Acadia National Park
Saturday - 29 May 2004 - Bar Harbor, Maine:
We woke to beautiful sun and spent the entire day in
Acadia
National Park! It was a GREAT day! Though we had sun and warm weather,
it was very windy all day. Early, DT drove the Honda into Acadia and ran 7
miles on one of the Carriage Roads. These roads - developed and paid for by John D. Rockefeller are throughout the park. They were
built after common use of the automobile, strictly banning their use. They
were for quiet contemplation - on horseback, in a carriage or on foot and
bicycle. Cars are still banned on the gravel roads. After his run, we packed
a picnic and drove the entire Acadia Loop Road and also
drove over to Northeast Harbor.
Bar Harbor from Cadillac Mountain
We started by driving to the top of Cadillac
Mountain (at a hilarious 1500 feet, the highest point on the
Atlantic Coast) for a 360-degree view. Stunning. Above is a photo to the
north and Bar Harbor and why it is called Bar Harbor.
Notice the sand bar leading out to the island? It is only visible - and
drivable - during low tides. People live on the island, and must schedule
their lives around the tides! Can you imagine that? From atop Cadillac
Mountain we could see out to sea, back to inland Maine and down the southern
shore. The views were spectacular - the view alone was worth driving 4,000+
miles!
Our next stop was to the Nature Center, where we toured through the
Abbe Museum's
collection of local Native American artifacts and had a stroll through their
gardens. The plantings represent every type of eco-system in Acadia: marsh,
meadow, forest, stream, bog, sea shore, lake, etc. So many of the plants
here grow on our property at home!
Acadia Nature Center
Acadia Nature Center
One of the most popular spots on a hot summer day is Sandy
Beach. There are few beaches in Maine. This beach is good for sunning, but
as the water doesn't get above 60-degrees, the water is only fit for seals
and fish. Also the "sand" isn't sand at all, it is crushed sea shells and
they stick to everything! It is a very pretty spot though, in a secluded
cove, with many tide pools to explore.
Sandy Beach
Continuing along the one-way Loop Drive, we stopped at
Thunder Hole - Maine's version of Oregon's Devil's
Punchbowl. Time, sand and water have carved a deep gorge in the rock along
the shore. Now when waves crash in, a huge roar is heard - at times, over a
mile away.
Water crashing in, crashing out and a view from above Thunder Hole
We stopped to enjoy our picnic at the Fabbri picnic area on
Otter point, and then left the Loop Road to drive over to the little town of
Northeast Harbor. This is a port for lobster fishermen and pleasure craft,
and the bay is lined with beautiful mansions (Martha Stewart lives here!).
Locals can shop only at art galleries (it seems) and dine at the "Full Belli
Deli". We connected back to the Loop Road and stopped at the Jordan
Pond House. Jordon Pond is, of course to any Oregonian, a lake. At
one time there was a beautiful lodge here and it was a popular vacation
destination. It burned and was replaced with a restaurant. The
Jordan Gate House is famous for their popovers. Across the road is
one of three Carriage Houses in Acadia National Park. Rockefeller built
these as "guard houses" at entry points to the carriage roads. The Carriage
Houses now serve as Park employee housing (sweet deal, eh?).
Jordan Pond Gate Carriage House
A view of a pretty carriage road along Jordon Creek
Terry, on a bridge over Jordan Creek
Are you getting tired yet? We were, but we still had a few
things to see. We stopped at Duck Brook Bridge - on the
Carriage Road DT ran this morning - to photograph this pretty span. Of
course, John D. commissioned the bridges too - 27 of them - to ensure horse
and auto would never meet. Every bridge is stone and every bridge is
different - designed especially to fit its purpose and ambience of the
location.
Duck Brook Bridge
Troll's Eye View of Duck Bridge
Pretty Acadia Sky
It was getting late, and we had spent over six hours in the
park today, so we drove into Bar Harbor to make a dinner reservation and had
to take a photo for our friend, Nancy. The old, faded sign reads, "There is
no such thing as too much garlic". (Nancy just hates garlic!) We were
speaking to the owner and he offered me a job!
Hello Nancy!
After a little rest, we dressed and were headed back to town
for our dinner reservation. But, wait - more excitement at the Mt. Desert
Narrows RV Park! What this Mt. Desert Narrows lacks in water pressure they
make up in "Family Activities". Tonight they were having a Hay Ride. I did
not witness the actual hay wagon, but My Driver assures me it was a flatbed
truck with ONE BALE of hay on the back. The wagon drove up and down every
road in the campground, picking up and dropping off Little Kidlets and
giving them a Gosh-Darn-Honest-To-Goodness Hay Ride! I can't wait to
see what tomorrow brings!
Back in Bar Harbor (an 8-mile drive) we drove around trying to find
Mama DeMatteo's where we had booked our dinner reservation a few short
hours ago. We COULD NOT find the restaurant! Bar Harbor is the teeniest of
towns too, so it was quite embarrassing when DT dropped me off 15 minutes
late to claim our table, while he circled the Village Green for a parking
spot. Yesterday Bar Harbor was a Ghost Town and today - the first day of the
Official Tourist Season - it was a bustling Metropolis! It is Saturday - we
eat Italian!!! Mama's was packed, but our reservation still held and we were
seated immediately. It was a very good restaurant, with all my favorite
things on the menu - Caprese and all sorts of vegetarian pastas. They also
had my Poison Of Choice, Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio.
We started our meal at Mama DeMatteo's with Olive Tapenade, served on
crostini. Though a bit salty, the sweet tomatoes included were enough to
please our palate. The restaurant also brought us a small serving of garlic
foccacia and a dish of baba ganoush (Mediterranean eggplant spread). I had
my usual Caprese and DT had his usual Caesar. For entrees, I tried their
Chicken Piccata - it was wonderful, served over linguini, and incredibly
tender with the perfect amount of lemon and capers. DT tried the Mussels
with pasta and Marinara Sauce. He figured at $9, it would be more like an
appetizer portion, but it would have fed a family of 4. I am not kidding,
there were about 16 mussels on his plate... er, excuse me, platter! Very
delicious and so pretty! We recommend Mama DeMatteo's.
RV Park:
Mt. Desert Narrows Campground
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