After two months of planning, we finally made it to Maine for a vacation that both of us desperately needed. It is the first vacation we have taken in 3 years -- together -- that doesn't involve seeing family (as much as we love our families!). For that reason alone, this trip was overdue! But it has been a very hectic and trying year for both of us and we needed a trip where we could refresh the soul.I am not quite sure how we chose Bar Harbor except that it has always been a dream of mine to visit the Maine coast. And even though this has been our first and only experience with the Maine coast -- I cannot imagine going anywhere else now! It was everything we had dreamed of and hoped for and more!!!
After a lot of researching, we decided to stay at the Inn at Bay Ledge. It turned out to be the perfect place for us!!! It is 5 miles out of town and 5 minutes from the entrance to Acadia National Park. We're not big on shopping or being a constant part of the tourist crowd so it was wonderful to do the tourist thing and then escape to our own sanctuary at the B&B. And what a sanctuary it is!!! The picture below is the back of the B&B. Our room (which you can't see) is on the 2nd floor all the way over to the left. The back of the B&B looked out onto Frenchman Bay. This made for a beautiful view while sitting on the porch during our breakfasts every morning and during tea and dessert every afternoon!
Lupines are everywhere in Maine during the month of June. Just fields and fields of them. Beautiful!
Friday - Everything went extremely smoothly on our way to Maine. Our plane from Richmond to La Guardia left 25 minutes early and then the plane from La Guardia to Bangor, ME arrived in Bangor 20 minutes early. We were on Mount Desert Island (where Bar Harbor and our B&B were located) by 11:30am!! We decided lunch would have to be at the famed Jordan Pond House in Acadia National Park. From what we'd heard, it would be an appropriate introduction to Mount Desert Island and Maine. Here is Dave's first taste of Maine Lobster -- Lobster Bisque, that is!
The Jordan Pond House is renowned for their popovers (sinfully good!) and their afternoon tea. You can choose to sit inside but really -- who would when sitting outside affords this view of the lake and the Bubble Mountains?!!
Acadia National Park is land that had at one point been owned by George Dorr, Charles Eliot, and John D. Rockefeller. Seeing how quickly the area was becoming popular and anticipating the dangers of over-development of this beautiful area, they acted quickly and created Acadia. Rockefeller himself donated over 11,000 acres of land to the park.
After lunch, we meandered through the Wild Gardens of Acadia at Sieur de Monts Spring.
Dave being dwarfed by luscious ferns!
After our first trip into Acadia and a stroll down the main street in Bar Harbor, we checked into our B&B and started to explore the grounds.
The B&B sits on top of an 80 foot cliff which overlooks Frenchman Bay. This is the cliff.
I think we've been watching too many Agatha Christie movies because we kept commenting that we were waiting for Poirot to come and inform us a murder had taken place. The cliff and surrounding beach looked like something right out of one of her novels/movies! :-)
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