Greetings from Bar Harbor!

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
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I'm not sure whether I like it here or not. A lot of that has to do with our lodging, which I'm not in love with. It's a small studio cottage with a kitchenette - emphasis on the "small". No laundry, no AC, and no pool. BUT it smells like my great grandmother's house because it's older than God, and with the windows open the breeze comes through and it's lovely. It's also in a country setting, so dog walks are pleasant; and we're a half mile walk to the beach at Hadley Point, 5 miles to the entrance of Acadia, and 7 miles to downtown Bar Harbor.

I just think I could have gotten a better deal. Lodging is stupid expensive here anyway, but for what we paid for this cottage I could have done better.

Bar Harbor downtown is cute and there's a lot going on - walky with stores, food, drink, etc. During low tide, you can walk across the narrows to Bar Island, but you have to walk back before the tide comes in unless you want to swim for it. Bar Harbor is actually a village on Mt. Desert Island, which is a true island and there are a number of small villages and waterfront areas to explore. We drove the whole thing Sunday.

If I were going to live here full time, I would open up a laundromat. There is ONE that services the whole island, which is just crazy. For awhile they had none, then some enterprising soul realized you could charge whatever you want to wash and dry because you'd be the only game in town.

Tomorrow or Wednesday we'll go to Acadia and see if we can find Bullwinkle.
 

vraiblonde

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Also, blueberry things. I'm drinking a wonderful blueberry coffee right now, and bars have blueberry ale on tap. Yesterday we saw a blueberry with lemon cream whoopie pie in one of the bakeries that we should have bought but didn't. They have a blueberry soda that Monello likes.

And lobster, of course - we have two lobster pounds across the street from us. If you have your lobster in a swanky setting with table cloths and waiters, you're not doing it right. They're supposed to be served out of a shack, then you eat it at one of the picnic tables out front. Eating lobster in New England, especially Maine, is like picking crabs in MD only with more meat and less work.

Also lavender - it grows everywhere, but strangely enough you don't see a lot of lavender products. There should be soaps and lotions and all sorts of lavender things, but there aren't. Why, Maine, WHY??
 
If you have your lobster in a swanky setting with table cloths and waiters, you're not doing it right. They're supposed to be served out of a shack, then you eat it at one of the picnic tables out front.

Casual, relaxed. I used to sail up to a dock, get a couple bugs, anchor off in the harbor somewhere. Got a pot of water going, boiled and ate them right there.
 

vraiblonde

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Casual, relaxed. I used to sail up to a dock, get a couple bugs, anchor off in the harbor somewhere. Got a pot of water going, boiled and ate them right there.

I wonder what New Englanders think when they go somewhere else and whole lobster is considered an elegant dish. It'd be like going to Montana and having steamed blue crabs treated fancy.
 

Bann

Doris Day meets Lady Gaga
PREMO Member
Also, blueberry things. I'm drinking a wonderful blueberry coffee right now, and bars have blueberry ale on tap. Yesterday we saw a blueberry with lemon cream whoopie pie in one of the bakeries that we should have bought but didn't. They have a blueberry soda that Monello likes.

And lobster, of course - we have two lobster pounds across the street from us. If you have your lobster in a swanky setting with table cloths and waiters, you're not doing it right. They're supposed to be served out of a shack, then you eat it at one of the picnic tables out front. Eating lobster in New England, especially Maine, is like picking crabs in MD only with more meat and less work.

Also lavender - it grows everywhere, but strangely enough you don't see a lot of lavender products. There should be soaps and lotions and all sorts of lavender things, but there aren't. Why, Maine, WHY??

Mmmm, blueberry! Oooh, lavendar!! I would love to try Blueberry Ale. :ohwell:

I love lavendar. BFF has some in her yard, and I'm going to get some to grow at home. I do not have a green thumb but I am highly motivated to grow lavendar!! :biggrin:
 

Hessian

Well-Known Member
naturally (maybe you already did)...do the drive to the top of Cadillac Mt.
To get the best experience out on Acadia...get it when the tide is coming in...even after a storm passes. You will get these rolling pounders that set spray 40 feet in the air. There are two towns on Acadia Peninsula--Winter Harbor has the decent grocery store.
If you are in the mood to drive while in Gloucester Point--head over to Corea. There are some ideal rentals with next to no crowds, superb views, lots of coast & kayaking. Prices for rentals drop a notch up there too.
Milbridge...quaint town, two diners with EXCELLENT portions, odd hours. Couple of remote parks that barely get any visitors --superb rocky coast and HUGE mudflats at low tide.
ENJOY!
 

