It was a cool and foggy morning, and we had to be off the ship early for our excursion to Acadia National Park. We tendered in to the port with a large local tender boat.
We would have time after the excursion to see the town of Bar Harbor and we hoped the sun would soon burn off the fog.
Soon we were on the bus and ready for our tour.
It was a short drive to the entrance of the park.
John D Rockefeller commissioned many of the roads in the park – including the Ring Road – in the 1920s and 1930s. He was responsible for using these large coping stones as guardrails. The locals call them “Rockefeller’s teeth” and it looks as if they could take a bite out of your car if you weren’t careful.
We made a stop at the Thunder Hole where you can see the pink granite rock formations up close.
The sea views are pretty spectacular here.
Next we stopped by a tidal pool to get a good view of Cadillac and Dorr mountains. Cadillac is the taller one with the stone cliffs at the top.
Lots of birds hanging out in the tidal flats.
J D Rockefeller also commissioned a number of these classic stone bridges for the Ring Road and the many “Carriage Roads” in the park. These latter roads do not allow autos but they are great for hiking and biking.
When our tour was over, the bus dropped us back at the tender dock. We were able to take a walk through the town of Bar Harbor. This little park just up the hill from the dock gives a nice view of the islands and the bay.
Downtown Bar Harbor has some interesting buildings like the 1932 Art Deco Criterion Theater.
Buy your stuff here and you can look Cool as a Moose. Or maybe not.
After some walking we found ourselves at the Village Green. This large square was originally the site of the Grand Central Hotel but that building was demolished in 1899 to make way for the Green.
Another view of the Village Green with the shiny red BHFD trucks in the background.
Finished with our port visit we hopped the tender boat for our trip back to the ship.
It wasn’t long until the Adventure OTS was in sight.
We were back aboard and the wake of the tender boat was disappearing in the distance. Another great day of weather and a nice visit to coastal Maine.
