My son Isaac got married in Maine last week. The whole family and many friends gathered in Maine to celebrate. I decided to go a week early and camp in Acadia National Park on Mt. Desert Island. This is one of the "blue days" and I spent the day combing the beaches and exploring rocky outcrops.
It rained on and off during my visit, with the highlight being a rip roaring thunder storm the night David and Lindsay and Eva came up to camp with me. Clouds are one of my favorite things, so the rain didn't really bother me; well maybe a little bit.
For the first few days, I explored the park by myself, and spent one beautiful afternoon here at Jordan Pond. Flowers were blooming all over the place. A beautiful walking trail led through the woods, past a stream and around the pond.
The park has 45 miles of historic carriage roads that are open for hiking, biking and horse drawn carriages. I nearly got run over there was so much activity!
On my way down to Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, I stopped along the way and took several short hikes with views of the ocean, waterways, trees and clouds. The rocky beach here is also littered with shells, hundreds of little tiny shells everywhere.
I was so happy David, Lindsay and Eva came up to camp with me for three days. These young people are so brave! Rain was forecast for their entire visit, but that didn't stop them. David got the rain tarps organized while Lindsay prepared a delicious grilled chicken and vegies dinner, plus freshly made couscous; all that after being on the road all day. Eva was delighted with the tent, the dirt, the trees, the rain. She is such a happy little girl!
Lindsay and David were so good about everything; the rain, the mud, you name it, they just kept smiling! It made me so happy to have them with me.
One morning we explored Sand Beach in the fog; it was eerily beautiful with wisps of fog weaving in and out of the pine trees.
Throughout the island, Rockefeller not only had the carriage roads built but also commissioned hundreds of masons to build stone bridges with arches, and tunnels. Each bridge is a work of art, completely made of hand hewn stoned cut from the island. Each stone took one man an entire day to cut; you can see why it took 25 years to complete the project.
My son David, with little Eva on his back. It wasn't all that long ago, he was on my back in a little pack that was probably not as high tech as his, but the same nonetheless. Some things never change.
Major David James Little on his mama's back!
My beautiful kids, David and Lindsay with my granddaughter Eva. Nothing stops that little one.
After we explored the foggy beach, David found a hiking trail that took us through the trees up to an overlook of the ocean. So very pretty.
Little Eva walking down the trail!
Me, Lindsay and Eva at the top of the foggy mountain.
Not twenty minutes after standing in the fog, the trail took us out to an overlook of Sand Beach. By then the fog had somewhat lifted giving us a spectacular view of the beach and the Beehive; that bump in the middle rises to 520 feet.
Little Hunters Beach is a gorgeous rocky alcove, where the sand is completely covered in well worn rocks. Oh how my fingers itched to collect, but the big fat sign at the top of the stairs said, "Do not take the rocks off the beach." Doesn't get much clearer that that. I ended up taking one little rock but by the time I got to the top of the stairs I was ridden with guilt and had to chuck it back down the hill into the ocean.
Maine is very romantic; not in the Hawaiian islands kind of way, but in a rough, natural, challenging way. I loved it.
Looking down into the cove of Little Hunters Beach.
Before the kids joined me, I spent time down on the southwestern tip of the island. After visiting Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse below, I stopped at Cap'n Nemos for the best lobster chowder. The place was filled with locals drinking beer and watching the football game. I enjoyed sipping my chowder and talking with people.
The Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse; quite the sight to behold.
Part of the romance; cloudy skies, rocky harbors, sailboats drifting by, the hint of a storm coming.
I almost leaned over a little too far to get this picture and got quite a fright. Then I couldn't figure out how to gracefully get off the rocks I had climbed onto, without screaming like a girl. I took several deep breaths, then slowly crab crawled out of there.
Ponds always excite me; so much color, rhythm, balance and light.