Loops and tendrils

Acadia National Park

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Around Park Loop Road
Watching ocean waves crashing
And clouds flying past

Breakfast conversations danced across the tables as we all enjoyed our morning meal of fresh fruit and blueberry pancakes. Two of the other guests here at Holland Inn are also cyclists and plan to sandwich some riding in with hiking - so of course a good part of our floating words this morning had to do with riding and with touring too.

My first loop of the park today was on my bike. I followed Park Loop Road once, and then wandered off on some other roads for a while. I knew once around wouldn't be enough for today, but I wanted to do parts of the road on two feet rather than two wheels, so my second circuit was assisted by my car. First things first though... My first stop was at Sand Beach, unhampered by the weather this time unlike my rainy stop when I was here in June. I was fascinated by the sparkle of the water as the waves prepared to hit both the beach and the rocks along the sides of the beach. I watched, took some pictures, and then moved on. Thunder Hole was thundering today, and it was throwing water all over the viewing area too. I didn't stand too close, not wanting to subject my camera to the whims of the somewhat wild ocean. And as I was standing there, I was thinking about how lucky I was to travel over the water yesterday when the surface of the water was relatively calm and not today when it was more than a bit crazy.

It was a slow ride today because I just had to keep stopping. I could blame it on my camera, but it was really my desire to absorb the beauty of the rocky coastline decorated with moving, crashing, waves that made me stop. Sometimes it was enough to watch the ocean at the same time that I was keeping an eye on the road, sometimes it wasn't... The early morning sunshine, blue skies, and relative warmth (with temperatures in the low 60s) changed as the day progressed. As I turned away from the ocean, starting the inland part of the loop, the sky got progressively grayer, and it felt cooler too. I don't think that the temperature was dropping. Part of the coolness may have been my imagination (due to the diminishing bright sun), and part of it was probably from the wind. It was windy early in the day, and it just seemed to get windier as the day wore on. The sky continued to get more gray, with not a hint of blue in sight. I reached the end of the loop and turned back toward Bar Harbor. As I rolled closer to town, blue started to emerge from the gray and the sun made an appearance once again.

After I switched modes of transportation, I headed back to Thunder Hole. I wanted to walk along the coast and watch the waves, and that seemed like a good place to start. Walking, stopping and sitting for a while, carefully picking my way across the rocks strewn along the coast, staying on the dry rocks and not trespassing over the part of the rocks that appeared to be owned by the seaweed. Wait - what's that in the water? It looks like there are dark spots scattered across the waves. No, not spots, those are birds! They looked like some kind of duck to me. I asked another woman who was watching if she knew what they were, and her guess was eider - which is a type of duck. That's just one more thing that I'll need to remember to look up after I get home. The birds looked like they were riding the waves, surfing, and fishing too. They would occasionally dive deep, and sometimes they would flap their wings and then settle down once more, most of them staying in the water and not flying off. I wish I could have been closer to them, but I was standing on some high rocks without any obvious (safe) way to get closer to the parading birds. Did I take pictures? Of course I did, but I'm afraid that I was far enough away that they will just look like dark spots on the water.

The gray had returned again, with swirling clouds moving quickly across the sky, allowing some blue patches to shine through. I headed up Cadillac Mountain hoping for an interesting sky display, and I got just that. There were spots where a patch of blue was visible, where dropping clouds allowed a brief view of a lake. There were spots that were totally cloud- and fog-covered and there were spots where I was standing above the clouds. And then there was the wind. It was blowing so hard at the top of the mountain that I could barely stand up. One woman who was carrying a bit more weight than I do looked at me, told me that she was having a hard time standing still, and wondering how I was still standing there. I was very glad that I was only trying to keep me upright and that I wasn't trying to keep a bicycle standing. Actually, I don't think that I would have been able to ride in that wind. I have no idea what the wind speed was; it felt unbelievably strong. It was part of today's experience, and I'm happy to have experienced the beauty of the wind and the clouds from the top of the mountain. Cadillac Mountain topped another good riding and wandering day for me.

Hey - Rover here... You haven't heard from me in a couple of days, but I'm still traveling with Denise. I really wanted her to take my picture on top of Cadillac Mountain, but when we felt how strong the wind was blowing, well, I thought I would be blown away. What an amazing feeling! And I'm so glad we looped the park twice today.

