There was much rejoicing when we crossed the bridge onto Mount Desert Island. I started to drool as we drove by the many seafood restaurants and fishmongers. We stopped at the visitor center to buy our park pass and were delighted to find out about a new shuttle system in the park. It meant that we wouldn’t have to drive much for the next few days.
We went directly to Blackwoods Campground to get our site. The bikes came out of the car and we were itching to ride them. We took them east on Route 3 for about a mile and then huffed our way back up the hill. It was great to get a little exercise and be out of the car!
The rest of the turkey sandwiches would be dinner before we headed to a ranger-talk on the “Sounds of Acadia.” In some ways it was geared towards kids, but we did learn some bird-calls. The ranger had a great sense of humor and kept us laughing with his one liners. My favorite was (to the tune of Hound Dog): “I ain’t nothin’ but a park ranger, on unemployment most of the time....”
The next morning we awoke to some of the sounds of Acadia and were excited to get onto the bikes. We took the shuttle to Bar Harbor, where we could take a “bike van” to the carriage roads on Eagle Lake. The signs of horse carriages were apparent and it was hard to dodge the manure piles while being tempted by the scenic vistas. We circled Eagle Lake, went back to the visitor center and Witch Hole Pond before taking the Duck Brook Road back to Bar Harbor. Once back in town, the smell of seafood was too tempting and I had to get a lobster! Lisa can’t eat shellfish but she found some haddock au gratin that had enough cheese to make her happy. If there’s one thing that Lisa likes, it’s cheese (and prairie dogs...).
After an unexpected run-in with a friend from college (Hi Bridget!), we headed south of Bar Harbor for a tour of the remains of “Old Farm,” the house of George Dorr. He was a philanthropist that was responsible for many of the land acquisitions that now make up Acadia National Park. His house was one of the smaller cottages (mansions, really...) that were built on Mount Desert. At the end of the tour we were on the rocky shore looking out towards Bar Harbor’s breakwater and Bald Porcupine Island (I’m not kidding, that’s really the name!)
In the evening we drove to Bernard - on the other tip of island to visit with Lisa’s cousin Debbie. I snacked on marinated mussels while we visited. The evening included the first stages of an arch-raising song for Port Henry for when the Champlain Bridge is finally finished. Check Youtube for a viral video coming to a computer near you!
It was a drizzly night and we awoke many times to open and close the tent windows. Our tent is marginally waterproof but needed some time to air out in the morning. It would sit on the picnic table for the remainder of the day. We took showers and then just missed the shuttle. Upon our return, we decided that we could bike to the carriage trails if we could find our way down from a bridge. Luckily, we didn’t have to jump because there was a path and we were on our way uphill, and then uphill some more.
After meandering around Jordan pond on the carriage trails, we found ourselves at the Jordan Pond House for lunch. It was popovers and jam while overlooking the pond and surrounding mountains. We scarfed roast beef sandwiches and eventually found our way back to the campground. Our legs were ready for a break after the hills on Route 3 and we lazed around for the rest of the evening.
POPOVERS!!!!
After a walk to the ocean and a campfire it was off to bed early. Our butts need a break from biking tomorrow, so we'll be going around the loop road in the shuttles.
So making popovers tomorrow!
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