Breakfast at the charming Blue Moon Cafe next door to the Tug Boat Inn was followed by a trip to the beautiful Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens.
Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens’ most famous inhabitants are the Guardians of the Seeds. These are giant trolls hidden in the expansive woods along the trails, all made out of wood and recycled materials by the Danish artist Thomas Dambo.
Thomas Dambo lives and works in Copenhagen. A self-labelled “recycle art activist,” his trolls are on the list of the most significant attractions in Denmark and can be found worldwide, not only telling a story of sustainability, but one of global connection.
The trolls were built on-site in 2021 with his team and help from the Garden’s staff and over 150 volunteers. They took two months to create.
Walking made everyone hungry, so we went to a small lobster shack in the middle of nowhere at the end of a road on Sprucehead Island.
Stands for the trunks
Roskva is the heaviest, hardest, and strongest of the trolls. Every day, Roskva climbs towards the sky, and every year she grows taller and wider. If a troll forgets something, they can always ask Roskva—she counts the seasons and remembers everything that happens around her.
Holds the scent of the flowers
Just last summer, Lilja came out from her hiding place. The youngest of the trolls, she’s still just a child. She loves the colors and the scents of the flowers and when bees and butterflies fly among branches.
Sticks up for the branches
Søren is a very curious troll; his head is always turning and twisting, searching for places ever higher. He dreams about drifting around on a cloud in the sky, and when the wind is blowing, he loves to celebrate with a dance.
Smiles with the leaves
Gro is the wanderer. Every fall she disappears, but the trolls are not worried because every spring she returns to the forest. On her return, Gro walks around to make sure every friend of hers is fed. After hurrying to catch a few sunbeams and a handful of raindrops, she creates a feast for the forest.
Holds the roots
Birk is the wisest and most mysterious of the trolls. He hides in the shadows and listens to the whispers of the soil. He knows everything that happens in the wild, and every day he tells tales to all the other creatures of the forest.
