Maine’s scenic Monhegan Island is a portrait of Brigadoon mixed with L.L. Bean

Monhegan Island is cherished throughout New England for its scant size and population, weather-beaten buoys and wayward stacks of lobster traps.

Monhegan Island, Maine (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

July 25, 2019 11:53 AM PT

Painters on beach at Monhegan Island, Maine. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Monhegan Island, Maine. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Buoys and tarp, Monhegan Island, Maine. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

This lobster claw at Monhegan’s Fish House was so tough that it busted a nut-cracker. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Lobster Cove, Monhegan Island, Maine. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Monhegan Island, Maine, with Manana Island and the Island Inn as viewed from Lighthouse Hill. (J.T. Stewart / Getty Images)

Artist Alison Hill in her studio, Monhegan Island, Maine. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Near Squeaker Cove on a foggy day, Monhegan Island, Maine. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Lupine Gallery, Monhegan Island, Maine (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Monhegan Island, Maine (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Longtime summer visitor Mike Levine plays guitar at the Monhegan Brewing Co., Monhegan Island, Maine. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Timesr)

Born and raised in California, Christopher Reynolds has written about travel, the outdoors, arts and culture for the Los Angeles Times since 1990.