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It was a great trip this year. Not as long or extensive as last year, but all in all, quite the adventure. I was a bit apprehensive about carrying three passengers and baggage and equipment in the car, but everything worked out well and everyone had a great time.
Our host in Bar Harbor, whom I had never met before, even though I’ve rented this house many times, was in residence this year, and he also brought along his absolutely cool dog named Harry. Harry is just the coolest dog and kept me company and fascinated on several occasions. What a cool pup.
So the trip began with a traverse of the southern shore of Lake Erie, visiting any lighthouse that was “monumental” in my estimation. As in, leaving out the generic and more modern and industrial looking lites and concentrating on the more aesthetically pleasing structures along the way. You can read about it and see the images in the first post.
Watkins Glen was our second destination. I’m amazed at how much activity we managed to squeeze in along the way. I was actually wondering if we would make our deadline for arrival in Portland, but everything worked out just fine. Here’s the post about Watkins Glen.
The drive to Portland was just as frustrating as any of the previous years on this route. Always problems in Massachusetts, but we muddled through and made our destination just on time. We spent two nights in Portland and we were rewarded, this year, with some very heavy seas at the shore. Great photography this year, with rather large crashing waves. See the Portland post here.
Arriving in Bar Harbor, everyone was concerned about the weather forecast, as a nor’easter was in the works. However, we did not suffer any real problems from this weather, though, there were some outages around us and we had to take some detours because of fallen trees and wires on occasion. But, mostly, it was not very apparent that it was a problem, until we made our way to Bass Harbor. Even the lobster boats were beached because there was no electricity to process the catch. An old salt I met on one of the piers opined that it was good to have a break once in awhile to get all the maintenance and repairs all caught up. He was fixing traps when I spoke to him.
So, all the restaurants that we usually patronize in Bass Harbor, were closed. We found a decent place in Southwest Harbor on the way home and it was fine. Good food and service and we were actually the very last group for them to serve for the year. I was happy that we arrived just in time to be seated.
We were also fortunate to be able to photograph the Bass Harbor Lighthouse this year. Unlike recent years, we were the first into the parking lot and the rocks were vacant, so we had our pick of photo spots. I couldn’t believe we actually owned this place for a change, because, it’s normally a zoo and very dangerous, even without the multitude of photogs.
As usual, the view from the back deck of our rental never disappoints. This is one of several sunsets that we appreciated from the back deck of our wonderful accommodations.
Additional entertainment was provided by numerous fowl and other sea creatures, such as otter and seal. All putting on a show for us at morning coffee sitting on the back deck.
The loop road wasn’t too crowded this year and the wave action was excellent, and, though I could have appreciated something even more intense, it was a welcome site. I’m recalling several other trips when the ocean resembled a lake with almost zero turbulence. We visited twice.
As you can see from the Otter Cove shot, the colors were brilliant and full. Jordan Pond was the same. Simply outstanding.
Schooner Head Overlook is a place I had been before, but it was raining then so I didn’t do any hiking there. This time we went down the trail to the shore. It was impressive. This shot will give you some idea how the surf was. The house is four stories tall and sits at least 60′ above the water line.
We also visited the Schoodic Peninsula area, which is also part of the park. Saw more loons, the Winter Harbor Lighthouse, had lunch along the beach, and stopped in at Wonsqueak Harbor and Bunker’s Wharf as well, followed by a lobster dinner at the house.
On the way home we stopped through the White Mountains and caught a couple of waterfalls. However, we couldn’t hang around there for long, as there was no room at the inn. I should have known better. This is not the first time I have not been able to find accommodations anywhere in the area. Conway, Lincoln, Gorham, and Jackson get all booked up for fall color. Next time, I’m going to plan to stay here for a few days and get reservations in advance, because it’s a really great area with lots to see and when the color is on, it’s plain gorgeous. We settled for a short hike to a couple waterfalls, and then on our way; down into Brattleboro, VT. From there, it was on to a few covered bridges and the road home. See a post about all the covered bridges we saw, both there and back.
