Yesterday we continued from Bath to Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park - the only National Park in the Northeast of the U.S. The whole trip took us much longer than the three hours indicated on our itinerary, and even with a very early start, we weren't able to stop very often in the little towns on the way, with the exception of Bath. The drive was horribly slow, two-lane road, lots of red lights and slow drivers, bumpy roads and speed limits from 35 to 55 mph. Not much use for the cruise control here. It took forever to pass through all the little towns on the way which we would have loved to explore. Wasn't used to this kind of "European" driving anymore; in the U.S. West it's much more relaxing and faster.
Running late, we headed to the Acadia NP's Visitor Center first and drove the park loop and up to Cadillac Mountain (pic on top), to Sand Beach (pic below) and to Rockefeller's original gatehouse. He was the one who banned building activity on the island, where once the wealthy and famous people lived, and as a consequence part of the island became a National Park later.
The park ranger at the entrance had told us that rain is coming in and that we better hurry. She was right. It already started to sprinkle when we were driving the loop and it rained hard when we arrived to Bar Harbor, the main hub on Mount Desert Island. The park is truly beautiful and would have been perfect for some hiking and for a stay of at least two days. But we were not as lucky: Same as last time, over ten years ago, it was 1. raining and 2. time was on short supply. Wished we would once have time to explore all parts of the island and take part at a lobster or whale watching boat trip.
After a stop at the local CVB in Bar Harbor, we, fortunately, were still able to visit the Abbey Museum before it closed. It focuses on the Wabanaki, the tribes of Maine, and is highly interesting, especially because of the mixture of history and modern times. About 8.500 Wabanaki live in Maine, out of 65,000 in total. They were never removed and therefore maintained their culture and language excellently. Birch bark baskets, as still sold in the giftshop, are one unique product they always manufactured.
Our hotel, the Bluenose Inn, was in a fantastic location, up on the hill, with beautiful views towards the ocean. We got a luxurious suite with a balcony (pic) on the top floor and views would have been spectacular, if the clouds wouldn't have hung that low. Our dinner in the Lookingglass Restaurant on the hotel property was equally nice as the room and a full compensation for a skipped lunch and a long, annoying drive: We had clam chowder as an appetizer and delicious "Lazy Lobster" (a "naked" or disemboweled lobster) as an entree.
This morning we checked out Bar Harbour's main street - with lots of partly kitschy, partly nice shops, restaurants and cafés - and the waterfront in the rain at about 46 deg. F (8 deg. C) before we drove north, to Bangor (more on that tomorrow, since my eyes are crossing now). Vegetation is just starting to sprout and bloom in this northern part of the country, a cherry tree is shown below.
Keine Kommentare:
Kommentar veröffentlichen