Petit Manan Hike

Last week I set off to explore an area of the Maine coast that I had not seen before.   Months earlier I had seen the wildlife sanctuary (Petit Manan) on the map and subsequently checked it out on-line.  I learned that the area was used primarily for nesting birds; both year round and migratory.   The part that I would be visiting was at the tip of peninsula on the mainland.

 

The skies were bright, and it was going to be warm for an October day in Maine.   I decided to hike the longest of the two trails available, which with a couple of “side trips” (no I wasn’t lost, I was looking for things to photograph) ended up being about five miles.    The trail was clearly defined, and started out through blueberries (now finished), and goldenrod (thankfully for my allergies; almost finished).

 

 

At the edge of this field, under a nice tree was a bench that on the return trip I took advantage of to sit and cool down, refresh myself and enjoy the hundreds of dragonflies that were flitting about in the sunshine.

Unfortunately the wooded and marsh sections of the trail that came next were very wet and muddy from a week-end of rain, so it was bit soggy going here and there.   Luckily, the worst sections had boardwalks to help you navigate over the water.

 

Alas,  I did not see many birds (they continue to elude me in Maine) – some goldfinches, a blue heron, and some sort of brown duck (maybe a female eider).    I did encounter this cute little fellow (or gal) on the trail (look closely, he blends in rather nicely with his surroundings).

 

 

Along the way, I found another lovely sitting spot,  great sunning rocks, and some unusual trail markers (only in Maine).

 

 

 

And even though I didn’t see many birds, and even though the lighthouse on the website turned out to be on an island off shore; I also didn’t encounter any other people, which was a delightful change of pace.    Acadia (my backyard park) has continued to be quite busy.    So it was a peaceful morning; filled with sunshine and solitude.

 

 

 

Portrait of a Tree – “How Old Am I”?

While walking along a section of fire road that turns into “Hemlock” trail, I came across this felled tree.   The big old tree had obviously fallen and was blocking the road, requiring it to be sawed.   The trunk was lying along the edge of the trail, and I thought how beautiful it was and wondered how old it was and what all it had experienced in its lifetime.

 

 

Portrait of Tree – XVIII

I spotted this old stump of a tree that apparently had been hollowed out by weather and insects.   Mother nature decided it would make a perfect “planter” for a new tree!    Talk about reuse and recycle!

Portrait of a Tree – XVII – what IS that?

As I’ve hiked around Acadia, I have found many trees with these “bulbous” growths coming out of them.   This is not at all common in (no pun intended), the “neck of the woods” from which I hail (Pennsylvania), but seems to be a very common occurence here.

Most of the growths I have seen have been on pine trees.  Check out this tree near one of carriage road bridges I recently visited:

 

 

This particular tree has two of these growths occurring along its trunk.   With a little research, I learned that these are called “burls”, and Wikipedia describes them as follows:

“A burl results from a tree undergoing some form of stress. It may be caused by an injury, virus or fungus. Most burls grow beneath the ground, attached to the roots as a type of malignancy that is generally not discovered until the tree dies or falls over. Such burls sometimes appear as groups of bulbous protrusions connected by a system of rope-like roots. Almost all burl wood is covered by bark, even if it is underground. Insect infestation and certain types of mold infestation are the most common causes of this condition.

Burls  yield a very peculiar and highly figured wood, prized for its beauty by many; its rarity also adds to its expense. It is sought after by furniture makers, artists, and wood sculptors. There are a number of well-known types of burls (each from a particular species); these are highly valued and sliced into veneers for furniture, inlay in doors, picture frames, household objects, automobile interior paneling and trim, and woodturning.”

And here I thought they (burls) weren’t pretty!

A few days ago, I came upon this massive burl which was all that remained of this particular tree.  I thought it made for a very interesting natural “sculpture”.   I can’t help but wonder how many years it took this growth to form.

 

 

 

After the Storm

After a day of torrential rain and gusty (some very gusty) wind (or as we like to call it here on the island – breezes), it was time to get back out on the trails and get in some hiking miles.

My destination were the last two bridges in the carriage road system, a 5.5 – 6 miles roundtrip hike that would carry me above Jordan Pond.   I’ll cover the bridges in another post, because they were both beautiful, but I have to confess that the fog and water were worthy of a post in their own right.

 

 

Even though the sun was trying to make an appearance when I left Bar Harbor, just a few miles inland, the fog was winning out, giving the carriage road a “Sleepy Hollow” kind of feel.  As I headed away from Jordan Pond I heard the sound of loons echoing across the water.  It definitely set the mood for the morning.

 

 

This particular stretch of carriage road winds pretty steeply up the mountain, hugging the cliffs above Jordan Pond.   Of course the pond was completely obscured from view on the way up the mountain, but by the time I headed back down; I could make out the water and the “Bubbles” mountains.  I love the way the fog was hugging the mountaintops, giving me that delicious feeling of being alone and cocooned by nature.

 

 

At both bridges along my route, I was treated to rushing waterfall, swollen by yesterday’s rains.     Pictured below is Deer Brook Falls.   There is a trail that follows this stream back to Jordan Pond.   At one point the trail crosses over the stream.  Today, that crossing was impossible as the stepping-stones were underwater.    But all that water sure made for great picture-taking!

