Acadia National Park - Part I of III

Acadia National Park

We spent the month of July at Narrows Too in Trenton, ME.  This was a return visit for us (we were here 2 years prior) and were ready to “bag some peaks” (hike!) again.

This area is so beautiful and we really never tire of the views.  The rocks, the water, the trees….all of the scenery is just gorgeous.  I took waaaay too many pictures as I  really enjoy capturing the beauty here.   The hiking is world class….very challenging but also very rewarding. We repeated some hikes we did 2 years ago but also explored some new areas.  There is not too much wildlife here but we did manage to see a few deer and were delighted when we saw loons on Hadlock Pond.  There were 2 adults and 2 juveniles.  The adults were teaching the juveniles how to fish.  Of course, this is when I didn’t have my camera!  The only downside to the area this time of year are the black flies. Seems they like me!

It’s nice when we are able to share our experiences with friends and family.  July was quite busy from this standpoint and we were able to enjoy the company of Gin, Syl, Bill, Nancy, Doug, Darlene, Sharon, David, Peg, Michelle, Gail, Rick, Tim and Ann.  Not everyone was here at the same time and we got to see some people longer than others.

In addition to hiking, we enjoyed many campfires, rode bikes, chilled with friends, celebrated birthdays, and played games (I taught Molkkey to Nancy and Sharon!).  We also had several combined meals together and Dan smoked for the group a few times.  We had picnic lunches (when hiking and not!) and spent plenty of time escaping the mass crowds.  We picked blueberries (two pies made; bunches of blueberries in the freezer) and enjoyed lobster.  It’s a good thing that we are staying so active.

Here’s the month in pictures….broken up into three blog posts!  And, the pictures are in no particular order as this would have been too much to keep track of! :-)  We had a few photographers in the group and we shared pictures so I can not claim all of these as ones that I have taken.

David, Sharon, Syl, Bill, Nancy, Darlene, Doug, Me, and Dan

Dan on top of the world!

Enjoying a quiet moment

Sometimes you have to crawl like a turtle!

Beautiful lunch spot

Boulder hiking

Syl on Razorback

My fear of heights has gotten better...but Syl stays close by!

Crazy hikers

It's a long way down!

Darlene and I enjoying lunch on the rocks

Going up....and up!!!

Sharon enjoying the view

Nancy and Doug rock sliding

Walking the planks

Dan and I bagging another peak

Beautiful views

Smoked chicken and fixins - Happy 4th of July!

Bill is quite happy!

Sharon and David

Nancy on Razorback

Doug, Bill and Darlene coming off of Razorback

Bill and Nancy enjoying a quiet lunch!

Dan smokin'

Enjoying s'mores with Gin

Campfire fun

Dan and Bill

There is more than one way to hike!

Rooty trail

Baby "Bubble Rock"

Fear no more!  Bill and I pushing Bubble Rock

PUSH!!

Dan and I

Walking on the  rock face

Man - I missed Conner's Nubble!  The best blueberry pickin' place in ANP! 

Which way did Sharon and David go?

Our campfires are growing

Hiking up HUNDREDS of steps to Dorr Mountain

Group pic on summit of Dorr!
Dan, Bill, Syl, Nancy, Me, Peg, and Michelle 

Playing around

Cairns (stone trail markers) and Porcupine Islands

Yep - we just bagged that peak!

Yep - Maine is an awesome state!

Dan, Nancy, and David checking out another trail

Hiking is fun with friends!

Hey ya'll!

Girls rule!

Breathtaking

Part II and III coming soon!

A new state for us....

In late June (yes, I am that behind in keeping the blog updated!), we left the farm and headed out to continue with our summer travels.  We were meeting friends Doug and Darlene at a rest area a few miles away and would then travel together to Travelers Woods of New England in Bernardston, MA. We would also meet up with Gin and Syl there.

We had a rainy but uneventful trip and got settled in at the campground without any issues.  It is a smaller campground, quiet in terms of campground noise but, unfortunately, is right near the interstate.  The road noise was a nuisance.  Oh well - we were only going to be there 3 nights as we were enroute to Maine.

We managed to fit a lot in 3 days!  We did a few touristy things and went to the flagship store of Yankee Candle.  I like candles but was really impressed with the landscaping of the complex!

We went to the Bridge of Flowers in Shelburne Falls….

Dan, Me, Gin, Syl, Darlene, and Doug

The bridge was originally used for trolleys.  However, it was abandoned at some point and in the 1920s, turned into the Bridge of Flowers.  It was a beautiful walk on the bridge and so many flowers were in bloom.  Several of them were ones I had not seen before and so very unique!  My Mother and sister Cathy would have absolutely loved seeing this in person.

Never a dull moment!

While we were in Shelburne Falls, we also went to see the Glacial Potholes.  The potholes are granite and made during the Glacial Age.  Their sizes range from 6 inches to 39 feet in diameter!  The 39 ft pothole is the largest in the world.

It was a pretty neat sight to see.

We found a really neat rail trail close by and decided to check it out one day.   The Norwottuck Trail is  a 20 mile round-trip ride that is newly paved.  We agreed that it is one, if not the best, rail trail we have been on.  The trail started off by crossing the Connecticut River.  It was one mighty long bridge!

Syl on the bridge

Love this picture!

Dan and I

Doug and Dan

This looked "moosey"!

Nice farmland

Doug and Darlene

Great bike path!

Now it was time to head further north!

Fun at the farm!

I knew that once we left the farm in late June, I would get waaaaay behind in keeping the blog updated!

This year, we are splitting up our time at the farm spending a few weeks visiting before Maine and will then spend some time at the farm after Maine.    And boy were we busy!

We shared a few meals including a big rib/chicken smoke, a hotdog/hamburger cookout and a birthday celebration for Dan‘s Mom.

Doug C Dan (hidden), Timmy, Tim, and Doug E

Colleen, Pauline, Jessie, and Ann

We saw and played with great-nephews Hunter, Caden, Landon and Donovan.  

Caden

Hunter

Donovan and Landon - they move to quick to get a good picture!

Dan helped his Mom with some projects she had on her “Sonny-do” list.  He also trimmed some of the apple trees in the orchard.  (This wood, as well as some cherry wood that our friend Doug gave him, has been cut, debarked and bagged to dry for future smoking endeavors!)  Doug also gave us a grand tour of the new animals at his family farm…..there were plenty of kittens, some cute little piglets (boy is Momma pig protective of her babies - just ask Dan!), some lambs (so cute - they ate out of my hand!), and of course the calves.  We ran errands, went rummage-saling (me; not Dan!), worked on quilt projects (again, me; not Dan!), and worked on a few projects for the RV.  Dan also did some rig maintenance including installing new shocks and  improved our site at the farm by adding some blocking to help with leveling.

Our site at the farm - love it!

We now have a new headboard….the old one was quite heavy and this one is quite light!

Easy to make!  And...cheap!

We also purchased some materials to make a backsplash for the cook top in our kitchen.  That will be a rainy day project.

We enjoyed goodies from Pauline’s garden and I managed to get 30 cups of rhubarb put up for future use.  I also made some rhubarb sauce.  She also has some great lettuces that were ready for the picking as well as some swiss chard.  Yum!

We saw some beautiful sunsets…..

And we had nightly visitors as well…..

 
I would go out each night around 9pm and see two red fox playing, jumping around catching bugs. One was very skittish of me and would run when he spotted me. The other would sit down and just stare at me.  They are so cute!  Sure hope they are around when we get back to the farm in mid-August.

It sure is a tranquil place to be!