We have found a real treasure here in Bar Harbor Maine. It is Acadia National Park. We have been hiking and biking and riding all of the free shuttle buses. The weather has been outstanding. We may get our spirits dampened a bit tomorrow as a frontal system blows in from New York State.
Yesterday we bicycled into town and that was a bit scary. The wide shoulders ended just at the campground we are staying at and the highway was quite busy. We walked long stretches of the route. The park roads were much better and we rode to the trail-head of a 2.2 mile hiking trail to Cadillac Mountain. This is rated a moderate trail and climbs from 400 ft to 1,500 ft elevation. Judy and I made it in good time, but if that was a moderate trail, I sure don’t want anything to do with their extreme trails. Cadillac Mountain is a granite mountain and we were scrambling over boulders the size of melons to boulders the size of Cadillac’s to boulders the size of Mac trucks. They blaze the trail with a splash of blue paint on the rocks, and you just scramble up the best you can. The GPS recorded just over three miles traversed for their indicated 2.2 mile trail.
The area is a high density tourist area, and with the weekend crowd and a cruise ship in the harbor, Bar Harbor itself was like a zoo. We only dropped into town long enough to switch shuttle buses and head out to another adventure. Today was to be a low intensity day so we could recover from Cadillac Mountain. On one trip we dropped off at Jordan Pond, an access point for a group of carriage trails. We walked a mile or two on some very lovely roads. You must focus on your feet, however, to dodge the “road apples.” They are real carriage roads and people rent different types of horse vehicles to drive around with. Plus they can all be walked and some allow bicycles. One of the bridges that we visited was built in 1917. We understand that the carriage roads were built by and for the rich folks to get around and visit each other.
We returned to the tea house on Jordan Pond and had seafood chowder and a popover for lunch. Very delicious! After lunch we hopped another shuttle bus and joined a ranger led walk to Great Head. We learned all about the rich and famous people who played in this area in the early 1900. People like the Rockefellers and J. P. Morgan. It seems the fire of 1947 pretty much leveled all the “cottages” and much of the blackened land was donated to the US Government for Acadia National Park.
We probably arrived in this area at just the right time. The summer crowds are gone, and the weather is still nice. The trees are just now starting to show autumn colors. We will be working our way through the New England states to see the best of the autumn colors.
We close now with love for our many friends and relations.
Gary and Judy
