It’s
so nice to be on vacation and not have to set a clock. Too bad that as our bodies get into their
natural sync, I find it nearly impossible to sleep in unless I’m dead tired or
sick. I was wide awake at 7:30am which
taking into consideration the change to Eastern Daylight Time, that’s my normal
wake-up time at home. I enjoyed a bowl
of Rice Krispies with banana slices
It
wasn’t long before I was in Maine, driving up the coastal route along US
1. For this portion of my journey, I
stayed on the “no highways” navigation routing.
I wanted to take in each and every little town and fishing village along
the coast. I stopped in at the Maine
Welcome Center to use the restroom and see what tourist info I might need to
pick up. With the biological needs taken
care of, I was off for Portland. I
didn’t really any purpose to visiting other than to just see it. I drove down through the downtown and harbor
area.
There
were a lot of people milling around enjoying yet another picture perfect
weather day. The city looked like a fun
place to stay and explore, especially if you like brew pubs and seafood
restaurants. For me, however, it would have to be a drive-through visit if I
was going to make Bar Harbor by nightfall.
I
did however; find myself distracted at the marina where there was an artist’s
exhibit called “Unpacked” was on display.
Andy Rosen’s exhibit on the wharf is intended to bring notice to the
destruction of natural communities by humans.
Heading
on north I passed by a couple of candlepin bowling centers. Being before noon, neither was open, but I
did stop to take photos of the buildings.
I especially loved the mural painting on the front of this center. With photos taken, my next stop would be the
Maine Maritime Museum located in
Bath. Originally planned for my return
trip to do their lighthouse boat tour, I thought I should stop now and get my US Lighthouse
Society passport stamped in case the weather prevents the boat tour in a couple
of weeks.
For
this same weather concern, I decided to do yet another schedule change and stop
at the Owl’s Head Lighthouse and Interpretive Center to check out that
lighthouse and get the lighthouse stamps available there. I got in and out just in time, as a large
motor coach with cruise tour folks pulled into the parking lot. I enjoyed my lunch with a lovely view of the
ocean.
After
lunch, I continued my northerly trek with a goal of arriving to my cottage in
Bar Harbor by 6pm. Unfortunately, more
stops along the way had me arriving closer to 7pm. One such stop, perhaps my most engaging of
the day was at Oakland Park Bowling, a cute 18 lane candlepin house. It was here that I learned about candlepin
bowling from Casie, a delightful 20-something working. She told me how she had just taken up the game
a year or two ago. Happy to share with
me, she got her “bowling bag” out of her locker, sharing with me her four
Boston Bruin hockey puck balls.
My
overnight accommodations for my two nights in the area were booked at the Open
Hearth Inn in Trenton, just minutes from Bar Harbor and the entrance to Acadia
National Park. I felt lucky to find the
cottage style lodging via Hotels.com for $65/night back in the early spring. When I inquired about adding another night in
case I needed more time in the area, I was told they were already booked
solid. I also learned that the current
rate for my unit was $80/night, once again proving that planning and booking ahead
can save you some bucks. My cottage was
perfect for just me as a single traveler.
Had David been with me, it would have been crowded both in terms of the
bed (it was just a double) and the lack of seating or a table. But again, for me, it was fine.
Once
I got checked in and got my stuff unloaded into my room, it was time to go
scope out a spot to view and hopefully photograph the much anticipated full eclipse
of the blood moon. My host at the
cottage suggested heading up to Cadillac Mountain inside the park. Since it was already dark and the park roads
are narrow and winding, I opted for something at a lower elevation inside the
park. I found an eastern view lookout
about a third of the way up the face of the mountain.
When
I pulled in there was a small group of folks from Georgia. They were regular vacationers to the area, and
were very fun to spend the evening with.
There was also a local gentleman who joined us, commenting about how
crowded it was at the top. We were all
in awe as the eclipse began. It was
chilly and very windy! Even with a tripod,
my photos turned out marginal at best.
Simply too much shake at the slower speed that my equipment
operates. That said, it was nice to be
able to share the view through my camera with them, as their iPads and cell
phones were unable to capture any of the images seen with the naked eye. I promised to send them some of my photos
when I get home. In the meantime, here
is one of the better images I was able to capture from the evening’s show
in the sky.
As
the full moon became fully shadowed by the earth, darkness fell over Bar
Harbor, the crystal clear skies provided a second stellar show of stars and
constellations. For the first time in my
life, I could actually see the Milky Way by naked eye. Truly stunning!
Calling
it a night as the total eclipse occurred, I was back to my cottage around
11pm. I was cold with stiff knees; tired
and ready for bed. For the day, I logged
420 miles, four bowling centers and countless new friends!
No comments:
Post a Comment