One more local seafood dinner, but tonight's had a delightful twist. I ate at Seasons, and while I did have lobster it wasn't the meal that you imagine when you think of a Maine lobster. I ordered a dish called Maine Lobster Taquito, which was described as a griddle-crisped flour tortilla filled with lobster, brie, and carmelized onions, topped with a corn and tomato salsa. It came with a side-dish of mashed sweet potatoes. All I can say is wow!

And now, it's time to send a request to the weather wizard for dry pavement in the morning. I'm hoping to ride around Park Loop Road once more before turning for home. There is rain predicted for tonight and tomorrow morning, but I can hope, can't I?

Photos: The Cat in motion

I'm fascinated by the baby boat riding on the back of this fishing boat.

Can anyone satisfy my curiosity? Do you know why this normal-sized fishing boat is carrying what appears to be a miniature?

Many thanks to Cliff, who provided this answer: "Purse boat" from the F/V Starlight, a veteran herring seiner from Vinalhaven. The purse boat is slid down the Starlight's stern onto the water, and, powered by a 400+ horsepower engine, speeds off across the water, deploying the seine net around part or all of a sonar or air-located herring school, and back onto the stern of the vessel. The "purse" created as the seine is drawn tight concentrates the herring so that they can be easily brought aboard.

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Photos: To the light (and back again)

My bike picked her own resting spot when I spotted The Cat heading in to the harbor. A pretty picture, but I did have to pull a bit of grass out of the gears... nope, not a very good spot to wait for my camera stop!

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As I was headed out to Cape Forchu, The Cat was heading in to Yarmouth. I still had plenty of time to wander though; there were four hours between when she arrived in Yarmouth and when she headed out again for Bar Harbor.

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Rogue waves? Really?

Not knowing how rogue applies to waves, I decided a trip through a dictionary was in order. From Merriam-Webster Online, the definition of the adjective rogue: "resembling or suggesting a rogue elephant especially in being isolated, aberrant, dangerous, or uncontrollable (((capsized by a rogue wave)))"

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Ah, a tall lighthouse! And one that I wasn't sure I would see in clear daylight. This is quite a contrast from my view of this light on my first day in Nova Scotia.

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Photos: Around Yarmouth

Cape Forchu in sunlight

...and then The Cat

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Cape Forchu once more
Sunny sky instead of fog
Sea water sparkles

One more day in Nova Scotia, and then a ride on The Cat... But first things first, breakfast! Twyla was up early baking as usual, presenting a breakfast of fruit salad, fresh brown bread to accompany morning eggs, and wonderful pumpkin muffins. Too much food for first thing in the morning, so the muffins came along on my bike for a mid-morning snack.

I started my morning on foot, wandering through Yarmouth map in hand, following the official walking tour. There are some beautiful structures in town, old houses built in the mid- to late 1800s. Detailed (outdoor) woodwork, windows, widow's walks made the buildings drew my eyes and camera, and friendly residents of the town greeted me as I wandered.

Once I was done circling the center of town by foot, I headed back to the Guest-Lovitt House to rejoin my bicycle. The sky was gray when I started riding, and my two-wheeled goal for the day was to see the Cape Forchu Lighthouse in conditions other than fog. Heading to that lighthouse in fog was my first ride in Nova Scotia, and returning today was my last ride in Nova Scotia (of this trip, that is). The gray sky stayed in place almost until I reached the lighthouse, and then suddenly the sky changed from gray to blue. What a difference a bit of sunshine makes.

Riding, walking, visiting the Yarmouth County Museum, and then suddenly it was time to head for the ferry. As I stood with my bike waiting for the clock to roll around to boarding time, the owner of the Goodwin Hotel in Weymouth came up to chat. That was the place I stayed my second night in Nova Scotia. The bike made it pretty easy for her to remember me - although I have to admit that she had to remind me of where we had met - and she stopped by to say hello and to see how the rest of my trip went. Her daughter had surprised her with a birthday trip to Bar Harbor; it sounded like the surprise trip was well received. And it was fun to talk with her again.

