Day in Bar Harbor, ME and evening atop Cadillac Mountain

58 degrees here near Bar Harbor, Maine this morning.

Last evening we drove to the top of Cadillac Mountain here on Mount Desert Island.   Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, at 1,530 feet (466 meters), is the highest point along the North Atlantic seaboard and the first place to view sunrise in the United States from October 7 through March 6. It is one of over 20 mountains on Mount Desert Island (MDI), Maine

 Website HERE

Sun is right behind Phyllis' head

Yes, it was a bit chilly

Sun was somewhere over the Mid-West, but just disappearing here.

We had driven over to Oceanside KOA just after 5:00 pm and had lobster.  Here the guy had just taken it out of the boiling pot and was breaking the claws.

Entertainer played guitar, and violin and sang

 Earlier in the day we had walked downtown Bar Harbor.  Upon reading some literature found that the tide was low and there is a sandbar that is exposed during low tide that you can walk over to Bar Island.

 We weren't the only people doing this.  Even tho these two pictures look like a beach, they will be under 10 feet of water at high tide.  I would guess it is just short of a half mile over and back.

After volunteering  to take photo of another couple, he took our picture on the sand bar close to Bar Island

Those tourists!  Many people were busy piling rocks -- don't know if they withstand the high tide coming in later, or not.

Getting back to the top of Cadillac Mountain, these two signs gives perspective to the islands we were looking at from the top of the mountain.  (As usual, click on the photos to enlarge them) Bar Island - the one we walked over to - is in the center of the picture just close to land.

Saw this t-shirt at a shop.  Ring a bell with any of you who feed the birds?



We are off to a guided tour of Acadia National Park this morning and then will drive to Bass Harbor on the south of this island.


Later, Lynn

At Bar Harbor, Maine

62 degrees here Sunday morning at 9 am.  We are probably as far north-east as the trailer will go.  After a time here we will turn south and west. Click photos to make larger.

Will spend time in Acadia National Park.

Saw the top of Mount Washington in clear sunshine as we drove around it.  Wish it had been that clear the morning we were up there!

Stopped in Bethel, Maine at a nice Chamber of Commerce Welcome Center where lady helped us with maps.

Stopped at couple of  roadside vebetable places.  Got corn that was not near as good as Iowa corn or even the corn we got with the Crosby's near St. Catherine, Ontario.

We were just a few minutes behind an accident that had at least 3 vehicles involved and some people apparently hurt.

Came by a Factory for New Balance shoes that had outlet store at Skowhegan, Maine.  Lots of shoes -- bought several pair.

This couple was tootling down the road and turned off at a museum.

Set up near Bar Harbor, Maine for at least 4 days, may extend.  Not getting out too early this morning.  Only drove 245 miles yesterday, but, like lots of Vermont and New Hampshire, not a quarter-mile anywhere was both level and straight.  Always climbing - maybe 500 or 800 feet - between one valley and the next.  Never going straight east-west or north-south, always trying to get over a ridge, or finding a bridge to get across a river that is at the bottom of every valley.  Was on Interstate only a short while

and even it was up-down, round-and-round.

Slept a little late this morning and will start to look around the area.  We were told there is a bus that stops here at the KOA and takes us "off the island" we are on.

 Just realized was going to post pictures from going up Mount Washington in New Hampshire.

They have about 5 engine-car trains that go up continuously during the day.  They still use one steam unit once a day.  It came up while we were on top.

Several other diesel units came up also.

We had a partly cloudy morning when we first got there, but after about a half hour the fog (a cloud) moved in.

Rather than drive the toll road to the top ($32) we elected to take the guided tour in a van ($60).

The 8 mile road raises some 4,400 feet and is very steep.  When we were getting ready to come down a 80-year old man approached our driver about getting someone to drive him back down - he didn't think he could handle the narrow road and the heights. 

Vans left as often as they got enough passengers signed up.

People in our van were from Ontario, Canada and west Pennsylvania.  One couple had been here many years ago and were taking their grandson up this time.

Our driver, Mike, has been doing this for 24 summers.  He spends winters in northern Idaho teaching skiing.

At a museum on the west side of the mountain was display about the cog train.  This shows he huge gear that rolls on the "chain" solid between the tracks.

Track workers would slide down the track sitting on this board slide to examine the track.

Yes, it says they could come down the 3 miles in 2 minutes and 45 seconds.   Normally they used the boards to slowly come down, examining the roadbed, track, etc.

Was told that the day before we were up there they had 50 mph wind gusts so was much less comfortable than when we were there.  It was in the 50's when we were on top.  Day before wind chill was in the lower 30's.

We are at the top!

 Visibility was pretty good when we first sited this steam engine on the way up.  By the time it got to the top visibility was down to 300 feet.

This marker is at the top.

All photos of the mountain trip are on my Picasa Album HERE
Later, Lynn

Day at Mt. Washington in New Hampshire

68 degrees here at Bethlehem, NH
Just a quick post to say we spent the whole day around Mt. Washington.  It is the highest mountain east of the Mississauga River and has full weather station atop.
Cleck HERE for web site.

For a fee you can drive the 8 mile road, which climbs 4,700 feet up in those 8 miles; or, you can take a tour van with driver/guide who points out a bunch of stuff on way up and down--and spend about an hour at the top.  This is what we did.  Was a little sun when we arrived at the top, but clouds moved in and we couldn't see the 150 miles you can on a good day.  We watched the cog trains come up, one with steam engine on it; toured the 3 museums and got a look at outside of the weather station.   For nearly sixty-two years, Mount Washington, New Hampshire held the world record for the fastest wind gust ever recorded on the surface of the Earth: 231 miles per hour, recorded April 12, 1934 by Mount Washington Observatory staff.  They said it had been 50 mph winds yesterday and you could hardly stand up.  No wind today, just the fog moving in and out.

