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Popham Beach Family-Friendly Home
| Sleeps | 8 |
| Bedrooms | 4 |
| Bathrooms | 2 |
| Space | 2,500 sq. ft. |
| Property type | house |
| Minimum Stay | 7 nights |
Overview
4 Bedroom, 2 Bath Home On Four Levels, Sleeps 8 Comfortably
There are few places on the Eastern seaboard where one can stand on the deck of an oceanside house and see nothing but salt marsh, beach and the Atlantic -- no houses, no people, nothing but solitude and the sounds of waves, gulls, and Sequin’s fog horn. Yassou (a Greek salutation meaning “welcome”), sitting on a high, granite bluff overlooking the Maine coast, the sand beaches of Popham and Seawall, and the open Atlantic at Casco Bay, is such a place.
Yassou is a 9-acre property overlooking the tidal Morse River and the 4-mile stretch of sand beaches known as Popham and Seawall – formed where the mouth of the Kennebec River meets the Atlantic Ocean.
There are 3 structures on the property – a main house and two out buildings. The house is 2,500 square-feet, spread over four levels, and built to take advantage of the views.
The ground floor has two bedrooms: The Family Bedroom, with a queen bed as well as a twin, and the Two Twins Bedroom. This floor has a full bath, a laundry area with washer and dryer, and a library room that features a small TV for watching one of the many VCR tapes in our collection.
The second floor, with its ocean views, houses the main living and dining areas with an open floor plan and a vaulted ceiling. The living room area is centered around a large cozy fireplace on the northern end of the main floor, with the dining area and the open-shelved kitchen with a breakfast bar on the south side.
Outside decks surround three sides of this level with a screened-in porch off the kitchen. Three sliding-glass doors provide easy access to the deck from this floor. There is also a full bath and master bedroom on this floor, with access from the bedroom to the quiet north side deck for morning coffee as the sun rises.
A loft above the main floor leads to another bedroom and stairs leading up to “The Tower,” which is a treat unto itself. Perched 35’ high, The Tower commands a 360° bird’s eye view of the surrounding countryside and ocean. Five adults can comfortably sit in The Tower, which is a stunning place to watch the sunrise or sunset.
Two out-buildings complete the structures on the property. “Blossom,” nestled in the pines just beneath the main house, is a rustic bunkhouse. “The Gallery” is a workshop and storage shed just east of the main house.
For those interested in further exploration of the natural beauty of the property, two private nature trails, created and maintained by our family, provide instant access to adventurous hiking in the Maine woods, plus beautiful vistas along the Morse River and pristine salt marsh.
About Martha Callanan
Chuck and Mary Callanan built Yassou in 1975 as a summer home for their family of six children. Since then it's been a special and sacred place for 4 generations of Callanans. The entire extended family, (23 and counting) still comes together every year in August for our 'family meeting.' The home is now fully insulated, and electric heating now makes it possible to live comfortably at Yassou much of the year.
Martha Callanan purchased this house in 1975
Why Martha Callanan chose Mid-Coast & Islands
For a decade, our family rented property every August on Seawall Beach from the St. John family.
In 1975 the St. John family donated their estate to the Nature Conservancy to be preserved in its wild state forever. Before the transfer, they sold five special lots of land as inholdings. Yassou is located on the largest and highest point of that land with unobstructed views of Spirit Pond preserve to the north, Bates Morse Mountain Conservancy to the west and Popham Beach state park to the south and east.
What makes this house unique
Yassou is perfect for both quiet, romantic get-aways and retreat weekends, as well as fun-filled family reunions. Popham Beach is the most obvious draw, but the unobstructed views and access to pristine wilderness are Yassou's most unique feature. So too is private access to the Morse river and Spirit Pond dam for fishing, clamming and swimming, as well as two private nature trails on the property and along the marsh.
Map
Popham Beach (just 1/2 mile away), begins where the mouth of the Kennebeck River meets the ocean and extends for 2.5 miles, turning into Seawall Beach (just beyond the Morse river), which continues another mile and a half to the Small Point community.
