People say that college is some of the most interesting years of your life. Well I decided to move 9 hours away from my home and live in a tent for the summer to liven it up just a little bit more. Hello, my name is Owen Samsel. I am working as an intern for Searsport Shores blog posting and managing social media for the camp ground. Currently I am a sophomore at the University of Maine studying Civil Engineering.

My first experience at Searsport Shores I was only around the age of seven. Our family had three young boys all involved in cub scouts at the time thought why not have a camping trip be our next family vacation. Specifically, the parts of this first journey I remember the first night thereafter setting up our obnoxiously large Coleman tent which was probably about the size of two minivans put together. I reelect my mother encouraging us to slip on our bathing suits and head down to the ocean. At this point, it was just starting to get dark with high tide coming in closer my brothers and I spotted a large piece of driftwood in the stream, drug the log into the ocean and tried to ride it. Instead, we just ended up flopping into the cold water of the Penobscot Bay.

I remember waking up in in the mornings to the smell of pancakes with fresh Maine blueberries with possibly some of the sweetest maple syrup I had ever had in my life which was locally made. I enjoyed walking the rocky beaches and exploring the tide pools never knowing what creature you are going to find next hiding in the rocks or the sea weed. One of the staples of Maine being lobster, my family made sure to visit the local lobster pound plenty of times. Moments like these are what lead me from my Pennsylvania home to the coast of Maine.  

As time went on, we came back for a few more vacations. Even using it as a place to stay during my college visit to the University of Maine. Now I get the experience of living here for the whole summer and getting to experience it for even longer! I look forward to the summer ahead of me and to all the new people I will meet.

Hope to see you soon!

-Owen