Day 3
Sunday, October 10, 2021
While yesterday seemed to be all about forts, today could be considered all about lighthouses, though it really wasn’t planned that way.
After an uninspiring breakfast at the Comfort Inn, I decided to revisit the two lighthouses at Cape Elizabeth. It turns out, I shouldn’t have made the right turn into the state park after all. Instead, I should have kept going. That would bring me to a small park along Dyer Cove.
Seriously, it’s almost as it the Maine Department of Tourism puts these traps out at tourist spots.
Adjacent to the beach, the seemingly inevitable lobster restaurant...
The twin lighthouses here were built under the directive of President John Quincy Adams in 1828. The western light was shutdown in 1974.
This is as close as you can get to the eastern one. It's now a private residence.
The rest of the day was simply a drive up Route 1 to Acadia National Park. I had covered a lot of this ground on my previous trip ten years ago. Some of the memories were still pretty fresh.
Case in point, the town of Bath. There’s a bridge over the Kennebec River. It’s nothing special. But, adjacent to it is the old Carlton Lift Bridge, the ramps to it long removed. I remember the frustration of trying to find a spot that wasn’t private property to shoot it.
A few miles north is the three block downtown of Wiscasset. On my last visit, I grabbed a Lobster Roll at Reds Eats, a small place on a corner, about half the size of a standard food truck. When I drove past, there were eight people lined up, and they hadn’t opened yet.
Driving through a random town, I pulled into a convenient bank parking lot. It goes back to one of my roadtrip rules, if you see something out of the corner of the eye, go back.
My first scheduled stop of the day was the Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse. I visited on my last trip, but never made it to the lighthouse. It was high tide on a windy day. Waves were splashing over one side, and about a quarter of the breakwater was submerged. The tide was going out, and you could see the rocks being slowly exposed.
This time, it was low tide. The lighthouse is 7/8th of a mile from the shore, along the rocky, uneven breakwater. It’s an easy walk out, and you can maintain your usual walking pace. You just have to really watch where you’re going. Yes, that's the lighthouse in the distance towards the right of the frame.
Lunch was in the town of Camden at the Dogfish Brewing Company. Decent lunch and pretty good IPA. Great view!
Walking back to the car...
I had no intention of stopping in Camden, but I saw this sign and had to pull off. It's a short trail to an overlook for the Curtis Island Lighthouse.
Route 1 would eventually bring me through Stockton Springs and the Penobscot Narrows. This bridge was pretty new on my last visit, and I went up to the observation area atop the nearest tower.
Next to it was the old bridge. The state wanted it gone. So, they made an offer to salvage companies. The state wouldn’t pay them, but they would keep all the proceeds from selling the steel. All that’s left are a few stanchions.
I was a little behind schedule at this point, so I blew off a few things on my list for the day and drove on towards Acadia National Park. I knew I had about an hour until sunset, so I tried to visit the Bass Bay Lighthouse. I know it’s a popular spot and the parking lot is small. But, after twenty-five minutes of just sitting, I simply gave up.
It’s probably a good thing. Driving back through Bass Bay, I saw this...
I came to Bar Harbor ten years ago to spend two days hiking around Acadia National Park. It rained steadily both days. Ever since, I’ve wanted to come back. Due to the weather, parking was plentiful within the park. That’s changed.
Cadillac Mountain is billed as the place to see the first sunrise across America. To park for sunrise, you need a pass. To even park during the day, you need a pass and need to arrive within your half hour window. Thus, I never did make it to that section of the park.
Lodging within Bar Harbor was booked solid. So, I wound up on the other side of the park in Northeast Harbor, at a place called the Kimball Terrace Inn. When I drove out two days later, I suddenly realized I had never actually seen the place during the day time. I was always leaving early, and getting in after dark.
Coming up,
I tackle something they call the Beehive.
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