As I was standing in the ferry lot looking at the cars lined up to board, it seemed like there weren't a large number of cars. Just out of curiosity, I asked the guy who appeared to be sorting vehicles by size. He said that today's load is relatively light, with only about 100 cars. The capacity of The Cat? Apparently it can swallow 250 cars and 14 buses or large trucks. I find that amazing.

Jeannine & Frank - the cyclists from Switzerland who I met in Shelburne - joined me in waiting to be waved aboard the ferry. We boarded together, and spent an enjoyable trip talking about cycling and traveling. The sky was still clear when we left Yarmouth, and we stood on the tail of the boat watching the swath of waves that followed the boat as we moved relatively slowly through the harbor. Once we passed Cape Forchu light and moved into open water, the speed of the boat increased and the air became more chilly. We headed inside and found a table to call our home for the voyage. The blue sky eventually disappeared in fog, and the fog stayed with us for quite a while. Just before we pulled in to Bar Harbor, the setting sun started to emerge from the fog, as did the outline of the hills of Mt. Desert Island.

Maine for two nights and a day... and my sights for tomorrow are focused on Acadia National Park.

Photos: At the end of the peninsula

Two feet walking

Brier Island

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Oooo, oooo, loud seal sounds
Echo from lighthouse to shore
Seals adorn the rocks

Shh, quiet. Please don't disturb my bicycle, she is taking a well-deserved rest today after carrying me around the western side of the province. Although come to think of it, she might not be resting since her home for the day is in the garage with that wonderful Model T. Maybe they spent the day dancing... For me, it was a day for traveling with two feet on the ground.

Filtered sunshine greeted me this morning. The sky wasn't cloudy, but it wasn't blue either. First things first, another wonderful breakfast to start my day. A mixture of delightful fruit followed by baked French toast and eggs set me up with energy for the day.

What's next? I set out in a gas-powered instead of a person-powered vehicle, heading to Digby Neck, and then on to Brier Island. The difference between traveling in a car instead of on my bike really hit me today. I drove from Yarmouth to Brier Island and back again. That would probably would have taken me four days on my bike. And yes, you're right, the territory I covered between Yarmouth and the turnoff for Digby Neck was very close to the road I followed my first day here. I stuck to the higher speed Route 101 today, so the scenery was slightly different. Plus, more autumn colors seem to be jumping out. At the beginning of my trip, almost everything was green, with an occasional tree sporting yellow or orange or red. Today there were entire bands of color painted across the sea of green.

My drive north was accompanied by Maine Public Radio. I was surprised to get good reception across the expanse of the Gulf of Maine. It disappeared as I turned down Digby Neck, but it was good to listen to one of the Sunday morning programs on the initial part of my drive. Ah, the end of the neck, time for the first of two ferries. The fare on each ferry was $4 round trip; I certainly can't complain about spending a total of $8 for four ferry rides. (And if you decide to follow in my footsteps, but on your bike - I believe bikes and people are free on these ferries.) By some stroke of luck, I arrived just as the ferry was boarding, no waiting here. Cars lined up, three rows of up to 6 or 7 vehicles. Pulling away from the dock, I felt a spinning sensation, and another spinning sensation as we docked on Long Island. When I talked with Bruce later about the feeling of spinning motion, he told me that there is a pretty strong current between the islands. The spinning feeling may have been compensation for the current pushing the boat. A little more driving, and I was at the crossing from Long Island to Brier Island. This crossing seemed slightly longer, but it was probably no more than 4 or 5 minutes. I rolled my vehicle off of the boat, and into the small town of Westport.

I quickly realized that I had no idea how to find the roads to the edges of the island. Why? For some reason there were no signs at all. That makes it more than a little interesting for a stranger to navigate. I drove into what appeared to be the central part of town, hopped into a shop, and said "I think I must be confused". The gal at the counter laughed, then pulled out a map to show me where I was standing. No longer lost, I headed to the lighthouse to the north. As I walked past the light I started to hear a somewhat erie sound. Oooo, oooo, oooo. Oooo, oooo, oooo. Erie and loud. It was the seals, laying on rocks in the water, still quite a distance away. My feet carried me down the path, ears listening, eyes watching signs of life along the rocky shore. Grasshoppers hopping, sea gulls, a heron, seals! Low rocks, edging above the water, served as a resting spot for a large group of seals. You could almost imagine that they were just rocks, but then a seal would toss its head up and back. No, those aren't moving, living rocks, they are really seals. Slap, splash! There's a seal playing in the water. I stood and watched for quite a while, then continued down the path following the rocky coastline.

