23 - In My Footsteps Maine - Day 4

Initial Impressions Maine

Day 4 - October 4, 2010

1.  Woke up really sick, headache, stuffed up, plus it was rainy, almost thought about postponing the rest of my trip.  It came down to asking myself if I could deal with being sick, or if I could deal with missing out on so many things in Maine I had been dying to see.  That changed my mind really fast.

2.  It was an hour and a half to get up to Bar Harbor today from Owl's Head, it rained much of the way.  It gave me ample opportunity to make an excuse to turn around but I sucked it up.  Lucky for me the weather and my head cleared up right before I got there around noon.

3.  As it has so many times before, 5-Hour Energy helped me through my driving.  I will keep on name dropping them and asking them until they sponsor me or send me a Cease & Desist order.

4.  Just seeing the signs for Acadia National Park flipped me out, ever since seeing Ansel Adams’ photos of it when I was in high school I have wanted to go there, got my chance today.

5.  The only chain restaurant on the entire Mount Desert Island is Subway.  You want McD’s?  Got to drive 15 miles back off of the island to find one.  Didn't want their food that badly to do so.

6.  Mount Desert Island ended up being much bigger than Google Maps made it seem.  Wanted to check out Bass Harbor Head Light on the other side of the island, it took me 25 minutes.  It was worth it though.  Scaled down into the rocks by the water to get shots of the lighthouse from underneath.

7.  A recurring theme for me on this trip was how many people from out of state and out of country were there wherever I went.  I though driving up from the Cape was far but then out on the rocks at Bass Head Harbor Light was a young Asian couple asking another guy to take their photo with the lighthouse in the background.  The world really is smaller now.

8.  Bar Harbor is very Cape Cod, sort of like a Chatham on steroids where their main street (Cottage Street) is filled with quaint shops but it's much larger.  It was crowded on a Monday in October, but that could have been due to the Norwegian Cruise Ship docked in the harbor.

9.  Oh so I ended up getting Subway and was hit on by a very obvious transvestite with 5 o’clock shadow.  When he/she asked me if I was from around there I said I was from Cape Cod and going back home tonight! 

10.  My motel room had no shampoo in the bathroom but there was a bottle opener/cork screw on the wall. So I could not have clean hair but I could open a beer while brushing my teeth.  Who the hell was the person that came up with that?  A serious alcoholic I'll bet.

11.  Was hoping to see a moose or a bear at Acadia, no such luck though I did have a deer run past the car ahead of me.  I am surprised I didn't swerve off of the road, every time I passed any body of water I was scanning for moose and bears, then yelling at them for not being there.  Damn it moose!

12.  It was really cold 1800 feet up on Cadillac Mountain to watch the sunset.  There must have been 40 people up there to watch as well.  One of the best things I have ever seen was this sunset.  You could see for so many miles, it was worth the 15 years I had waited to visit Acadia.

13.  I was so excited to see that sunset that I didn't even mind the know-it-all jackass that was giving a class on how to be a great photographer behind me.  The funny thing is for all of his yapping I never saw him take a single shot, I mean talk is cheap man, show us, and shut up while you're at it.

14.  The Thunder Hole at Acadia was something unbelievable.  It’s basically a small cove where the water rushes in and rumbles off of the rocks in a thundering noise.  The waves at times come crashing up over the platform where people stand to see it up close.  I shot a video of it because my words won’t do it justice.

15.  I did happen to get a shot just as a wave was hitting a few kids that were standing and waiting on the platform, I was glad I got out of there when I did, plus I could laugh and they wouldn't know.

16.  It was one scary ride coming down Cadillac Mountain after sunset.  A few spots only had a couple of rocks between the road and a nice drop.  I did get to watch that Norwegian Cruise Ship exiting Bar Harbor from way up which was really cool.

17.  Wanted to try this Chinese place in Bar Harbor for dinner but the roads were packed as they had been during the day.  I could not find a spot within a half mile and was not feeling walking all that way.

18.  Went to Hannaford instead rather than try Subway again.  It is very small, like it is straight out of the 60’s.  Wanted some chili, of course there was none left, stuck with a premade sandwich and a piece of cake which was good.  Have eaten so badly over the past few days gonna have to correct that once I am back home.

19.  Got to watch the Patriots whip that Miami Dolphin ass which made my trip even sweeter if that was possible.

Photos of the Day:

Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse

Bar Harbor Inn

People about to get soaked at the Thunder Hole.

Sunset from atop Cadillac Mountain.