Popham Beach has a lovely curved shape with spectacular views of several islands just off the coast, including Seguin with its lighthouse, and Fox Island, which can be accessed by foot at low tide.
Featuring the second largest sandy beach in the state of Maine, Popham Beach State Park is considered one of the nicest beaches on the East Coast. It covers 529 acres, and is well equipped with bathhouses, showers, picnic areas with grills, and hiking trails. Beach lifeguards are on duty at central beach stations throughout the summer months. Visitors enjoy fishing on the beach, swimming and body surfing, sun bathing, shell collecting, and board surfing when the tides are high.
The quaint village of Popham, 3 miles from Yassou, is perched at the mouth of the Kennebeck River at the tip of the penninsula where the beach begins. The village overlooks a beautiful natural harbor, Atkins Bay, filled with boats of all sizes and descriptions on one side, and the river and beach on the opposite side.
Popham village has two restaurants and a small grocery store, a library, church, hiking trails, and the historic landmark, Fort Popham, built in 1860 during the Civil War. A second fort, Fort Baldwin, built during World War II, sits atop nearby Sabino Hill. Parts of Popham Beach were used filming the movie, 'Message In A Bottle,' starring Kevin Costner.
The village of Popham is part of Phippsburg township, which boasts several beautiful peninsulas to explore; a golf course and tennis courts at Sebasco Resort; two nature preserves providing a variety of hiking trails; many places to kayak, canoe, sail or power-boat; several good restaurants specializing in local seafood; quaint local produce stands; and a charming gourmet farm store offering local organic produce, eggs, artisanal cheeses, fresh baked goods, fine wines and beer, plus assorted gifts.
There are several museums in the area, including the Maine Maritime Museum; a multiplex movie theater and an art house cinema; lots of wonderful antique shops; plus a great variety of shopping options just a half hour drive in the Bath /Brunswick area. Freeport, which features major outlets including the L.L. Bean Flagship store, is a 45-minute drive. Boothbay Harbor, an hour's drive north, features boat sightseeing tours and whale-watching tours. Traveling to Portland can take 1 hour or more, depending upon traffic. Boston is a 3-hour drive.
Amenities
Phippsburg House Accommodation and Amenities
- house
- Guests provide their own meals
- 2500 sq. ft.
- Check-in: 4:00 PM / Check-out: 10:00 AM
- Max. occupancy: 8
- children welcome
- pets not allowed
- non smoking only
- Beach View ...
- Ocean View
- Oceanfront ...
- Rural ...
- Adventure
- Away From It All
- Family
- Historic
- Romantic
- Sports & Activities
- Clothes Dryer
- Fireplace ...
- Hair Dryer
- Heating ...
- Internet ...
- Iron & Board
- Linens Provided
- Living Room ...
- Parking ...
- Telephone ...
- Towels Provided ...
- Washing Machine
- Coffee Maker ...
- Dishes & Utensils ...
- Dishwasher
- Kitchen ...
- Microwave
- Oven ...
- Pantry Items ...
- Refrigerator ...
- Stove ...
- Toaster ...
- Child's Highchair
- Dining ...
- Dining Area
- seating for 10 people
- 2 Bathrooms
-
Bathroom 1 -
toilet
,
combination tub/shower
Bathroom 2 - toilet , combination tub/shower
- Full bath on ground floor. Full bath on second floor.
- 4 Bedrooms, Sleeps 8
-
The Master Bedroom -
1 queen
,
On second (main living) floor
The Family Bedroom - 1 queen , 1 twin/ single , On first floor
The Two Twins Bedroom - 2 twin/ single , On first floor
The Tower Bedroom - 1 twin/ single , On third floor - loft/tower
- Books ...
- Games ...
- Stereo ...
- Toys ...
- Video Library ...
- Deck / Patio ...
- Outdoor Grill ...
