So... it would seem that my lessons in flexibility were about to be ramped up. Overnight, the weather took a turn for the worse and we woke to an extremely soggy campground with much more rain in the forecast. Bummer. We had ditched Bar Harbor/Acadia from our plans due to the the government shutdown and decided to stay in the Camden area for two nights instead-- hoping to still see some pretty scenery/coastline and take a harbor tour. Now, with the yucky weather, that was quickly looking like an impossibility as well. We also did NOT want to be stuck inside the RV for half of our time in Maine. What to do?? We researched and called and finally settled on the idea that we would rent a car and drive south to the towns of Pemaquid Point and Booth Bay Harbor (to see the ocean, not just the bay, Heather!!).
We secured a rental car for the day and were off (in the rain) to do some exploring. Of course, I was the designated driver-- as Michael pointed out, it was only fair considering all the driving he has done! Agreed. We headed south to Pemaquid Point. Just to give you an idea of how remote we are up here-- we basically have no cell service or data service... and the satellite radio on the rental car would even go in and out of having a signal! Thank goodness for free wi-fi at the campground or I would be way behind on my blogging!
As we were driving, the rain began to slow down and stop (yay!) and by time we reached the lighthouse park at Pemaquid, we actually saw the sun for about 5 minutes! This lighthouse was so cute. Not quite as impressive in size as the Portland Head, but still very cool. And it was open for climbing! Three out of four of us were happy about this :) Actually, number 4 really did fine with the climb. This lighthouse is the one that appears on the back of the Maine state quarter-- so that was another cool bit of trivia.
The light inside looks like a beehive. It had a fancy name which I forget-- the only thing I remember is the guide downstairs repeatedly telling us not to touch it! He said it would shine for 10-12 miles out to sea.
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| A winding staircase up followed by a climb on a ladder to get into the light room |
After we finished in the lighthouse and fisherman's museum in the keeper's house, it was time to explore the rocky coastline.
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| I think this was the one Michael took right before the wave crashed over the rocks and splashed him! |
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| The waves seemed really rough to us but the lighthouse guide said they were only 2-3 ft and they often get 10-12 ft-- we would NOT have been on the rocks in that case!! The water temp was a balmy 56 degrees! |
After exploring Pemaquid, we got back in the car and headed down to Booth Bay Harbor. It is probably just a few miles to get there from Pemaquid--- via the ocean-- but 20 + by land because along the coast of Maine, the land juts out into the water like fingers so you have to go up and down each finger to get to the cool places at each tip. As we were driving, the rain returned. Boo.
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| Booth Bay Harbor |
We at lunch at a little restaurant on the water and walked through a few shops in Booth Bay Harbor-- but the weather was really pretty icky. There were some people but not many. You can definitely tell that this is the end of their season. Our waitress said pretty much everything closes in about 2 weeks for the entire winter. We couldn't see much so we decided to make our way back toward Camden... We made a few stops along the way and got back into town as it was getting dark. We walked through the cute town and down to their harbor area. The nice couple who took our picture told us they had gone to Acadia and just walked through the barricades to get to some places in the park. Happy to hear reports of people using the land that belongs to them (stupid government).
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| Camden harbor at dusk |
Tomorrow (Tuesday) we will leave Maine and head for the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Maine is lovely. The coastline is impressive and majestic. I am sad the weather was mildly uncooperative and the government was super uncooperative-- but we still really enjoyed what we were able to see and experience. Definitely a place we would like to visit again!!
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