vraiblonde

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Tonight we walked across the street to the lobster shack and had steamed lobsters, corn on the cob, and a couple of local crabs that aren't a priority but the places will steam and sell them if they happen to get caught in the trap. No frills, we ate outside at a picnic table because the shack is literally a shack where you order and then go back outside to make room for the next customer.

lobstahdinnah.jpg
 
:jealous:

Almost headed your way yesterday. Neighbor bought a boat in Maine and asked if I'd drive up and tow it home. Unfortunately, my truck isn't equipped with a trailer brake controller, needed for this.

I do need to plan a trip north soon. Haven't been north of LI in a very long time.
 

luvmygdaughters

Well-Known Member
Tonight we walked across the street to the lobster shack and had steamed lobsters, corn on the cob, and a couple of local crabs that aren't a priority but the places will steam and sell them if they happen to get caught in the trap. No frills, we ate outside at a picnic table because the shack is literally a shack where you order and then go back outside to make room for the next customer.

View attachment 119211

:drool: You wouldn't by any chance be giving away lobsters has your prize would you...:whistle:
 

vraiblonde

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Mt. Desert Island (or MDI, as the locals say) has ONE chain business - a single lonely Subway. No McDonalds, no Applebees, no chain convenience stores, no Jiffy Lube. Oh, wait, there's a Rite Aid, too. So that's two chain businesses. Everything else is local and one of a kind.

What you eat here is lobster (natch), whoopie pies, and blueberries in many forms. Whoopie pie stout - I am not making that up; we tasted it in York, ME at SoME brewery. Almost every restaurant serves clam or seafood chowder, and even the roadside shacks have damn fine chowdah. Supposedly they are also big on fiddleheads, but we've only seen one sighting so far. I thought cranberries would be a bigger thing but we see a normal amount of cranberry products - blueberries are absolutely overrepresented, which is okay by me because I'm a blueberry person. I also thought we'd see more maple things.

MDI is large, but there is only one real commercial area - Bar Harbor - and it's not very big. You don't come here to go to Ripley's Believe It Or Not or ride go-karts or play mini golf or party like a rock star. You'd only come here if you're into outdoorsy things - hiking or kayaking, like that. The beaches are not amazing, they're rocks instead of sand, and the water is COLD. But it's so pretty here. The air smells good, all wholesome and such. It's a highly rural area where you come to relax instead of rush rush high entertainment.

Acadia is gorgeous. Don't get me wrong, it's no Yellowstone - not even close - but it's very scenic and peaceful (Yellowstone is not particularly peaceful because every square inch of it crawls with tourists every second of the season). Today we went up to Cadillac Mountain and there were people hiking around, but not enormous crazy throngs of them.

Honestly, I don't get hiking. You've seen one forest, you've seen them all. People hike the Appalachian Trail - why? :confused: But I have my perfect hiking shoes that I got in Cody last year, and there's not really a whole lot else to do here, so we'll probably do some woods walking because we have a whole week and a half left before we head to Montreal.

Fun fact: we see the sun before you all do in the morning (in MD). The sun rises here at 5am, almost a full hour before you all see it, yet our sunset is only 15 minutes or so before yours. I like this because it wakes me up early and I love to get a jump on the day.
 

RareBreed

Throwing the deuces
Mt. Desert Island (or MDI, as the locals say) has ONE chain business - a single lonely Subway. No McDonalds, no Applebees, no chain convenience stores, no Jiffy Lube. Oh, wait, there's a Rite Aid, too. So that's two chain businesses. Everything else is local and one of a kind.

What you eat here is lobster (natch), whoopie pies, and blueberries in many forms. Whoopie pie stout - I am not making that up; we tasted it in York, ME at SoME brewery. Almost every restaurant serves clam or seafood chowder, and even the roadside shacks have damn fine chowdah. Supposedly they are also big on fiddleheads, but we've only seen one sighting so far. I thought cranberries would be a bigger thing but we see a normal amount of cranberry products - blueberries are absolutely overrepresented, which is okay by me because I'm a blueberry person. I also thought we'd see more maple things.

