JULY 04-13 ACADIA

Friday July 4^th - We awoke to a gorgeous day. We were excited to hike at Acadia National Park. Our first stop was at the Visitor’s Center to get recommendations from the Ranger. He gave us great advice! Our first hike was a loop around Jordan Pond offering a backdrop of crystal clear waters, the twin “Bubble Mountains” and rocky granite boulders along the shore. The woods around it had a variety of vegetation but most interesting was the evidence of beavers chewing on the trees. We had lunch at the lodge nearby before taking the scenic road to our next destination. We enjoyed the drive so much because it passed by marinas, bays, the ocean, and through small towns. We stopped to see the Bass Harbor Lighthouse by taking the Tower View Trail then took the Cliff View Trail for a better view of the lighthouse. Oddly we passed a man on the trail playing a clarinet to his iguana!! Next we took the Ship Harbor Trail. It was beautiful. We loved the huge rock formations the incoming tide and the rolling waves. Nature is simply amazing. We ended the day relaxing at our campsite and enjoying a gorgeous evening. We had driven through the town of Bar Harbor where 4^th of July activities were in full force but the crowds were just too massive so we elected for a quiet evening back at Yogi.

Saturday July 5^th - Another beautiful day! Michael got up early and hiked the Beehive Trail. He found the views to be pretty but said the views at Glacier last year spoiled him. He tried to do the Precipice Trail but it was closed due to nesting Peregrine Falcons. Dana stayed back and enjoyed her book. When Michael returned we both left to hike at Brown Mountain around Lower Hadlock Pond. It was a pretty hike and we were surprised to see a couple walking their leashed cat on the trail. Next we went into the town of Bar Harbor and FINALLY found a parking spot before going on an exciting hike. We were really looking forward to this one! It was the Bar Island Trail on a sand bar out to a small uninhabited island. The catch was the sand bar is only available during low tide and you can become stranded on the island if you are not alert to the time. There was a 3 hour window to hike to the island, hike around it if so desired then return to the mainland. It was so fun and we saw a deer on the island! After that excursion we walked further into town for ice cream and shopping for souvenir t-shirts. We sat in the beautiful park by the ocean soaking up the breeze, watching the boats and the people. We then went to evening mass in town before heading back to Yogi for dinner and a relaxing evening at our campsite. Another great day in Acadia.

BAR HARBOR TRAIL FROM BAR HARBOR AT LOW TIDE

BAR HARBOR TRAIL FROM BAR ISLAND AT LOW TIDE

BAR HARBOR TRAIL FROM BAR ISLAND AT RISING TIDE

Sunday July 6^th - We were blessed with more great weather. We got up early and caught the Sea Princess for a 3 hour Ranger lead scenic nature cruise of the area. It was great. We saw wildlife to include harbor seals, gray seals, osprey, eagle, and herring gulls. The ranger pointed out several lobster traps floating around our boat and said that in about 2 weeks it will be an amazing colorful sea of lobster traps floating around with the area sustained by a multi-million dollar lobster business. He said each trap has different markings so the owners can locate their traps and the industry is primarily manned by very honest people who respect each other’s property. It was exciting to see several osprey nests, an osprey dive into the water and come back up with a fish, and an eagle defending it’s catch in flight from a herring gull. He told us about how the islands developed and about the types of rocks on the islands. He talked about the beautiful homes and their owners: Martha Stewart and Robert Downey Jr. to name a couple. He pointed out some of the opulent boats including 3 color coordinated ones owned by Law and Order creator Dick Wolf. We stopped at one of the islands (Big Cranberry Island) and visited a museum that described the island history and way of life. Our Ranger was so knowledgeable. Next we did a hike of Upper Hadlock Pond and repeated a portion of Lower Hadlock Pond. It was a very challenging hike!! There were many, many tree roots and rocks on Upper Hadlock Pond hike requiring 3 miles of just watching your feet to keep from falling. Not Dana’s favorite but as usual Michael was patient and helpful by blazing a trail and steadying Dana. Our last excursion of the day was to drive to the top of Cadillac Mountain. The view was gorgeous! We pulled off at multiple scenic overlooks along the way. Back to Yogi we went to finish off the day with dinner, blogging and doing general chores.

