The Bufkin Tales: New England Part 2

Our next adventure in September took us to Maine, specifically to Mt Desert Island where Acadia National Park is located. After packing up our campsite in New Hampshire, we headed west, driving on picturesque roads through Maine, stopping off occasionally to check out a dam, a river, antique stores, and whatever else struck our fancy. Not everything was open since it was Labor Day, but what was open we enjoyed.

Arriving on the Island, we drove to the Bed and Breakfast we were staying at, called Mira Monte Inn, and checked in. Since the Inn had complimentary evening wine and cheese at 5:00, and it was about 90 minutes before then, we checked out our room (here's Brad sitting in it), verified the tide was out and then headed to the beach, a short walk about two blocks away. There is an island in the bay at Bar Harbor, which can be reached by a land bridge during low tides. That means, this entire stretch of rocky beach shown in the next two pictures, is under water when the tide comes in, as it did during the hour of our walk. Brad and I enjoyed the awesome views and picked up some cool rocks off the beach, took in the wonderful aroma (sarcasm intended - the stinky dead fish / algae / seaweed smell was pretty strong), and then headed back to enjoy some wine.

The wine and cheese was not what we expected. The owner of the Inn was holding court, and no one else was really saying anything instead of the guests socializing. She was talking non stop about what the town used to be like, barely pausing for breath. I made one comment, agreeing with her about something at one point, only to have everyone give me that look - you know the one you get when you speak when no one expects you to. We then walked downtown Bar Harbor and had sea food for dinner.

The next morning we had a very good breakfast at the Inn and then headed to Acadia National Park.

The park includes mountains, an ocean shoreline, woodlands, and lakes. In addition to Mount Desert Island, the park includes surrounding islands adn parts of the mainland and is topped by Cadillac Mountain, named after the French Explorer. The top of the mountain is one of the first places in the United States to see the sunrise. Miles of carriage roads were originally built by Rockefeller, Jr. and offer hikers and bicycle riders views of the ocean, island lakes, and pine forests. Brad and I took in all of these during our stay. Starting out at the Park Visitor's Center, we headed out. Most of this park is reached by a car driving route that circles the main part of the island. Taking this driving route, we stopped at overlooks and different way points.

This wooden elevated path was off one of those stops, this trail, about two miles total, heads out through bogs, woods and around to coastal views. The wooded path keeps you out of the mud and off the ground, but when we cam out of the bog we headed along the wooded trail. It was peaceful and idyllic, with beautiful views.

Our next stops along the coastline had more breathtaking views of the bay. We then took one of the roads out of the park back to Bar Harbor where we ate lunch at a restaurant overlooking the town center. Stopping to do some shopping, we headed back into the park to see more views.

Since it was getting crowded on the main auto route through the park, Brad and I headed to the other side of the Island, where we came upon this Ford Explorer burning to the ground. The guy in the front just lived along this road and tried to help, almost putting the fire out. If we had put our fire extinguisher into the FJ (it's in the pickup), it might have made all the difference (we have one now). The windows blew out and the metal started melting as the propane bottle they were carrying in the back of this SUV burned off. The local fire department (all volunteer in this small town) showed up and put it out, but this vehicle is finished. Brad asked the two little old ladies who owned this if they needed any help (they were traveling with their little dog), but they turned us down.

After the excitement ended, we drove off, heading off road into the woods where we found this lake in the woods.

We then found ourselves back along the coast line where we did some beach combing, looking for tide pools.

Heading further around the island we stopped at the Bass Harbor Head Light House. This light house includes the home of the local Coast Guard commander, but tourists can walk down to it and around two sides of the building. I guess they sacrifice some privacy to live in such a wondrous location. (I'd do it, wouldn't you??).

We then drove back into the main part of the park where we saw woods, lakes, and more coastline. It's stunning scenery and a MUST SEE if you ever go to Maine.

As I mentioned the park includes several miles of very nice gravel roads put in by Rockefeller years ago for carriages to drive around on, but now only accessible by foot or bike.