MDI is large, but there is only one real commercial area - Bar Harbor - and it's not very big. You don't come here to go to Ripley's Believe It Or Not or ride go-karts or play mini golf or party like a rock star. You'd only come here if you're into outdoorsy things - hiking or kayaking, like that. The beaches are not amazing, they're rocks instead of sand, and the water is COLD. But it's so pretty here. The air smells good, all wholesome and such. It's a highly rural area where you come to relax instead of rush rush high entertainment.

Acadia is gorgeous. Don't get me wrong, it's no Yellowstone - not even close - but it's very scenic and peaceful (Yellowstone is not particularly peaceful because every square inch of it crawls with tourists every second of the season). Today we went up to Cadillac Mountain and there were people hiking around, but not enormous crazy throngs of them.

Honestly, I don't get hiking. You've seen one forest, you've seen them all. People hike the Appalachian Trail - why? :confused: But I have my perfect hiking shoes that I got in Cody last year, and there's not really a whole lot else to do here, so we'll probably do some woods walking because we have a whole week and a half left before we head to Montreal.

Fun fact: we see the sun before you all do in the morning (in MD). The sun rises here at 5am, almost a full hour before you all see it, yet our sunset is only 15 minutes or so before yours. I like this because it wakes me up early and I love to get a jump on the day.

I love to hike. What shoes did you get? Normally I just wear my sneakers.
 

stgislander

Well-Known Member
PREMO Member
Mt. Desert Island (or MDI, as the locals say) has ONE chain business - a single lonely Subway. No McDonalds, no Applebees, no chain convenience stores, no Jiffy Lube. Oh, wait, there's a Rite Aid, too. So that's two chain businesses. Everything else is local and one of a kind.

What you eat here is lobster (natch), whoopie pies, and blueberries in many forms. Whoopie pie stout - I am not making that up; we tasted it in York, ME at SoME brewery. Almost every restaurant serves clam or seafood chowder, and even the roadside shacks have damn fine chowdah. Supposedly they are also big on fiddleheads, but we've only seen one sighting so far. I thought cranberries would be a bigger thing but we see a normal amount of cranberry products - blueberries are absolutely overrepresented, which is okay by me because I'm a blueberry person. I also thought we'd see more maple things.

MDI is large, but there is only one real commercial area - Bar Harbor - and it's not very big. You don't come here to go to Ripley's Believe It Or Not or ride go-karts or play mini golf or party like a rock star. You'd only come here if you're into outdoorsy things - hiking or kayaking, like that. The beaches are not amazing, they're rocks instead of sand, and the water is COLD. But it's so pretty here. The air smells good, all wholesome and such. It's a highly rural area where you come to relax instead of rush rush high entertainment.

Acadia is gorgeous. Don't get me wrong, it's no Yellowstone - not even close - but it's very scenic and peaceful (Yellowstone is not particularly peaceful because every square inch of it crawls with tourists every second of the season). Today we went up to Cadillac Mountain and there were people hiking around, but not enormous crazy throngs of them.

Honestly, I don't get hiking. You've seen one forest, you've seen them all. People hike the Appalachian Trail - why? :confused: But I have my perfect hiking shoes that I got in Cody last year, and there's not really a whole lot else to do here, so we'll probably do some woods walking because we have a whole week and a half left before we head to Montreal.

Fun fact: we see the sun before you all do in the morning (in MD). The sun rises here at 5am, almost a full hour before you all see it, yet our sunset is only 15 minutes or so before yours. I like this because it wakes me up early and I love to get a jump on the day.

A friend was just transferred to the CG Base in Southwest Harbor at the other end of MDI. He told me anytime I was in the neighborhood to look him up. After hearing your description, the wife and I may have to make a special trip.
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
A friend was just transferred to the CG Base in Southwest Harbor at the other end of MDI. He told me anytime I was in the neighborhood to look him up. After hearing your description, the wife and I may have to make a special trip.

It will be interesting to see how long before he is bored spitless. :lol: Plus apparently winters are brutal and then some. But man, it sure is nice in the summer.
 
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