[Bar Harbor, Maine, Sep 21, 2024]

After visiting with Martha in Portland, it was time to make the 3-hour drive to Bar Harbor. The fastest route goes north to Bangor before veering east. Martha recommended we take the upper part of the coastal route instead. So we put Belfast, ME in our GPS and headed out. it was only 15 minutes longer this way. We had no idea what to expect along the way, and the planner in me was excited for this unplanned adventure.

The scenic drive took us up the highway to Augusta, ME, where we veered east towards Belfast. The road turned to one lane each way and we marveled at the small towns and farms we passed. When we were ready for another round of coffee, we stopped at the Wild Grace Store and Cafe in Liberty. Everything in this farm-to-table cafe is made from scratch with seasonal ingredients.

About 45 minutes later we noticed signs for an overlook and decided to stop. Before us was the Penobscot Narrows Bridge and Observatory! It is the tallest public bridge observatory in the world and the crown jewel of coastal Maine.

The signs at the overlook indicated we could visit the observatory located in the west tower, and we couldn’t pass up this opportunity! If the bridge’s obelisks remind you of the Washington Monument in DC, you’re not imagining things. The obelisks were actually modeled after it and were both built with Maine granite.

We arrived in Bar Harbor around 2 pm and checked into our hotel. We were hungry, and our hotel staff suggested the the restaurant inside the Atlantic Oceanside hotel, which was across the street. Our view of the bay was gorgeous and we noticed a ferry leaving just as we sat down. It was the CAT ferry between Bar Harbor and Yarmouth, Canada, on the Prince Edward Islands in Nova Scotia. The ferry takes 3.5 hours for what would otherwise be a 6.5-hr drive. It would be fun to do if we had more time!

We couldn’t resist going into the park to take advantage of the remaining daylight. Our first stop was the visitor center, where I got my passport stamp and took sign photos.

Next, we drove part of the park loop road before going up to the top of Cadillac Mountain for sunset. It was tough deciding which stops to make and how long to spend there, since we needed to enter the park road up to the summit at our reservation time (reservations are required end of May to end of October). But we nailed it!

Our first stop was overlook with views of Frenchman Bay, the Porcupine islands and the Schoodic Peninsula beyond them.

We then strolled through the Acadia Wild Garden, which featured miniature versions of the mountain’s various habitats. I especially loved the mini mountain summits, the beach and the conifer woods. The haircap moss was my favorite plant. The bog was closed due to persistent flooding – a sign of the times.

The wattle fence reminded me of my childhood summers in Bulgaria. I would spend most of them at my grandma’s house in the country. I passed the days reading books in the meadow watching over my grandma’s goats. The meadow had a wattle fence and every once in a while, the goats would break through it anyway.

Sand Beach was where we saw the first of quite a few weddings taking place here. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered this many weddings at a national park.

Little Hunters Beach was the opposite of Sand Beach. It was full of cobblestones, which rattled every time a wave came through.

We finished just in time for our Cadillac Mountain summit reservation, which I had made for an hour before sunset. Sunrise is the more popular time to visit, but this late in the season the weather is too unpredictable and I didn’t want to risk a repeat of my Haleakala sunrise experience.

As we walked around the summit, the first thing I noticed was the plaque of Stephen Mather. I had just seen another one at Great Basin National Park, where I learned that almost every park had something named after him. And here he was again.

After some time on the summit, we moved to another area just down the road that faced west towards the sunset. It was quite cloudy but we still got some good sunset light. It was cold but not too windy. It was a great end to an already fabulous day in Maine.