Today was a good day…at least it ended good.
This morning, we began having power surges; heard a pop and
smelled electrical wiring. He had to
plug into the 30 amp instead of 50 amp as it was uneven voltage (best as I can
explain it). Anyway, it blew out our
coffee pot (and hope that’s all.) We
told the office, but they didn’t seem too concerned.
After that, our neighbors left….whoopee… Let me make this
perfectly clear…Arkansas does not hold all the rednecks in the world. Massachusetts has its share for sure. They were right next to us. I thought they were gonna take out a tree
leaving. Really gouged up the dirt
around their site. They moved several
sites down.
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| At Eagle Lake/Acadia National Park ME |
Then, we left. We
took the shuttle into Bar Harbor Village Green , (met a really nice couple from
Boston while waiting on the shuttle and shared Mardi Gras information with
them—they just started Rving and want to go down to LA ); walked a couple of
blocks to Acadia Bike Rental and rented two mountain bikes (yes, we brought our
own—that story later). Then we walked
back to Village Green and took the Bicycle Shuttle up to Acadia National
Park/Eagle Lake. Throughout the park
are what is called Carriage Trails—beautiful, wide trails for walkers, bikers
and carriages and/or horses.
History: In 1901, a
group of wealthy Mount Desert Island summer residents banded toether to set
aside the land that would later become Acadia National Park. One of the park’s early benefactors was John
D. Rockefeller, Jr., the millionaire industrialist and philanthropist who later
planned and built NYC Rockefeller Center.
Rockefeller hoped the land would one day become “a real gem of the first
order among national parks.” But, in 1913, that hope was threatened by an unforeseen
menace: the arrival of the automobile
on Mount Desert Island. Rockefeller,
however, did not take this threat lying down.
Over the next 27 years, he built a system of carriage roads
crisscrossing his property, most of which he later donated to the park. Gently graded and lined with broken stone,
the “Rockefeller Roads” (as they were known) offered a refuge from the
“horseless carriage” for hikers, horseback riders and the open, horse-drawn
carriages. Linking the 45 miles of
carriage roads were a series of handsome bridges that were built with local
granite and cobblestones.
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| Bubble Lake |
We so enjoyed the bike ride! We rode for 6-7 miles around Eagle Lake with a side trip to
Bubble Lake (because it sounds like bubbles when the waves hit the rocks along
the shoreline). It was a real treat to
ride as we’ve not ridden bikes for ****
years. There was one hill….yep, had to
walk part way. It was tough. But, what goes up always comes down, so the
ride down was fantastic. Horse poop
along the way—felt like home.
After riding for over two hours, we caught the Bicycle
Shuttle back to Bar Harbor, turned in the bikes and then stopped at the Side
Street Café for nachos and drinks.
Perfect mid-afternoon snack.
Then, we walked up a block and hit the shops. HAL Maasdam (cruise ship) was in port today so there were lots of
people in town. But everyone was very
nice, polite. That goes for the
locals. Everyone speaks; everyone is
polite; everyone (even the teens) say “thank you”. We shopped for a bit and found some real bargains. Ronnie got a waterproof jacket w/hood for
$20. I found a scarf that I loved for
$10 (may go back to that store….lots of stuff)
Ran into a couple from Alabama (Auburn) and shared coaches’ stories. Lol.
Had a wonderful ice-cream waffle cone on the street and people watched
for a bit. Then we headed back up to
Village Green to wait on the shuttle back to the Campground. Once here, we jumped in the truck and, alas,
had to make a trip to Walmart for a new coffee pot. 
It was a really good day.
We got to see Acadia away from the cars and tour buses. Although, we took the Park Loop Road last
night and got some good views of the Atlantic Ocean and the rugged Maine
coastline. Today was a calming day.
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| Bar Harbor |
The Bike Story: We
borrowed our daughter and son-in-law’s mountain bikes to bring with us. Rob’s (Ronnie’s) is great. He bought a new cushy seat for it, but it
rides great. I immediately wrecked on
Dana’s (this was at home) and felt like it was too tall for my short legs. So without really giving it a trial, I went
down to WM and bought a cheap 24” bike.
Rode it a bit at home and, as our road is hilly, didn’t think much when
I huffed and puffed on it. However, the
other day on the nice, flat bike trail at the other campground, it was tough to
ride. We adjusted the seat, but nothing seemed to make it pedal easy. Ronnie got on it and I got on his; my, what
a difference! His was effortless; and
he agreed that mine was hard to pedal.
That’s what I get for buying a cheapie.
Anyway, we decided the easiest thing to do would be to just rent them
for the afternoon. It was cheap and
they were super, great bikes. When I
get home, I am trying Dana’s again….wish I had it now because we plan to ride
more. Oh well, live and learn.
