Beep, beep, beep! Snooze. Beep, beep, beep. Time to get up, yes even if it is only 3:38 in the morning. We really wanted to catch the sun rise this AM so had to get out of bed in time to drive to the top of Cadillac Mountain. The sun rises at 4:47 here. That is really early!!
The sky was getting lighter as we drove around and around through the park. MANY others decided to do this as well but we did get a parking space and a great spot on a lovely piece of pink granite! The sunset last evening only garnered may 20 people, but this morning was busy! We estimate 100+? It was heavenly, being so far up (!) but also as it wasn't nearly as windy as last night. That wind was sort of scary as it was so intense! It was a workout just trying to hold yourself in a position not to blow away! As it was we blew around like those tall skinny things with arms that car dealers have? That would have been us last night! This morning, not so much.
The pictures really don't do anything justice, especially sunsets and sunrises! The sun crept up slowly, giving everything dashes of color, changing the clouds to look alive. It was beautiful!! So what do you do at 5 AM? Well, we decided we'd see Sand Beach and Thunder Hole. We tried Sand Beach yesterday but it was way too crowded. It wasn't today!! There were maybe 10 of us total? Sandy beaches are a rarity in Maine because cold water traps gasses that dissolve seashells and the coastline is mostly granite which dissolves very slowly. There are some off shore rocks that sort of diverts water into this cove which captures shell fragments, or sand. The sand was a brown color vs most of the beaches here that are black and very rocky. There was a family off to the side taking pictures, and we overheard one comment, "Oh, they took the cones down." Actually mother nature took the cones down but after they left we went over to see what we could see and it was a baby harbor seal. They are so adorable! We didn't see a mother anywhere but later in the day we learned that they are actually born in the water and they when old enough come ashore. We never did find out if she was a lone pup or if a momma was somewhere near.
Thunder Hole is a hole, or narrow cave in a granite ledge that was gouged out by the relentless force of the ocean. This "hole" fills with water and creates a burst of ocean spray, sounding just like thunder! We left this area to head back to Whoville Way (our home away from home until tomorrow) and came across a couple of little foxes by the road. We really haven't see much wildlife except for chipmunks. THOSE are everywhere and are very loud when scurrying about in the woods!! Anyway, the foxes were cute and sort of popped up and down, disappearing and reappearing in a slope next to the road.
We opted for a nap as getting up at 3:38 is really early. We slept in, and decided to head over to Bass Harbor and take the scenic route. We stopped at Northeast Harbor and had a picnic overlooking the marina. There are food trucks everywhere and lobster everywhere. Lobster mac and cheese, lobster bisque (the best food ever!), lobster rolls, both hot and cold, and today, lobster clubs that included avocado and bacon and some dark leafy greens. Cheryl had a blueberry soda too! Yummy! We noticed something very unusual about his marina--there were no gulls, none, nada. Interesting. We asked a couple sitting nearby but they weren't from this area but had noticed the same thing! Mystery!
We found the Bass Harbor lighthouse and got to see it from three different angles! One a trail around and down so we could see it from the rock ledges sort of in front of it. The other down a path so we literally were next to the fence in their yard. It is an active lighthouse that is occupied by a family in the Coast Guard. It states that on a big sign, along with "No peeking in windows." "No littering." "No knocking on the door." Do these things even have to be stated? Can't we just be polite? Peeking in windows?? Littering? We have to be reminded of those things. Sorry for the rant but...
Oh, the third time we saw it was from our nature boat trip. That was truly a neat view of it, even with lots of tourists crawling all over the place. :) Cheryl kept hearing lovely wind chimes and they kept coming from different directions. She thought the Coast Guard family may have some up and the wind was just moving the sound around. It turns out the buoys have those cools sounds coming from them. Andrew knew this but it was new for Cheryl. The sounds were so lyrical and relaxing with an ocean feel. Obviously!
We went ahead to our boat tour just to check on logistics and check in. After that we opted to walk to a nearby restaurant for a quick beverage. Andrew got a blueberry beer, complete with blueberries. It tasted quite delicious. The manager/owner told us that they have an extra large tap so the berries don't get stuck! Too funny.
As we walked down the wooden plank towards our boat we noticed wiring on the top of the rail. It looked a LOT like the electric fencing back home so we were a bit leery about touching it so we just assumed it is to keep the birds off, but we forgot to ask!
The boat ride was most interesting! The "captain" was born and raised in this area and shared some of the most interesting things. Maine has more than 3400 miles of coastline, counting the main lands and islands. This is more than California! Did you know that Harbor Seals are safe here as the water is just a little too cold for sharks? Apparently harbor seals are THE best food ever for sharks.
Lobsters are migratory!! And they don't swim! They walk along the ocean floor. Lobsters have to be certain sizes to be kept, they inflate themselves with water so they can lose their shell once its gotten too small and keep themselves "inflated" with water for several weeks until their new shell is in place. They migrate towards the shore once the water is warm enough, usually July, and then back out again in November once the shoreline waters get too cold. Since they throw lobsters back in, but they bait their traps with herring which lobsters love, farmers have actually seen a growth of the lobster population even with more fishing. The lobsters know a good thing when they have it with an unlimited supply of herring, so they hang out. They keep getting thrown back in if they are too small or too big. They want the big ones back in as the bigger females can produce LOTS of eggs in her lifetime so LOTS of lobsters! AND lobster fisherman can make some big money right now since there are so many lobsters BUT there is a process of becoming a lobster fisherman which requires apprenticing, and applying for a license and right now there is a waiting list of about 52 years. :) UNLESS you are young and can get your apprentice in during age 14-17 and then get a temp license and a permanent one at 18. Then you just have to remember to renew each year or you get put into the pot of those that want to be commercial fisherman. You can privately lobster 5 times per year and just not sell it. He actually demonstrated by pulling up one of his lobster traps, 1 keeper, and 4 he had to throw back. So much information to even share here! Whew..and that was just some of his lobster info!!
There was the story of a couple who bought an island and moved there from California and lived there for 36 years in isolation! BUT we didn't catch their name. We are interested in the "rest of the story" so we'll have to research who he was referring to.
And the story of the island that was home to lots of local birds and no one is allowed to step foot on those areas now and haven't been able to for 80 years! Locals would want "protein" in the spring and would go over to get bird eggs. Some eggs had birds in them so they would just crack ALL the eggs, knowing the next morning when they went over the eggs would be safe to take and eat. BUT it nearly annihilated the bird population.
The guide also talked about the history of the islands and area. Some islands were booming in the 1700-1800 as boats would come and get the fish and such directly instead of having to come to the mainland. They eventually moved inland when railroads could move things too and the weather on the islands is much more harsh. It actually buffers the weather for this area's inland! Some islands now have only a few permanent residents but summer finds them busier.
We were shown an Atlantic Salmon fish hatchery. Apparently this is the perfect place in the entire world as the water is perfect, the "waves" are pushed through from out of sea into this area just right so as to keep the fish areas "clean", and more. It just interesting to see how this kind of operation works!
He pointed out a large gray boulder sitting on top of the standard of Maine, pink granite. This entire area was sculpted by a series of glaciers and these glaciers often left things from other areas behind as they inched forward and scraped back. Glaciers are so fascinating!
Talking so much lobster we decided to have lobster for supper. We found a restaurant in Bar Harbor. It was tasty even if hard to eat. We also finished our Bar Harbor adventure with blueberry pie, warmed, with a side of ice cream.
Tomorrow we head east and up!
Nighty night!
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