I am quite a planner when it comes to travel, but even for me, a trip two years in the making is a bit over the top. Spring break 2020 was supposed to be a week of flatlander fun in Maine. But, well, we all know what happened that year. In addition to the usual pandemic annoyances, I lost a chunk of change on a car rental made through Priceline, so we were a bit gun-shy to try the trip again in 2021. By 2022, like everyone, we were ready and raring for big adventure, so we were going to go on our vacation, come hell or high water or high gas prices.
We encountered the latter two on our first day. The rain started coming down during a stop at Seabago Brewing in Kennebunk (yes, that port of Bush renown) as we drove from the Manchester, New Hampshire, airport to Portland. The road trip took up most of our day because we opted to coast along scenic Route 1 till we reached our Airbnb. The deluge continued day and night as we jumped puddles on our way to some fun haunts. After living it up with some locals at Munjoy Hill Tavern, we rested, then headed to the Old Port, where we made fools of ourselves trying to find $5 apertifs at Lincolns speakeasy before getting a bite to eat at Gritty's Brewpub.
By the next morning, the skies had cleared in time for a brisk walk to pick up breakfast bagels at nearby Forage Market. They were fuel for our Easter morning activity: joining other heathen non-churchgoers to take communion with nature at Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park (top). The park's name doesn't come from any lupine-shaped outcroppings (bottom left) but from the last name of the area's first settlers on the isthmus. The park's classic craggy Maine shoreline is a perfect setting for a protected peregrine population (bottom right).
After our hike, we continued north to make a pilgrimage to L.L.Bean headquarters in Freeport (left). We got lost in the store for a while, but managed to escape without taking out a second mortgage to pay for any purchases. On the way back to Portland, we stopped at Maine Beer Co., whose fountain-filled taproom is dedicated to sustainability (right). We had planned to pick up supplies for dinner, but apparently, Maine groceries take the resurrection seriously, so the only open option was the product-limited food co-op. Luckily, Andy's Old Port Pub still held its regular Sunday trivia night, which we won. Unable to use the gift-card prize on the same day, we got takeout from The Thirsty Pig, which specializes in gourmet sausages, including vegetarian kinds.
The next morning, blue skies were our background for taking in some Portland institutions, starting with breakfast at Becky's Diner. Just down the road, we boarded the Casco Bay Lines ferry to Peaks Island. During the short crossing, we took in distant glimpses of the Portland Head Light (top left) and Mount Washington (top right). Our trivia hosts from the previous night happened to be island residents, and they gave us the great tip of utilizing the self-serve bike rental up the hill from the ferry landing. The bikes weren't exactly Tour de France grade (bottom left), but they were just what we needed to circumnavigate the relatively flat island. The scenery was so enticing I barely noticed my sketchy back-pedal brakes. Hearing the sound of ocean-washed rocks roll out with the tide was a highlight of the week (bottom right).
On the east side of the island, facing the bay, lies Battery Steele (top). During World War II, two 16-inch guns were installed here to protect the city, nay country, from enemy battleships. The gun pads were separated by a long tunnel where shells were stored and soldiers slept (middle left). These days, the fortification is sought out by Instagrammers and other photographers taking advantage of its surreal setting (middle right). After returning to the mainland, we used our trivia-earned gift card at Andy's and scored some happy-hour specials at Dock Fore for some afternoon imbibing. We sought out dinner and "short" beer night at The Great Lost Bear, one of the country's first craft-beer bars (bottom). We sampled some offerings from local breweries -- which surprisingly we didn't visit, despite many being within walking distance of our accommodations -- before saying a cozy goodbye to the city with a nightcap at The Snug.
Although COVID was a curse for our reservations, it was a blessing for the weather. The year we were originally scheduled to travel, a debilitating snowstorm hit Maine during our trip dates. This year, we watched the forecast with trepidation. Besides our arrival date, the only other day with a high likelihood of precipitation was when we would be driving from Portland to Mount Desert Island. And pour it did, so the only side trip we took was for a quintessential lobster-roll lunch (top left). Honestly, it was a quick diversion because Moody's Diner is a 90-year-old roadside rest whose parking lot abuts Route 1; if you swerve too far off the road, you might ram into its countertop (top right). The rain deteriorated to a drizzle as we approached our destination (middle left), and by the time we rolled into Bar Harbor, we could barely distinguish the mist from the surf from the Shore Path (middle right). After settling into our room at the Elmhurst Inn (bottom), we dined at Dog & Pony Tavern before bedding down for some required pre-hike rest.
The proprietor of our bed and breakfast warned us that the first cruise of the season would dock in Bar Harbor for the day, so we headed out somewhat early to beat any bus traffic at Acadia National Park. I took a photo of Sand Beach that made it look like we were completely alone (top), but there were other tourists there. Not so many that it felt overwhelming, though. Same with Thunder Hole, although we didn't visit at peak water-spouting time (bottom left). In general, the Park Loop Road was relatively quiet; it was easy to find empty pull-offs ripe for photo opps (bottom right).
In an attempt to avoid packed trails, we picked a less-popular hiking route for the day. The loop started easily enough, with a peaceful walk around half of Jordan Pond (top left), but then we hit the base of Pemetic Mountain, where a section of scrambling up fallen boulders started (top right). Scaling the steep incline was worth the reward at the top, a long expanse of stony summit, where the trail was marked with blue blazes and cairns (bottom left). With each step, there was another breathtaking vista (bottom right), but the strong wind also took the breath out of us, so we carefully clamored down to our car. I'm biased, of course, but I believe the view from Pemetic was better than from atop iconic Cadillac Mountain, which we drove up to on the way home. After toasting our accomplishment with some drinks at Thirsty Whale Tavern, we picked up pizza from Reel Pizza to eat in our room as we rested our muscles. I even took a turn in the clawfoot tub to soothe my tired tootsies.
The next day, we weren't as worried about crowds, but because we turned in early, we got up and summited Acadia Mountain by mid-morning (top left). Still reeling from the previous day's challenge, we skipped the typical onward and upward trek to St. Sauveur and instead settled on looping back along Man-o-War Creek (top right). We stayed closer to sea level at the Ship Harbor Trail (bottom left), a figure-8 stroll along an inlet where supposedly a sunken ship remains (bottom right). Full up on hiking, we filled our bellies with lunch at Nor'Easter in the Northeast Harbor. Back in Bar Harbor, we bar-hopped to Atlantic Brewing and Finback Alehouse before having our last Maine meal at Side Street Cafe.
Before we left town, we took advantage of low tide to walk over to Bar Island (top left). With no concerns about the land bridge becoming uncrossable any time soon, we sauntered around the island, including the site of a local journalist's home (top right). Stretching our legs was good preparation for the long drive back to Manchester, where we stayed in a hotel by the airport. We headed downtown to have drinks at Stark Brewing Company, play pool at McGarvey's (where native son Adam Sandler's movies were on repeat on all the TVs), and eat dinner at Thai Food Connection. Not quite ready to return to reality the next morning, we took a short post-breakfast walk at nearby Moore's Falls Conservation Area (middle left), where we spied birds (middle right) and found the easiest geocache ever (bottom). As we headed off to catch our flight, the rock resting on the park's information board summed up our trip perfectly: It was wicked good, and we will be back, even if it takes two decades to make our next travel plans.
