3 Weeks Later!!

A lot has been happening since I last  'posted'  3 weeks ago. Trevor's sister, Coralie visited us for 10 days and has now returned home; Fall colours have peaked in a number of the places we have visited; the weather is getting cooler and we have had rain!
I left the blog in Vermont ... St Johnsbury to be exact. On 20 September we travelled about 230 miles in 3 States on Highway 2 - setting off  on a cold misty morning of 0C.  It felt very cold. We were unable to use the heater (or so we thought) as only had a 30amp hookup. I had 2 pairs of socks on and a beanie. I walked for 1/2 an hour which helped to warm things up.

We crossed the border from Vermont into New Hampshire at Lancaster,then drove 35-40 miles across New Hampshire to the border into Maine.
We stopped for a coffee in Gorham, NH.  A few miles further on,
the Appalachian Trail crosses Hwy 2 on its way to Mt Katahdin in Maine - of great interest to us as we have hiked about 600 miles of the AT in North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia.


We didn't know it but we would return to New Hampshire to drive the highways south of Hwy 2. But even now the leaf colours are changing quite dramatically and the drive was beautiful.
We upset the GPS by staying on Hwy 2, (definitely not an Interstate) and travelling through small towns. In the end we had to turn her off as she went on and on ...
After crossing into Maine we had a  slow drive due to road works. We stopped at the Pumpkin Patch RV park in Bangor. How could we resist!  Thanks to Eoin Cameron of 720 ABC Perth.

The Pumpkin Patch RV park was recommended by neighbours at the Moose Rive Campground and it was a great spot. A lot of RV's. The gardens were decorated for Thanksgiving and Halloween. I am still not sure how these 2 calendar events come together, but for the last several weeks we have seen so many garden displays and decorated yards highlighting the colours of harvest and halloween. The centre of the displays include large pots of chrysanthemums and pumpkins large and small, decorated and plain.


We did all our washing and then dined out at the Park's restaurant. A cold night, clear and starlit.
The next morning we headed for the coast and Bar Harbor in the Acadia National Park. Again we parked up at an RV park recommended by people we had met along the way; Timberland Acres RV park.

I have to show you our latest purchase for the RV - a rack for the septic hose. It looks so tidy and creates the necessary 'fall'! I had seen them on other motor homes and just had to get one. Doesn't it look great?







We stayed in Bar Harbor for 4 days and hired a car to properly explore. It was beautiful; great to be so near to the ocean.
This part of Maine is called Downeast Maine. It lies between Pendoscot Bay to the west and the Canadian border to the east. The irregular coast line provides grand scenic views.
The sea was one of the main reasons for settlement of the region. The economies of some towns are strongly tied to fishing and related activities.
The ocean Downeast is dotted with numerous islands, from barely visible to Mt Desert Island. Bar Harbor is on Mt Desert Island.
The Island was discovered by Samuel de Champlain in 1604 and was
part of L'Acadie which included the coasts of what is now Eastern Maine, New Brunswick and Novia Scotia.

 Bar Harbor is an idyllic port village. It is a stopping off place for numerous cruise ships.  There was one in port each day we were there including the Queen Mary!

 

 
















And then there are the lobsters!  We had lobster for lunch on the jetty at Bar Harbor.  We bought 2 lobster and had them cooked for a fairly messy dinner. But they were delicious although we both agree that they don't compare to our marron.