kjoyce4I’ve decided to combine these two days into one post, since most of day 3 was spent in the car, driving across the middle of Maine. I’m used to New England states being small enough to cover in a couple hours, but I slowly learned that what looks like a small distance on the map, takes twice as long to travel across.
Don’t get me wrong, Maine was beautiful, and the sights I got to see were worth the drive, but boy was I tired.
After a five hour cruise from Denmark, ME to Lebuc, Chloe and I stopped at the easternmost point in the United States. Quoddy Head State Park was pretty much empty, save half a dozen other people, so we explored the rocky beach and Oceanside pine trees all by ourselves.
We got so close to Canada, my phone changed time zones, and I had to text my sister to see what time it was. But the view was amazing, full of cliffs. The kind you see on postcards and travel advertisements.
Next we headed down the coast towards Acadia National Park. The only hotel I could book on my budget in Bar Harbor didn’t allow dogs, so Chloe spent a couple days hanging out with a Rover sitter and her dog. I thought she’d be happy to have a break, but judging by the amount of time she spent sleeping on the car ride home, I think she spent most of her time playing.
After dropping her off, I made my way to Bar Harbor as the sun set, and found that between Covid and the off season, the downtown was fairly empty. So I got some pizza and settled in for the night.
I’ve never considered myself a morning person, but I am an early riser. Even when I was little, I would be the first person in the house out of bed. This trip, I woke up at 4am pretty much every day. I guess that’s what happens when you stop working early mornings in the winter. But the day I got up at 4:30 to watch the sunrise, I wished I could get a couple more hours of sleep.
I got out of bed anyway, and got ready for my first sunrise hike. Twenty minutes later I was at the trailhead for Cadillac Mountain, and even though I only gave myself an hour to get to the top, I was the only car there. So I put on my hiking shoes, looked around and decided that it was a better idea to drive to the top. It was cold and I hate the dark.
Driving to the top ended up being the right move. I got there early, scouted out the perfect spot and had time to take plenty of pictures as the first light broke.
I went back to my hotel room to change and warm up, before heading out for the day, but by the time I was done getting ready, the weather had turned and it was gloomy, windy and most of the mountains were clouded in. So I wandered around the park, then wandered around town, and eventually made my way to McDonalds for a gourmet lunch (none of the restaurants on the island were open). It was honestly nice to finally have a relaxing day.
I did a little more lighthouse scouting before calling it a day, and headed back to my hotel room, ready for one last day on the road.
