Maine: Friends, Foliage & some Acadia! 🦞
Into our 45th state of our Quest for 48! Vince’s parents lived in northern Maine for a while but Vince and Michele only ever made it up once, about 20 years ago. Vince’s second trip up was to help move his Mom and Dad down to Charlotte, and the kids have never been to Maine, so we are in some familiar yet unfamiliar territory but visiting a few known spots 🤔 This also marks the “4th corner” of the US! We’ve dipped our toes in the ocean at the tip of Florida, California, Washington and now Maine! We love the beach, no matter where it is 😊😎
Bangor is our first stop and we were blessed to connect with our former Dean of Students at Palm Beach Atlantic, Mike. Mike and Mary Ann (last week) were our leaders at PBA and built a great team that we have truly enjoyed reconnecting with throughout this trip. Its been a few decades so Mike’s effort to drive down and see us from their Dover-Foxcroft BnB, Freedom House was much appreciated. If you’re ever in Maine for some foliage peeping, snowmobiling or exploring all that is Maine, give them a shout!
We also reconnected with Gail, Vince’s parent’s friends from their time in Maine but also our friends from The King’s Academy for a few years as house parents for the TKA International Program. Gail’s husband Bill was working trapping invasive beaver 🦫 but Gail and a friend joined us for some Chick-fil-A and of course a few hugs. Mike and Gail-n-Bill all have a real heart for the Lord and it was affirming to share our current searches for “God’s next step” in our lives vs what we think will work. We aren’t rookies but this season of life offers some unique open doors and others that are closed so their company and payers were welcome🙏
As an update on a closed door, the FL camp job we were heading to next month fell through. So the search for that next step and direction remains a priority as we finish up our last 3 States and head back toward the Southeast! Our spiritual GPS is recalculating so welcome some prayer for that new route to be “RV safe” but more importantly support our goal of giving the boys a healthy spot to grow and thrive while we honor God with our… all! Rough one to lose, we were really leaning into the project and joining the camp but the Lord has other plans so ears 👂 are open and prayers🙏 are up! For now we enjoy New England!
Acadia is our cover shot but first some friends!
Mike joined us for some diner and some memories. Great seeing you Mike!
With the RV in the mall parking lot we head to Chick-fil-A with Gail… not sure whey Jayden is carrying Robert but they seem to be having fun.
We were out of our gourd… or next to one… seeing Gail! Yes that is a real pumpkin and the biggest we’ve ever seen.
The Narrows across the water from Acadia on Mount Desert Island. French explorer Samuel de Champlain named this island Mount Desert Island in 1604 but its hard to see why. The historical account is that the name came from the large bald spots atop Cadillac , Sargent, Pemetic, Gorham and Beehive mountains. While we saw those rocky prominences and enjoyed a few scrambles we struggle to imagine what the island looked like when Champlain landed. Around those rocks are some pretty lush trees… maybe it was winter?
Peyton did a dumpster dive in St. Ignace and retrieved a bike for Robert. He rebuilt it into a glider to help Robert learn the alternating foot push and balance. Then he put the pedals and gears back on to help him learn to ride. Mom is testing it since Robert didn’t like falling the first ride but we’ll get him rolling more. Great job Peyton on the bike mechanics!
Can’t come to Maine and not get lobster. Vince’s folks made this a routine stop when they were down to Bar Harbor so we checked it out.
For those not familiar, these are the boils for the soon to be diner!
We weren’t in the cracking mood despite the “right of passage” for this delicacy, so we enjoyed some lobster rolls, lobster mac-n-cheese and crab cakes. It was officially the most expensive meal we have had on this trip and/or ever served on plastic trays but at least we enjoyed it… except for Jayden. He can’t get past the cracking and didn’t like the chewy texture. So much for the luxury life! Dad finished his!
Most of the first 2 days was rainy so we did some school work and Mom made some cinnamon rolls for Dad’s birthday!
A break in the weather and we were off to Mount Desert Island and Acadia National Park. Unfortunately, the government shut down limited access to Rangers and the Jr. Ranger program but the park and pretty much everything other than the Visitor Centers were open. Volunteers manned the gift shop and there were people checking Timed-Entry Passes for Cadillac Mountain.
Before we hiked we did lunch in Bar Harbor. Its truly a picturesque harbor town in Maine but full of tourist stuff.
Robert liked the Cool as a Moose store.
One of the many harbors you can stop and get some pictures at on The Loop Road.
Some color popped in here and there but the color season has been muted due to a lack of rainfall this fall. For Floridians its about 100% more than we get so we loved it!
Robert at our Narrows Too campground throwing rocks at low tide as the sunsets over our shoulders.
With an entry pass we got up to Cadillac Mountain 1529ft. Not even close to the tallest we’ve climbed on this trip but its rocky and fun to scramble! The view ain’t too bad either!
Morning was a bit cold and cloudy we enjoyed it!
The group in the middle was actually a wedding ceremony. Shortly after this picture they did their vows to the cheers of the other hikers and then they went out on a hike as a married couple :)
The Loop Drive is a one-way loop around the eastern side of the mountain and offers some scenic vistas, foliage and a few beaches to explore.
Second stop was Sandy Beach… yep its sandy but the rocky boarders and march behind the dunes offer some beautiful hiking.
The Beehive is a very popular climb behind Sandy Beach. If you zoom in on the left side of the mountain you can see a trail of hikers. Could be fun but we’re enjoying the beach and some sun as the morning clouds burned off.
In addition to some color, its Saturday so we are only a few of the many, many visitors enjoying the Acadia.
Otter Point didn’t have any Otter but we enjoyed a quick scramble and explored a few tide pools.
Otter Cove
For those keeping track, Robert’s science fair project was building a lamp and learning about electricity. Dad finally got a cutting tool and the lamp Robert designed is coming together. Peyton helped with some wiring and Dad made it “safe” and we have a working lamp. Robert is excited and planning for what his lamp shade will be. He hasn’t quite paid attention to the ± wire lesson but he did seem to grasp the concept of resistance and how heat can build up in/on a wire.
Off to complete our Quest for 48 with stops in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut!
