Dragonfly Boating: Acadia National Park, Maine

Thursday, May 21: Kathleen, Danielle, Jay and I left Boston at 9:15 AM, fought our way through the heavy city traffic and drove three hours north to Augusta, ME. Fun facts: Maine is the only U.S. state with a one-syllable name and the only state that borders exactly one other state (New Hampshire). Bonus Question 1: Which two states border the most other states? Hint: They touch each other (answer at end of post).

Augusta (population 19,000) is the easternmost state capital and the third smallest capital city. Bonus Question 2: Which two state capitals are smaller? (answers also at end of post). Portland was Maine’s first capital city, but was considered too far south, and Augusta replaced it in 1827. The attractive statehouse was constructed of locally-quarried granite, hauled here by teams of oxen. After touring the building, which was mostly empty, we ate a picnic lunch in the 20-acre Capitol Park across the street on a sunny but cool and windy day. Map link: Augusta, ME

Number 32 on my state capitol quest!

Next we drove two more hours to Trenton, ME, arriving around 4:00 PM. Jay and I went grocery shopping, we ate dinner at our Airbnb, and spent a quiet night in. Our rental is on the west bank of the Jordan River, a tidal estuary which flows into Mt. Desert Narrows and the Atlantic Ocean. The tidal range here is a whopping 11 feet, big enough that you can see the moving water level in real time during the roughly six-hour cycle. The photos below show the change in the shoreline from high to low tide. Map link: Trenton, ME

At low tide you can walk out to the island behind
the trees on the right

Friday, May 22: We awoke to a beautiful, chilly morning, with blue skies, a moderate northwest wind and 47F outside; cool enough to need our bedroom space heaters. At 8:45 AM, we drove about 30 minutes to Acadia National Park, the first American national park east of the Mississippi River. Established in 1916 and renamed Acadia in 1929, the park encompasses about half of Mt. Desert Island plus many smaller islands and is one of the top 10 visited national parks in the country. The natural beauty, variety of activities and proximity to big population centers are the main reasons for Acadia’s popularity and the park does not disappoint. Its mountains, valleys, beaches, headlands, woodlands, lakes, streams, ponds, ocean vistas, hiking trails, and a 45-mile network of historic carriage roads draw more than 4 million visitors annually. Map link: Acadia National Park

Our first stop was Sand Beach and a hike up to Great Head, once the summer estate of Louisa and Herbert Satterlee, who received the land as a wedding gift from Louisa’s father, J.P. Morgan. We took in the spectacular views of the nearby islands and coastline from the summit, then descended to Sand Beach and ate lunch at the trailhead. Next we took the Ocean Path south to Thunder Hole, a natural blow hole, although it was low tide and there was no thunder. We continued on to Otter Point Overlook before we pooped out, got our car and drove back to Trenton. After showers and a little recovery time, Danielle and Kathleen drove to nearby Ellsworth and an L.L. Bean outlet store, then we all went to dinner in Bar Harbor, enjoying excellent Mexican food outdoors at Salsa Verde Grill, followed by ice cream on the Village Green in chilly 50-degree weather.

Thunder Hole

Saturday, May 23: Kathleen and I were up before 6:00 AM on another clear, cool day. We went through our morning routines (coffee/tea, Wordle, Waffle, crossword, etc.), then read and watched the tide go out, a mesmerizing and peaceful experience that became a new ritual. After breakfast, the four of us drove to Seal Harbor, where we rented bicycles and rode into Acadia National Park to ride on the carriage roads. Built for horse and buggy riding between 1913 and 1940 by philanthropist John D. Rockefeller, Jr., one of five children and the only son of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller, Sr., the 45 miles of crushed stone trails are an enjoyable and popular way to see the park’s interior. Only bikes, pedestrians and horses are allowed, motorized vehicles are forbidden, and the system is very well marked. We completed the 9-mile Jordan Pond Loop, which was hilly and challenging in places, but mostly fun. After our ride, we ate a picnic lunch at the crowded Jordan Pond House, a teahouse and restaurant serving vacationers since the 1870s. We returned our rental bikes, then hiked part of the way around Eagle Lake, a beautiful, unspoiled lake under the shadow of 1,530-foot Cadillac Mountain, the highest point in the park and one of the tallest peaks on the Atlantic seaboard.

We stopped for groceries on the way back to Trenton, then ate in again. Our dinner preparation was interrupted by a large red fox hunting in the meadow behind the house and we all gathered around the kitchen window completely captivated. After our meal, we played Azul, a favorite board game, then watched Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Blake Edward’s 1961 hit movie based on Truman Capote’s novella. The movie was critically acclaimed and a commercial success, but out of the all-star cast of Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard, Patricia Neal, Mickey Rooney and Buddy Ebsen, only Hepburn was nominated for an Oscar. Composer Henry Mancini won an Academy Award for Best Musical Score and his classic song “Moon River,” performed by Hepburn, won the Oscar for Best Original Song as well as a Grammy for Song of the Year.

Eagle Lake

Carriage roads

Jay and Tony at Jordan Pond

Sunday, May 24: We had a slow morning, and passed the time watching the tide and the birds—in less than three days we’ve counted more than 20 different species on the property. We drove to Bar Harbor and walked along the Shore Path, a public thoroughfare that crosses private land, then continued across the namesake “bar” of Bar Harbor. The rock and gravel strip out to Bar Island, which is part of Acadia National Park, uncovers at low tide and is a popular day hike. Hundreds of others had the same idea and the bar and island trails were very busy. On the island there are warning signs to mind the tide tables so you don't get trapped on the uninhabited island; there’s also a phone number for a water taxi if you want a rescue, or you can just wait the 6+ hours until the next low tide. After the walk back to town, we ate lunch at Side Street Cafe, then shopped at the Village Green Craft Fair before driving to Southwest Harbor, in a less-busy section of the park. There we hiked the Flying Mountain and Valley Cove Trails, seeing only three other groups on the trail. We returned to our Airbnb, made dinner, played Code Names, another favorite game, then read until bedtime. Map link: Bar Harbor and Bar Island, ME

The Shore Path

Balancing Rock

The bar at low tide. The dark line of seaweed at
Danielle’s feet is the high tide line,

Village Green Craft Fair

Lobstah pawts in Bah Hahbah

Monday, May 25 (Memorial Day): We woke up to light rain, which turned to steady rain for the first half of our drive back to Boston. Rather than take the interstate, we traveled on the more scenic U.S. Route 1, which runs 2,370 miles from Fort Kent, ME, on the Canadian border to Key West, FL, and connects most of the major cities on the East Coast. We stopped for coffee in Rockland and lunch in Portland, where the rain stopped and the skies cleared, allowing us to stretch our legs in a nearby city park after eating. Traffic wasn’t bad as we approached Boston, and we returned to Danielle and Jay’s around 4:30 PM. After resting and unpacking, we ate dinner, watched Jeopardy and Taskmaster on television, then read until bed.