- wheelchair inaccessible
- botanical garden
- churches
- library
- marina
- museums
- restaurants
- ruins
- antiquing
- beachcombing
- bird watching
- boating
- eco tourism
- paddle boating
- scenic drives
- shelling
- shopping
- sight seeing
- walking
- wildlife viewing
- ATM/bank
- groceries
- cycling
- deepsea fishing
- fishing
- fly fishing
- golf
- hiking
- pier fishing
- sailing
- scuba diving or snorkeling
- sound/bay fishing
- surf fishing
- surfing
- swimming
- water skiing
- wind-surfing
Reviews
Excellent!
4.6/5 -
(9 traveler reviews)
Great week!
We enjoyed our stay. Complete kitchen. Beautiful view. Great outside deck. Very peaceful. Great fireplace. We would improve lightening inside the house. A nice suspended lamp over the dining table would be a real improvement!
Classic and charming summer home. Perfect for a large group or family, especially for kids.
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Yassou. The house was equipped with everything you can think of, from condiments in the fridge to games and videos for adults and kids. The views from the deck and tower were spectacular. We had coolish weather for a couple of days so took advantage of the fireplace. The nights are very quiet and peaceful. A great place to relax and reconnect with each other.
Perfect Vacation!
This place is amazing, quaint and spacious! Great location and private! Lots of character and the charm of a well loved family home. A rare gem! Definitely going back!
Yahoo for yassou
We spent a week at Yassou in the summer of 2015. We were 6 adults and 3 children. And yes, the house is very rustic and big enough for us all. Close to the beach by 5 minute car ride and other interesting sites and restaurants. We especially loved using the fireplace in the evening and sitting around together when the children were asleep for the night.
One other comment, sleeping downstairs when it rained was slightly damp
Family summer escape
We went to Yassou as two families with four kids between us. We had a fabulous week!
The house itself is fantastic. You certainly have to like rustic, and we do! However, rustic in this case is clearly a conscious style/value choice, not for lack of amenities. In fact, we all agreed that this was the best-equipped rental we'd ever used, after 15 years of home rentals on both coasts.
As for details: comfortable beds, beautiful views, extremely well-equipped for all scenarios, plenty of corners to escape to for peace or adventures (the adults used the tower for quiet morning reading, the kids used it for a prolonged imaginative play story). The beach required 3 minute drive for most of us, as the road was too windy and busy for kids to bike on. We easily fit all 8 of us at the table. The one night we had two extra dinner guests, the kids ate at the kitchen counter/stools nearby.
You can tell in many ways that this house is beloved and used regularly by the family that owns it, and it makes a big difference to the feel of the place! If I could change anything, it would be the mosquitos. The owners appropriately warned us of their shared habitat with this property, and it was certainly a factor. We were able to enjoy the outside deck a little, depending on the weather. The screened porch was a necessary blessing. I don't know if their numbers are due to the time of year or the location just above the salt marsh, but I do know that they were a pain!
There are two many special things about this property to list, and it's better to discover them for yourself. Yassou is a special place!
Wonderful Maine Retreat
Yassou is an absolute gem. We could not recommend it more highly - but don't even think about going the week of July 4th! After two years of convening there as a family we have adopted it as our own.
We enjoyed greeting the early morning fog, watching and listening to the waves crash in, and observing the starry skies from the main deck. The views from there and the tower are unparalleled; stunning evergreens framing the quintessential Maine coast.
The owners are beyond welcoming and have created such a warm and cozy environment. We love the stories told by the artwork on the walls and found more books and games than you could ever read and play. Everything is kept nice and clean and the beds and chairs are quite comfortable. The house can really absorb a lot of people as there are multiple deck areas, a screened in porch, an indoor seating area and a kitchen counter with stools.
The kitchen has everything you could possibly need - and more. We never made it out to dinner this time because we so enjoyed cooking and eating as a family in this amazing place. There are plenty of dishes, cooking tools, and all of the staples so you don't have to think about bringing spices, cooking oils, or even tea!
Popham is the perfect beach for the whole family. The adults loved crashing in the waves and the kids loved exploring the tidal pools and the island at low tide. We can't wait for next summer.
Photos
Rates & Availability
- Available
- Unavailable
Additional information about rental rates
| Damage Deposit | $500 |
Owner's Cancellation Policy
- Canceled bookings will not receive a refund
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