rural roads sparsely dot the forested island. Homeowners typically have views of trees and rivers, not cul-de-sacs lined with neighbors. Single-family home prices range from about $340,000 to $1.2 million, depending on size and water views. Homes at the top of the price range have features like private waterfront access, docks and decks. Homes under about $580,000 tend to sit on landlocked, wooded lots that may span multiple acres.
Recreation on the Back River and the Sheepscot River
At the northern tip of the island, Clough Point Town Preserve is a scenic spot overlooking the Sheepscot River. It has a dog-friendly, wooded trail with benches for pausing and looking out at the rocky shore. Anglers can fish for striped bass in the surrounding rivers, which are a mix of freshwater and saltwater. Small boats and kayaks can launch into the Back River from Wright Landing Boat Launch. Boats big and small can dock at the Wiscasset Yacht Club. The boating season lasts from April until October, but the yacht club organizes laid-back social events throughout the year. The club also teaches sailing for kids and adults.
Seasonal changes along the coast of Maine
Being on an island, residents can expect a coastal breeze year-round. “Fall is the best time of year; there are no mosquitoes,” Miller says. “Spring is beautiful, but we have black flies that bite you from mid-May to early June.” Winter traditionally brings ice and snow, and summer brings more vacationers to the region. The seafood restaurants, art galleries and boutiques of Boothbay Harbor, a few miles east of the island, attract the most visitors.
Shopping and dining in Wiscasset
The island’s shopping and dining is limited to local art at Westport Island Pottery and offerings at family-friendly Sasanoa Brewing. The solar-powered brewery serves organic beer made from ingredients grown on its onsite farm. “The brewery is probably the only thing on that island,” Miller says. “Wiscasset is a bottleneck in the summertime, but you go there for shopping and dining.” In Wiscasset, groceries are available at Shaw’s, and Sprague’s Lobster is a longstanding, family-owned seafood restaurant overlooking the Sheepscot River. More national chains like Walmart and Lowe’s Home Improvement are about 20 miles away in Brunswick.
Westport Island’s unique public school pipeline
The Sheepscot Valley Regional School Unit 12, rated B on Niche, is the district that serves Westport Island. Students through eighth grade may attend Windsor Elementary, rated A-minus. Because there is no public high school within the district, high schoolers may attend the school of their choice, even if it is private, like Hyde School. This A-plus-rated college prep school serves boarding students from around the world as well as local day students. Hyde School has a student-teacher ratio of four-to-one and an average graduation rate of 100%. Niche ranks it as the best high school for the arts and the most diverse private high school in the state. Tuition for those students who attend Hyde School is paid by the district. All schools require driving off the island. Alternatively, buses take students to other public elementary, middle and high schools, like Edgecomb Eddy School, rated B-minus, and Wiscasset Middle/High School, rated C.
Main Road connects this car-dependent island to the mainland
Westport Island is a car-dependent community with no public transportation. The aptly named Main Road is the principal road stretching the length of the island, taking drivers across a bridge over the Back River, which is the only way off the island. Once on the mainland, drivers can access U.S. Route 1, which goes through the nearby towns of Bath, Wiscasset and Damariscotta as it stretches up the coast of Maine. MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital is about 20 miles northeast and Portland International Jetport is about 50 miles southwest.
