Saturday, July 27, 2013

Thuya Gardens

Dan and I had happened upon Thuya Gardens one day when we were out on a scooter ride.  We knew we needed to come back and investigate with our friends.  We set out one day with Gin, Syl, and Pam.

Thuya Gardens is a wonderful place to visit while in Northeast Harbor and gets you away from the hustle and bustle of Bar Harbor.  I took a zillion pictures of the flowers and whittled it down to these favorites....
A very cool tree outside of the gardens

One of the doors you see when you enter the gardens

And now for the flowers....











It was a great day at Thuya Gardens!

Friday, July 26, 2013

More hiking at Acadia....

So by now we have learned a few things when we hike.....
  1. We will have fun!!
  2. We start out with a hike plan but deviate from said plan quite a bit!
  3. We typically hike further than originally intended.
  4. We will pick blueberries. (and carry baggies with us whenever we set out!)
  5. We do challenge ourselves. 
  6. Eating lunch at 10:00 am is quite alright!
  7. Butt hiking is a "perfecable" method of hiking.  (perfecable is a combination of perfect and acceptable!)
  8. We are rewarded with views that make the climbs worth it!
  9. The three words we say most often are "cool", "wow", and "amazing"!!
  10. Some of us like going up better; some of us like going down better; some of us don't like heights.  But, we all work together and help each other out when needed.  That's what friends are for!!  
The past few days, we have done a few more hikes including Gorham Mountain (twice!), Cadillac Cliffs, Head Path, Dorr Mountain, The Bowl, and Champlain Mountain.  

Cool rocks on Cadillac Cliffs trail
View on our way up to Gorham Mountain
Not too much wildlife on the trails but we do see the occasional bird or squirrel!.
Because I can!!!
Over looking Sand Beach from the Great Head Trail 

Maine coast.....so cool and amazing!
The color of the skies against the evergreens and rocks is a sight to see.  
Fog clouds rolling in the distance
Looking down from going up Dorr Mountain

Dan peeking out of the crevice

Silly Syl!

Bill, Sherry, and I in the crevice

Hiking buddies

Dan trying to convince Bill to take the Ladder Trail!

Going up the granite 

Yep - we still need to go up!!

Whew - almost there!

Happy Hikers - Dorr Mountain summit
Syl, Dan, David, Sherry, Bill, and I

Hooked on hiking!
Dorr Mountain

View from Dorr Mountain
Perfect spot for a rest!

I feel like I am on top of the world!

"The Bowl"....a pond near Beehive, Gorham, and Champlain Mountains

Beautiful blue sky..nope, we are not at the top of Champlain yet!

Dorr Mountain in the foreground; Cadillac Mountain in the background

Awesome views

Syl, Bill and Nancy taking in the views

Dan, Bill and Syl reviewing where we are going

Wow

Not so much!  Bill and I will not be going on the Precipice Trail!
We did not get a picture of us at the summit of Champlain Mountain.  The sign indicating the summit was missing and there were quite a few people (and 3 dogs!) up there.  So...we started our descent down.
When we stopped to pick blueberries, Bill struck up a conversation with a woman who was on her way up the Beechcroft Trail.  She said she had to turn around from going down because the trail was too close to the cliff/ledge and she had a fear of heights.  I could hear her and Bill talk but really wasn't paying them too much attention as I was too busy picking blueberries.  Down we go.....

There were several places that I butt hiked.  Sometimes you just got to do what you got to do! Most of the pictures that I take just don't seem to do the grade that we are climbing or descending justice.  This one seems to do a good job....

That's Syl in the right hand side of the picture and Dan and Bill below.  There was a series of switchbacks that we had to maneuver to get down to the bottom of the mountain.  

Hiking at Acadia is just fantastic!!

Life is good!

Lobstah!!

Friends Karen and Al are work-camping at one of the campgrounds near by.  They had invited us over for a lobster boil.  Yum!  One of their friends knew a lobsterman and was able to get us some of these tasty guys fresh off the boat!

Mmmmm!
Syl and Al talking lobster!
Everybody had placed their order for the quantity of lobsters they wanted!  Dan and I ordered 3.  :-)
Our lobster cook with David (in ball cap) in the background.
Lobsters are done and being prepared for us.
 
Dig in!
Pam, David, Gin and Syl enjoying their lobsters. 
We had a great time with our friends and got our fill of lobster!  Thanks Karen and Al for a fun evening!