 

 

Another mile and a half of hiking and I came to second waterfall along Chasm Brook.   By now, the fog was beginning to lift out and I could get a sense of what the view was like as I neared the crest of the mountain.   For those readers familiar with Acadia National Park (or those with a map of the park), the body of water in the distance is Aunt Betty’s Pond.

 

And below is a picture of the Chasm Brook Waterfall.    Not having hiked this particular portion of the carriage roads, I was hoping to see at least one waterfall, and I was treated to two!

Climb every mountain

Yesterday, I hiked Pemetic, the 4th highest mountain peak on the island.   If you will recall, two weeks ago I hiked Champlain which is the 5th highest peak, so I’m literally “working my way up”.

Pemetic is the name that the Wabanaki Indians gave the mountains here, meaning “range of mountains” or “mountains seen at a distance.”   The Wabanaki seasonally fished, hunted, gathered berries, clams, and other shellfish in this area.    So it is only appropriate that one of the mountains retain this name.

Setting Out

This trail begins next to Bubble Pond, and is a steady uphill climb, with one or two (are you serious?) moments in terms of steepness.    I was very glad that I had my backpack in which to stash my camera and water bottle, as the fewer distractions the better.  I also had my handy-dandy emergency whistle hanging around my neck, which is something I hope I NEVER need to use.

After a mile of uphill hiking, I began to get above the tree line and was rewarded with some great views of Bubble pond below, Cadillac mountain directly across from me, and the Atlantic Ocean beyond.  In the opposite direction, I could see across Frenchman’s Bay to the mainland of Maine (pictured below).

 

I continued hiking another half mile to the summit.    From here, you really felt like you were “on top of the world”, or in this case; on top of the island!!   It was fun to look at all the different bodies of water, which after living and hiking here for nearly five months, I was able to identify quickly.   It is difficult to convey the sense of spaciousness one gets from this vantage point, but it the photographs below, I try.   (Remember, any of these images can be viewed full screen by clicking on, then using your brower’s “back” button to return to the post.)

 

 

 

As you can see, the weather was quite glorious, although it was a bit “breezy” on top of that mountain.   We really don’t like to use the word “windy” here on the island, so in that case I guess you could say I’m recovering from a bit of “breezeburn” on my face.

I never cease to be amazed at the variety of texture in the rock.  The picture below gives you a good idea of the cracked and ragged nature of some of the rock found here, especially on the mountaintops.

 

 

 

In the next picture, you can see Jordan pond and the roof of the Jordan Pond House, one of the popular destinations during the summer for park visitors.    When the wealthy first began to use this area as their “playground”, Jordan Pond was a popular destination for picnicking, and afternoon “tea”.    Today, visitors can recreate that experience by enjoying “tea and popovers” while sitting out on the lawn and enjoying the view of the pond and surrounding mountains.   The dress code, however,  is bit more casual these days.

 

 

After enjoying the views and savoring my accomplishment, I set off down the mountain.    Sometimes, going down the hill is more challenging than going up the hill.     This hike was no exception.   There were some VERY steep sections (the trail guide described the trail as nose diving), so it was all about concentrating and taking your time.   The funniest thing was as I was picking my way down the hill, and feeling quite alone, (except for the turkey vultures gliding the thermals overhead – why did I feel like they were waiting for something?), my cell phone starts ringing.    Needless to say, I didn’t stop to answer it, and I was actually glad to know I had cell phone reception at this point, but it did make laugh at the craziness of technology these days.

 

 

I was happy when I reached the NICE, FLAT carriage road that runs along Bubble Pond.   By this time I was thinking about lunch and how good the apple and peanut butter and jelly sandwich (my exotic hiking foods) was going to taste while sitting on a rock near the pond and soaking up the sun.

 

The picture below is where I had my “picnic” before heading home, and resting my tired, but happy self.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zen – “First there is…………….”

I found this “Zen” quote and thought how it related to some of my recent hikes, as well as some of my recent self discoveries.

It goes like this:

    “First there is a mountain.   Then there is no mountain.  Then there is.”

 

 

         “First There Is A Mountain”

 

    

       “Then There Is No Mountain”

                   “Then There Is.”

Sunrise

With the combination of warm weather and relatively late sunrise times (6:30 ish), I really had no excuse not to set the alarm early and head out to Ocean Drive to watch the sunrise.  Acadia National park is one of the first places on the east coast to experience sunrise, and the fact that I saw not one other person in over an hour really made me feel like the sunrise was all mine.

This is also the first time I attempted to photograph sunrise, and while I wasn’t thrilled with my results, I got a few shots that are pictured below.    Practice makes perfect, and strangely, even after getting up so early, I found myself to be very energetic for the rest of the day!    I’m sure the 75 degree temp that day didn’t hurt; it were as if myself and everyone around me were coming out of hibernation!

If you want to see some AMAZING sunrise photos of Acadia (wonderful photographs period), please visit my fellow blogger, Mainer, and Acadia enthusiast David Patterson’s blog:   www.storiesfromhome.wordpress.com

 

I was intrigued by the almost "borealis" effect in the sky on this exposure.

 

 

 

I liked how the early morning light brought out the pink in the rocks, especially on the mountaintops.

 

That lobster boat went by at just the right time!

 

 

 

Portrait of a Tree – XI – Birch Bark

All winter long I’ve been appreciating the beauty of the peeling birch bark on the trees in Acadia.    This particular segment really caught my eye.

Portrait of a Tree – VI

I really liked the shape of this tree and the contrast of the green pine against a stormy sky.