WILDLIFE TYPICAL SEEN ON THIS BOAT TOUR

Law and Order creator Dick Wolf's boat

Law and Order creator Dick Wolf's boats (three on the left)

MAIL BOAT

SEAL HEAD

Osprey nest with baby chick

PREGRINE FALCONS NEST ON THIS CLIFF SIDE

WE HIKED THE UPPER HADDOCK LAKE TRAIL

Monday July 7^th - The morning was windy and sunny. We decided to drive to another section of the park that is reportedly less populated and off the beaten path. Acadia is different from any of the other national parks we’ve visited in that it’s regions are interspersed around communities in the area so you completely exit one region to enter another. We went to the Schoodic Peninsula region, which is in the eastern most part of the park, and started with the shoreline scenic drive. It was initially beautiful with the ocean waves crashing against the rocky shores and multiple scenic overlooks provided to stop and enjoy. We saw several gulls, an osprey and a seal. Along the road we saw a deer and throughout the park we saw wild turkey. At one stop the tide was low enough to walk out to Moose Island so we began our hike from the mainland collecting rocks, shells and spotting crabs. However, a dense fog started rolling so we returned to mainland as soon as we reached the island. It was so dense we could not see much beyond the immediate coastline for the rest of the scenic drive around the peninsula. We returned back to Yogi, completed some chores, had dinner and decided to go out for one last hike to see Thunder Hole at high tide at 7:30pm. Thunder Hole is a special rock formation with funnels and caverns where waves crash and spray as the tide comes in often making a thunderous sound. It was a very pleasant drive to and from the site in the evening ocean breeze with the windows down in Boo-boo. We thought it appropriate to play John Mellencamp’s “Thunderin Hearts” for the occasion both ways. So fun. Thunder Hole was amazing. Nature is simply amazing! The ocean waves were so powerful crashing into the rocky formations creating a beautiful site and beautiful sound. From what others were saying the sound was not as thunderous as it can often be but we enjoyed it very much! It was a perfect ending to the day.

Tuesday July 8^th - It was a cloudy, foggy day. We decided to hike the Great Meadow Loop trail, a less foggy area. It was a nice change from the other hiking trails. We enjoyed the meadow setting surrounded by mountains. We saw a beaver dam and 2 dens, some lily pads in serene waters, and heard a bull frog croak 1 time. After that hike we took another short hike on Schooner Head Path. It lead to the ruins of the old homestead of George Dorr, one of Acadia’s founding fathers. The trail on the property lead to Dorr point that had a beautiful view of the ocean and beach. We then stopped at the store for supplies and returned to Yogi to wait for Jay and Marta to arrive. We were so excited to see them with a joyful reunion when they arrived. They rented a new 4 passenger jeep so we all piled in and went straight-away for our first adventure to the Bar Island Trail. They enjoyed walking across the sand bar to the island and then to the island peak just as much as we did and found it fascinating to return to the entry point later and find 10-11 feet of sea water covering the path to the island. Next we drove to Thunder Hole which proved to be impressive but not quite as good as a well timed visit. We planned to return another day during the 2 hour window before high tide. We ended the day having FABULOUS LOBSTER ROLLS at the Traveling Lobster Restaurant recommended by a local lady we spoke to earlier in the week. We returned to Yogi, got everyone settled and slept well.

JAY AND MARTA

BAR ISLAND TRAIL AT LOW TIDE

BAR ISLAND TRAIL AT HIGH TIDE

Wednesday July 9^th - Beautiful, sunny day. We had breakfast then headed out to meet Marta’s brother and sister-in-law Paul and Diane at Otter’s Point where we were going to hike the Ocean’s Path trail together. That trail was beautiful, along the rocky coast with the crashing waves. The entire day was particularly enjoyable with all the playful banter between all the siblings and their spouses. There were so many fun stories and hilarious jokes. We stopped at several spots along the trail to enjoy the views including Thunder Hole where the tide was higher than last time we stopped so was presenting more impressive waves. Next we all drove into Bar Harbor for lunch at Peekytoe Provisions where most of us enjoyed seafood themed choices. Michael had a salmon rueben, Dana and Paul had lobster rolls and Jay had oysters and lobster roll. Marta had crab sandwich. Diane is allergic to shell fish so she had pork tacos. We topped it off with warm blueberry pie with vanilla ice cream. After lunch Jay, Marta, Michael and Dana drove to the top of Cadillac Mountain and took a hike around it’s peak. The scenery was beautiful. We returned to our Yogi, got cleaned-up and relaxed for a bit before Paul and Diane joined us for drinks and hors d’oeuvres at Yogi followed by dinner out at the Lobster Pound. We all once again ordered seafood dishes except Diane. Michael clam chowder/french fries/slaw, Dana lobster bisque/sourdough bread, Marta lobster bisque in breadbowl, Jay lobster roll. The lobster is FANTASTIC in Maine! Maine is also known for it’s blueberries so some had blueberry ice cream and some just went for their favorite flavors. They were unfortunately out of blueberry pie. We all went to bed tired and very full.

