Postcard from Belfast Maine

Hand Carved Totems in front of a store in Belfast Maine

Belfast is a very fun place to visit, with its many art galleries, stunning views of the ocean, and charming old houses. Whether you are staying in the Belfast area or are continuing to Bar Harbor and Acadia or some other destination, it will be the first of many visits to this offbeat quirky & artsy town on the coast of Maine.

At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeon, city-sponsored public art displays of painted animals —cows, moose, and the like—are becoming rather tired and predictable. Last year, Belfast, Maine, had painted bears along the steep Main Street that runs down to the harbor. But this year, the city left the artists to their own devices and the resulting show is full of quirky surprises. I met artist Cy Klausmeyer of nearby Swanville making a few adjustments to his Bicycle Icthyopter, a bicycle with metal fish head and tail attached. Climb on and pedal hard and the tail swishes back and forth. Klausmeyer also created my favorite piece: a shiny red tricycle outfitted with two pairs of shiny red wings. It looks like it could fly. “That’s why I have it bolted down,” Klausmeyer said, “so nobody will try to pedal it off a roof.”