After coming down we drove south to Bartlett and ate a fine crab meat casadia.  We then made a circle over to the west side of Mount Washington and spent time watching the cog trains go up.
Check their website HERE
Back at Apple Hill Campsite and will hook up early in the morning and head to Bar Harbor KOA in Maine.

Will post pictures soon.

Lynn

A day in Vermont, but tonight in New Hampshire

62 cool degrees here in the woods at our Apple Hill Campground just north of Bethlehem, New Hampshire.

We crossed the Connecticut River close to 4 pm between Vermont and New Hampshire.

Even though we drove only about 150 miles today, it was a long day.

We started the day by doing a tour of Cabot Creamery cheese factory near Cabot, Vermont.

We watched an interesting film of the history of this family held cheese factory turned into a cooperative and later became partner with large distributing company.  We weren't allowed to take pictures in the factory, but could buy cheese and yogurt at the store. Check this company out HERE and see if you can buy locally.  They manufacture tons of cheese every day here.

This cream separator was on display -- people in the group had no idea of what it was.  I do remember (as does Phyllis) cranking by hand to separate the cream from milk

After that tour we drove to Waturbury, VT to Ben & Jerry Ice Cream Factory.  Get the scoop HERE

Here again, we saw a lengthy film on how they began and their process.  We were not allowed photos in the factory, but they produce gazillions of pints of ice cream of one of some 78 flavors most every day.  Here again, we had to pay for the tour, but got a good taste of an ice cream I can't remember the name of, but had lots of stuff in it.

Then we drove to Barre, VT and past to Graniteville, VT to Rock Of Ages Quarry and Factory.  Check Website HERE

Again, a film of the over 200 year history of the quarry then a bus ride to the quarry itself.

They were lifting a 12 ton block from the quarry while we watched.  Guide said this only happens about every month or so.

This quarry has been worked since in the 1800's and they go very deep.






Settled in here in New Hampshire and plan to drive to Mt. Washington tomorrow, either drive up or go up on the cog train.  Reported today that the temperature on top was 39º and is to be 40º there tomorrow morning.  Lots of weather extremes up there -- see at website HERE
Back to this Campground tomorrow night before moving next day to Bar Harbor Maine.

Click on photos to make larger.

Later, Lynn

In Vermont!

57 degrees at 7:10 am near Marshfield, Vermont.

Left Little Wolf Pond in bright sunshine yesterday.  Had checked on Gas Buddy and the $2.90 gas in New York state changed to about $2.50 in Vermont, so got only enough to get us into that state.  We descended from the 1,600 feet above sea level at the lake to about 260 feet at Lake Champlain where we crossed on a ferry like the one at right.

 We were first one on to the ferry, but last row to leave.

As we got to the Vermont side.  With our length we got to pay $32 to use the ferry ($28 for vehicle and $4 for one passenger beside driver.

Yes, it really was the cheapest gasoline we have bought in 6 weeks.  That includes some gas bought in Canada at $3.50 per gallon (Converting the liters to gallons and Canadian money to US Currency).

We had stopped in Plattsburgh, NY where Phyllis got a hair cut at Walmart and we bought a new TV at Sam's Club.  (With the highly adjustable mount -- and much swinging from the bedroom to dining room -- the co-ax cable broke off right at the frame.  The wires are all now taped to the closest piece of the wall bracket to the TV itself.

We drove over a lot of beautiful tree-covered hills and valleys in Vermont, getting to Montpelier where we found a parking space on the street within a few blocks of the capital.  When we walked up to the front of the capital a tour guide was just starting a tour so we filled right in with him.  He gave a very interesting tour -- assuming he was telling us the truth!

Phyllis, by the flowers near the street in front of the capital.  Vermont was the 14th state to join the union, having to pay New York state $30,000 to be allowed to join the original 13.

Vermont, like many of the capitals we have visited, had a fire that burned down their 2nd capital, and the current one was built with much stone, cast iron stairs, and plaster walls (new in 1859 when the last capital built).  So they considered it relatively fire proof.

The Statue of Agriculture is atop the copper-covered dome.

 We drove just a few miles (and up hill some 600 feet) northeast of Montpelier to Morse Farm.  We had stopped here 3 years ago when on a Neihart Tour (to Prince Edward Island) and wanted to return.  I get Bur Morse's newsletter every month and enjoy his writing.

We were lucky in that Bur came up to us and we had a short visit.  I later bought his latest book in the gift shop, but he had left in his car when I inquired about having him sign it.

This is on the wall at their place - it is carved in relief with the center picture painted.

We enjoyed our visit there, was able to purchase the video that they show with Bur's dad telling a busload of people how they draw the sap from the trees and boil down the maple syrup.  We did buy a container of syrup as well as a maple ice cream cone.



We are near Martshfield, VT and today are going to visit a cheese factory at Cabot, VT, then the Ben & Jerry Ice Cream factory at Waterbury, VT, then go to granite quarry at Barre, VT before heading to Bethleham, NH for overnight.  Plan on going to top of Mt. Washington tomorrow.

Just a note --- I don't always put a link to my blog on Facebook.  Any time you want to read posts that haven't been linked to, just go down on the pate you are on and you should see "earlier Posts".

Later, Lynn