My New Friends, Cairn and the Blue Marker

Prior to our trip Mich and I had discussed the hiking situation since I haven't hiked in months and Mich hasn't hiked in years, and we were unsure of our skill level, much less tracking up steep inclines and rocky terrain. We decided our first hike would be a short moderate hike since the second half of the day, we were scheduled for a boat trip. We awoke at six to trek the Great Head Loop, which trails along the cliffside overlooking Sand Beach. Now, it's been a few years since I've hiked a path where you needed cairns and markers to guide your way, but this was the first of several hikes, where Mich and I kept calling out, I see blue. But it was exhilerating and beautiful. Afterwards, we headed back into town for a whale watching trip. We sat on the life jacket locker on the back of the boat for our three hour tour. A mama whale and her calf were spotted, who entertained us for over an hour. The calf at one point rolled over and waved its flipper at us. The evening was the beginning of rotating hotels in Bar Harbor, which I'll discuss in another post.



The next day, we were bold and determined. We started off on the easy Wonderland Trail and played on the cobblestone seawall before heading back to the mountains for the Ocean Trail hike. We'd timed our hikes in order to reach Thunder Hole for high tide and the big roar. We walked along the rocky shore while watching the tide inch over the rocks we'd just stood on for roughly 45 minutes before deciding we needed to move on and continue the trail to the Otter Cliffs since the trail didn't loop and we needed time to get back. Did I mention I'm afraid of heights? Mich enjoyed scaring me by inching to the edge of the cliffs to catch the view below until she eventually convinced me to do the same.



We'd left the hardest trail for last, Acadia Mountain. It was a moderate trail with very steep inclines and rock climbing of walls that were at least ten feet high in order to reach the 646 ft. peak that overlooked the fiord and Somes Sound. The signs warned that you were in the back country and to inform someone before entering the trail and we had an agreement that we didn't need to reach the top. I didn't stop to take many pics on this hike since we had to watch the clock and be off the mountain before sunset. I have to admit I questioned our sanity between losing sight and hunting for markers in the forest and rocks (hello cairns and blue markers), trying to find footholds and handholds in the rocks, pushing our way across streams and up inclines, I was ready to cry defeat, especially as we had five minutes before we needed to turn around to head back if we planned to get out of the forest before dark. Then suddenly we crested the top and it was a beautiful sight to behold. Of course, the camera came out to prove we had reached the summit. That night we ordered desert first at dinner in celebration of our triumph.