OCEAN PATH TRAIL

SAND BEACH FROM THE OCEAN PATH TRAIL

MARTA'S BROTHER PAUL AND SIL DIANE

VIEW FROM ATOP CADILLAC MOUNTAIN

VIEW FROM ATOP CADILLAC MOUNTAIN OF THE BAR ISLAND TRAIL BEING COVERED BY THE TIDE RISING

Thursday July 10^th - It was cloudy and foggy in the morning. We had a relaxing morning at the campsite eating breakfast, sitting outside, and talking. We took a late morning 6 mile hike around Eagle Lake which was fun with lots of beauty and lively conversation. We then drove into town for a late lunch at Cherry Stones. Jay had oysters and lobster bisque, Marta had chicken salad sandwich, Michael had lobster nachos and Dana had lobster bisque and some of Michael’s nachos. We walked around town shopping and people watching. We returned to our campsite, cleaned up and relaxed for a bit before it was time to meet Paul and Diane for dinner. We ate at the Bar Harbor Lobster Bakes, a nice locally owned family restaurant. It was great to dine indoors since it was a chilly evening. MIchael, Jay and Paul had their signature Lobster Bake that included a whole lobster, mussels, corn on the cob, roll, clam chowder and blueberry pie. Dana had lobster macaroni and cheese. Marta had a chicken sandwich and Diane had fish and chips. It was a great meal. It was sad to say good-bye to Paul and Diane but they said they may join us next year in Glacier. That would be great! We returned Yogi happy and full and soon were snoozing away after another exciting day.

BEAVER DAM

Friday July 11^th - We awoke to a gorgeous day. Sadly Jay and Marta had to leave first thing in the morning. We got lots of hugs before they left and promises for more fun plans in the future. Michael and Dana went to a ranger program about Peregrine Falcons as soon as Jay and Marta left. 2 rangers had set up a telescope pointing to the rocky ledge where they know the falcons are nesting. They gave some demonstrations, had some verbal instructions and had some written/visual instructional materials available. It was interesting but the falcons were not active. Next we went on a hike on the Witches Hole Trail. It was fun with multiple marshes and ponds with lily pads, croaking frogs, 3 beaver dams, 10 beaver dens, and multiple trees downed by beavers. We found a wild blueberry patch along the trail where we picked blueberries. We stopped for an ice cream lunch after our hike then played a fun game of miniature golf. We hadn’t played that in YEARS!! Next we returned to our campsite to blog, do laundry and relax outside enjoying the beautiful weather. We ate dinner by the campfire then watched Jaws. It seemed like the right movie to watch while camping by the ocean :)

BEAVER DAM

WILD BLUEBERRIES

BEAVER DAM

Saturday July 12^th - The day was cooler and cloudy. Acadia National Park is located on an island and we had primarily explored the regions of far east peninsula (Schoodic), the eastern shore (Bar Harbor), the southern shore (NE Harbor and Seal Harbor) and the Southwest Harbor. We had only explored a small portion of the southern most point and western border of the park so we headed in that direction. We went to Bass Harbor and hiked the Wonderland Trail. It was different from other trails we’ve hiked because the coast/trail was at sea level the entire way and the rocks changed from smooth, round boulders to jagged edged boulders in a just a few yards difference. The ocean waves were gently rolling onto the shore but were 3-4 feet in height. We also walked through regal pine forest before returning to Boo-boo and journeying on up the western border of Acadia National Park. The road wound in and out of the park and small towns. We were glad we explored the entire park but didn’t see anything extraordinary during the drive. We went to Jordan Pond gift shop where we had seen a walking stick medallion earlier in our visit that Michael wanted before heading into Bar Harbor town for “luncheon” bakery treats at Stadium Bakery. We took a short walk through town, did some shopping, went to mass at Holy Redeemer Church then returned to Yogi for dinner beside the camp fire. We ended the day with work on the blog. Another great day.

Sunday July 13^th - Another cooler day but sunny. We started our day with a stop at the Visitor’s Center before entering the Wild Gardens of Acadia. There was a porcupine strolling around the area nibbling on the grass causing quite the stir with the tourists. After taking pictures and videos we went into the amazing gardens; inclusive of all the vegetation in the region. They had to fence all the trees due to the active beaver population but otherwise did an excellent job of displaying the plants as they would be seen in their natural habitats on the coast of Maine. We especially enjoyed seeing the carnivorous insect eating plant “Sarracenia purpurea”. We took a short hike on the Jessup Trail that left from the garden area where we saw yet another beaver dam. It was otherwise a hike that reminded us of one through an Indiana woods. We returned to Thunder Hole for one last chance to see it in all of it’s glory but the seas were just too calm for the waves to reach the heights required for the thunderous sounds and impressive crashes against the rocks. We went back to Yogi to relax the rest of the day at our campsite and enjoy the beautiful weather. Michael started a campfire and we got lobster rolls one last time from the restaurant across the street from the campground. They were so yummy!