The rocks were dark in color, sporting streaks of white. It almost looked like a person had cemented the rocks together, but the different rock compositions were natural, not man-made. I believe the dark rock is basalt, but I'm going to have to satisfy my curiousity about the white lines once I get home again.

Hi - it's Rover again. Were you wondering where I've been hiding? I've been helping Denise by keeping an eye out for interesting things to photograph. Today I was trying to help her get a picture of a beautiful heron standing on the rocks close to the water. Unfortunately the rocks between where we were standing and that great tall bird were covered with seaweed. It looked much too slippery for us to attempt the walk, and Denise was pretty sure that if we moved any closer that the bird would fly away. What a beautiful bird though. And then we went on to see the seals. I really like wandering around here!

The ferries run once an hour, and if you take one ferry and drive directly to the next one you arrive at the right time to board. I spent all of my walking time on Brier Island, and then headed straight back - ferry from Brier Island to Long Island, drove directly to the next ferry stop and straight on to the ferry from Long Island back to the Digby Neck mainland. I had a good laugh while I was waiting to board the ferry in Westport (on Brier Island). The car in line next to me was a convertible (with the top down, of course). There was a white dog with a bright pink nose (yes, stuffed, not a live animal) sitting on top of a box in the back seat, strapped in with a seat belt. I asked the couple in the car if I could take a picture of their "dog". They looked at me a little funny, but said yes. I took the picture, and then Rover jumped out of his home with the cameras to say hello to the owners of the white dog. All of us had a good laugh at that; they definitely appreciated my travel companion.

Back in Yarmouth, still astounded by the distance I had traveled today... I wandered over to the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia before dinner. There was an exhibit of photographs by Edward Burtynsky that fascinated me. He takes photos of industrial landscapes, things that I normally would consider ugly - and the photos are beautiful. Two of my favorites are kind of on the edge of industrial since they were shots of an abandoned quarry in Vermont. Another one that caught my eye was a photo of mounds of old tires. They were stacked and thrown in such a way that the photo looked like a landscape instead of a photograph of trash. I'd love to see more of his work sometime.

If you're interested in seeing some of Edward Burtynsky's work, he has included some photos in the "Work" section of his web site, www.edwardburtynsky.com.

As a true chocolate addict, I'm always on the hunt for good chocolate. And on trips like this I often opt for a piece of chocolate instead of a restaurant dessert. My preference is for dark chocolate, and to make me happy it has to be good quality chocolate. That can be a challenge when I'm looking for chocolate in convenience stores, but I definitely found an answer to my chocolate urge on this trip - Cadbury Premium Dark Burnt Almond. Yum! I wonder if this is a Canada-only product or if it's available in the states too. (Of course I share it with Rover. And yes Rover, you're right. We will probably need to cut back on the chocolate when we stop cycling every day.)

An after the trip chocolate update: As it turns out, my new favorite chocolate confection is not available in the United States. I think I've found a substitute though, so I won't need to (immediately) take Kate up on her offer to ship me some of those wonderful Cadbury Premium Dark Burnt Almond bars. Interestingly enough, according to the Cadbury UK web site, "Cadbury products in the USA are manufactured and distributed under a franchise agreement by Hershey Chocolate USA". Hmmm... that means that Hershey has the "skill" to create good dark chocolate, not their usual fare. I looked a little further, and discovered a relatively new Hershey product, HERSHEY'S EXTRA DARK. I tried HERSHEY'S EXTRA DARK Cranberries, Blueberries, & Almonds - and wow! That's good, and my new chocolate favorite for when I'm home. I'll continue to seek out Cadbury Premium Dark Burnt Almond when I'm in Canada though!

I'm planning a quiet day in Yarmouth tomorrow. I hope to repeat the short lighthouse ride I did on my first day here in the hopes of seeing something other than fog, and there are a couple of museums that sound like they could be interesting (gasp! I can't believe this non-museum-going gal is actually considering visiting a museum!). The ferry is scheduled to leave at 4:30, which means I need to be in line at the ferry dock at 3:30. Then back across the waters to Maine...