I Took an Unexpected Turn Into a Literal Fairy Tale
Walking around Mackworth Island off the coast of Maine, I noticed odd little formations left along the trail, tucked amongst the towering cedar and pine trees.
At first glance, these formations appeared to be unassuming piles of pine cones, sticks, leaves, and rocks haphazardly thrown together, but on closer inspection, I began to notice how each “pile” was, in fact, a little home. The tiny abodes had been carefully assembled using materials gathered from the forest and nearby beaches: tree bark served as walls, pinecones stood like doors, leaves acted as roofs, and seashells formed miniature pathways.
“Excuse me, what are these?” I asked a young girl standing in the forest clearing, who was busy collecting pine cones in the company of a handful of campers and an adult counselor.
“It’s a fairy home,” she said matter-of-factly, as though I had just asked her about the color of the sky.
“A fairy home?” I asked, confused. “Do people believe that fairies live on the island?”
“Well, of course, they do!” she laughed as she turned to pick up a few slender twigs. I had unknowingly stumbled upon Maine’s fairy homes.
Nikki Vargas
Stepping Into a Fairy Tale
Connected to the mainland by a causeway, Mackworth Island is a short drive from downtown Portland and home to Mackworth Island State Park, a 100-acre oasis in Casco Bay that offers a cyclical walking trail running along the island’s perimeter. It takes about an hour to circle Mackworth Island at a leisurely pace. While the island’s interior is off-limits, home to the Baxter School for the Deaf, the trail cuts through a woodland oasis, offering perpetual views of the shimmering bay and access to isolated beaches.
I had arrived in Portland a few days prior, checking into the newly opened Longfellow Hotel. The Longfellow honors one of Portland’s literary figures, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, nicknamed “the people’s poet” and considered one of America’s most influential writers. Longfellow was said to be a romantic at heart; his poetry was inspired by Maine’s natural beauty, which in turn inspires the Longfellow Hotel in its décor, art, and ambiance. Longfellow’s writing was not only a love letter to Maine’s beauty but also inspired by mythology, pulling fantastical themes into his prose. Admittedly, checking into The Longfellow Hotel, I knew nothing of Longfellow, his poetry, or how the two might form a near-magical connection that dropped me straight into a fairy tale.
On Mackworth Island, I’m told that the fairy homes began as a tribute to the island’s serene beauty. Visitors began collecting natural materials during their walks—sticks, seashells, leaves, flowers, pinecones, and rocks—and used them to construct dwellings for the magical beings living amongst Maine’s woodlands.
Nikki Vargas
Fairy home traditions and tales cross many cultures. Many Celtic cultures (such as the Irish and Scottish) believe in woodland fairies (or “faeries”), which are seen as magical entities that guard the natural world. In Slavic folklore, forest spirits (known as “Leshy”) are believed to be protectors of the woods, while in Iceland, where more than half the population believes in elves, “huldufólk” or hidden people are said to reside amongst the lava fields and natural rock formations. Maine’s Mackworth Island was the first place I’d found stateside to be marked with fairy homes.
“These tender memories are a fairy tale of some enchanted land we know not where, but lovely as a landscape in a dream.”
The fairy homes of Mackworth Island are a tradition with no clear origin. A handful of articles describe their presence and the proper way to build a fairy home, but none revealed why the fairy homes existed in the first place. Perhaps the enduring belief in the magical creatures and their dwellings couldn’t be reasoned, which is perhaps why poetry is the perfect expression of the island’s enchantment. I could see why Maine’s forests had inspired Longfellow’s poetry and how even back in the 1800s, during his lifetime, the wilderness seemed to hold something ethereal amongst its branches, an unseen magic in the trees.
“These tender memories are a fairy tale,” wrote Longfellow. “Of some enchanted land we know not where, but lovely as a landscape in a dream.”
Maine and Mackworth Island seem to have inspired the creative nature of their visitors in ways that are both figurative and fabricated.
Nikki Vargas
Magic in the Trees
As I made my way around Mackworth Island, I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something magical about its trail. Mackworth Island seemed to encapsulate the very essence of what I had hoped to discover when visiting Maine for the first time: a natural landscape that envelops you in its branches and sweeps you away from the hustle and bustle of the major cities.
Whether it was the light filtering through the lush forest, the hidden beaches tucked amongst the coastline, the wild turkeys that languidly paced the fields, or the views of the bay in which I swore I could spot curious seal heads bobbing above the surf—I could see why walking around Mackworth Island felt like taking something spectacular in stride. It wasn’t enough to simply enjoy a stroll on this island; I wanted to give something back for all the natural beauty it offered up freely. Nudging my husband, we began collecting a treasure trove of pinecones, sticks, and rocks, arranging them into a tent-like structure decorated with fallen leaves.
Nikki Vargas
While the jury was out on whether I believed fairies resided on the island, I figured I wouldn’t depart Mackworth without leaving a token of gratitude for good luck, just in case. My husband and I pulled together our little fairy den, a tiny pile of stacked rocks at its pinecone door, meant to symbolize our family and the magic of our own home. With our miniature dwelling constructed, we continued down the trail into Maine’s sublime wilderness, enchanted by the fantastical, astounded by the scenery, and inspired by the poetry.
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