Back to the Real World.

[kv0925]

I has returned! The trip was pretty good, all things considered. We wanted to escape the brutal Florida heat, and for the most part we did. I was concerned about the rain chances up where we were going, but aside from 2 semi-rainy mornings, everything held together pretty well. The worst thing about the trip was all the driving. I guess I was pretty ambitious in my itinerary, which covered a lot of ground over 6 days, and we ended up spending several hours a day in the car--about 900 miles in total. I didn't mind the driving (probably because I was doing all the driving), but everyone else got pretty sick of it, plus it sorta felt like we were rushing through some things because we knew there was a drive to the next stop (and to our hotel at the end of each day). So lesson learned: next time be a bit more conservative, concentrate on a smaller area, and leave more time to enjoy each destination unless I know it's a quick hit-and-run stop.

So anyway, I've got the photos from the first few days of the trip edited, so I thought I'd go ahead and do a Part 1 recap. So here you go! Lots of photos, of course. :)


We flew into Manchester, and grabbed our rental car. I was a little apprehensive about that, because usually we reserve a minivan, but there were none available so I had to book a Standard car. Usually Avis is good about giving me something above the level I book, so I was hoping they might--but I also knew they were either sold out or close to it and pickings might be slim. To my relief we ended up with a Subaru Outback. Which is kinda funny, because I noted on our 2013 New England trip how many Subarus there are driving around up there. It makes sense given the winter weather and the fact that Subarus are all-wheel drive, of course, it just struck me as unusual since we don't see a preponderance of Subarus here in Florida. Anyway, I was glad for the Outback because it seemed roomy enough for the girls in back, and I ended up really liking it. As I told the wife, the only things it seemed to lack were a compass, a powered hatch in back, and blind-spot sensors. Everything else was really cool, and it was a pleasure to drive. I'd totally get one.

So from the airport we grabbed a quick lunch, and then drove to the Sculptured Rocks Natural Area. We found that there were no restroom facilities there, so we basically had to turn right around and take the girls back to a bathroom up the road. But once we returned, we spent some time exploring. The girls were in heaven because they love climbing around on big rocks and wading in water. Plenty of that on this trip, of course!









Next we headed up into the White Mountains and Franconia Notch State Park. We checked out The Basin and the nearby Baby Flume.







We spent the night in the town of Franconia, and the next morning went over to Crawford Notch State Park to check out some waterfalls. First up, the Silver Cascade:



Nearby we stopped at the Willey House historic site.





In 1826 there was a landslide here. The Willey family fled their home to try to escape the slide, only to be trapped and killed. Meanwhile, and ironically, these boulders diverted the slide around their house, which survived unscathed.


We got some duck food to share.



Next stop: Ripley Falls. Well, that was the idea, anyway. The falls eluded us--we decided we'd missed a turn on the trail so we turned back (everyone was getting tired of hiking anyway), but I think we actually didn't go quite far enough. Oh well, the walk was nice anyway.




And we saw our first chipmunk of the trip! We like these because we don't have them here.


Hallie enjoyed leading the way on our hikes.


This was neat--an old covered bridge, converted into a nifty gift shop.

On to Pinkham Notch and Glen Ellis Falls. This one was quite impressive.





And then Screw Auger Falls, which was a pretty awesome place as well.






















Had to grab some portraits against the lovely greenery.



Onward to Maine! We made the trek to Coos Canyon, and a cool shop where we could pan for gold flakes.




Yes, we did find some--but we bought bags of dirt that were guaranteed to contain some, so we would have been upset not to! :)


Across the street, the Swift River canyon was pretty incredible.





That night we bedded down in Waterville. The next morning was rainy, but we planned to spend the morning at a children's museum in Bangor, so that was okay.


And what's a stop in Bangor without a paparazzi visit to Stephen King's house?


I also wanted to take a look at this--the shield and scrollwork were recovered from the USS Maine after it was bombed in Havana harbor, 1898.


The children's museum was okay, we've been to better. :)

After that, we headed down to Acadia National Park, which I'd been really looking forward to. And I must say, I was fairly disappointed. Oh, it was beautiful, the bits we saw--but it was really crowded, and to me that just defeats the whole point of a nature park. I want to see nature and get AWAY from people, dammit! I'm sure it was just the wrong time of year--I imagine there are times when the place isn't a madhouse. But this wasn't it. Still, what we did see was pretty--here around the Southwest Harbor/Bass Head area.





We'd almost written the place off, but after we checked into our hotel in Trenton (which left much to be desired, alas) I suggested we try to make it up Cadillac Mountain for the sunset. We just barely made it, and of course many others had the same idea. Totally worth it, though!




I don't think the girls had ever been anywhere so windy!




Amy got chilly.







And that was the first 3 days of our adventures. More to come!

Comments

[solteronita.livejournal.com]

You did pack a lot in! Love the photos!

[cp.livejournal.com]

3 more days' worth coming in short order! :) Thanks!

[adnama-wpg.livejournal.com]

Awesome pics!!

[cp.livejournal.com]

Sorta hit-and-miss in my mind, but not too shabby. :) Thanks!

[sirndipiti.livejournal.com]

You sure squeezed in a lot in a short time. Thanks for sharing the marvelous pix.

[cp.livejournal.com]

That was the first 3 days, 3 more coming up shortly! ;)

[scriptdelalune.livejournal.com]

Absolutely magical photos :)

[cp.livejournal.com]

I love hanging back and watching the girls explore places. :)

[jennyrhill.livejournal.com]

Wooooow, great photos!

[cp.livejournal.com]

Thanks very much--more on the way! :)

[re-vised.livejournal.com]

Wow! Stunning photos. I especially love the third. Their clothing is brliant against the cove (?) and moss.

You don't have chipmunks in Florida?! Really?

[cp.livejournal.com]

Yup! Scads of grey squirrels, flying squirrels (though they're nocturnal so we don't see much of them), occasionally big fox squirrels here and there. I think chipmunks go as far south as Georgia, but not this far. I'm sure people who have lots of them around come to despise them, but since they're still novel for us we think they're cute. :)

And thanks! That third shot was a happy accident--they were sitting in a pool of sunlight and I metered on them, which made the rest of the shot really dark since it was down in a gorge. But I thought it was a neat effect, especially with their reflection in the water, so I ran with it and only brightened the background a teensy bit, just enough to see a touch of the color and detail.

[re-vised.livejournal.com]

I blame my phone for the terrible spelling of "brilliant". Goodness! But yeah, the overall feel of the photo is really nice, and even warm despite the "coolness" of the surroundings.

We have tons of chipmunks and I still love them! They ARE cute.

[musicpsych.livejournal.com]

Great pics! I love the sunset ones especially. They look magical.

[audamy.livejournal.com]

Great photos as usual!

I didn't find it too terribly crowded in Acadia when we were there. Not any more crowded than most of the parks here in Asheville anyway, so I wasn't too bothered by it. The top of Cadillac mountain was the busiest spot we went to but I expected that since you can just get to the top by driving. We did a few hikes and bike rides and they were all fine. We saw some people by the popular sightseeing spots you can park close to but the rest of the time we didn't see too many other people.