You probably guessed that we spent last week in the beautiful state of Maine. I remember looking at U.S. maps at school growing up and thinking of Maine as being such remote, and foreign land. And I guess it sort of it, unless you live in Massachusetts or New Hampshire, and even then a lot of folks wouldn’t think of driving the 3 – 8 hours it might take to reach one of Maine’s beautiful coastal cities. That’s because they are not from a state in which you could possibly drive 15 hours in one direction and never leave the state!

However…the native Texans and perpetual tourists are always up for a road trip.
6 hours? That’s just to Dallas and back. Easy day trip.

Robert had planned this trip to Bar Harbor, ME in the early spring as a way for us to celebrate our 18th wedding anniversary. We stayed at a lovely bed and breakfast – possibly one of the nicest in the area. The innkeepers there – Jeff and Catherine, blessed us beyond measure with their hospitality. They have thought of every imaginable detail down to pre-programmed GPS’s to several more difficult but local destinations available for guests to take and use at their convenience. There were two choices for breakfast each morning, afternoon tea at 4pm, and they even made me some gluten free pancakes on our final morning there.

The Primrose Inn is not only a business for them, but also a ministry. They actually advertise on their website that they would like for pastors and wives, and others in ministry to come and stay there for a very special discount. This, coupled with their friendliness and attention to every possible need or want, made for a very special gift to us.

Bar Harbor is also the home to Acadia National Park, which is a very spectacular place – mountains, forests, beach, and ocean all in one! In each room at the B&B there was an audio CD that you could pop into your car player for a driving tour of the park. We did that first thing Sunday morning, stopping at almost every location to hike a bit or enjoy the view. Part of the reason Robert chose Bar Harbor and Acadia was because he had been here before on a special father-son camping trip for Kory’s 13th birthday. He was mesmerized by the beauty of the place and could not wait to show it all to me.

*A little break from topic here to show you some other sights that are beautiful to me in recent years – restaurants catering to those with a gluten intolerance! Above is a lobster omelet and spicy home-fries. (You really can’t go to Maine and NOT eat lobster. It would be like going to Texas and not eating Mexican food or barbecue. Scandalous.) This came from a fun restaurant called 2 Cats just a couple of blocks from the B&B, and we went there for lunch one day. They were well-imformed on all things GF, so it was very comforting.

Another place we frequented was a cute cafe/natural grocery store called Tamarind. I saw this sign upon walking in and got so excited. Honestly, I don’t eat a lot of gluten free bread-y products or baked goods, but it just makes me happy to find places that understand and accommodate, so of course I have to indulge in order to support their efforts! I had one of my first ever restaurant GF pizzas for lunch at this place.*

I’m fairly certain the reason the place is called Bar Harbor is because of this large sandbar that appears at low tide. You can actually walk out to the closest of the “Porcupine Islands” – or drive, but you only have about a three hour window to enjoy the sea life and shells there or a bit of hiking around on the island before the tide begins to come back in. A couple of cars were submerged there the week before we arrived!

Below is the other side of the harbor and sandbar. I love the low hanging clouds that perfectly line the landscape.

On Monday morning, we planned to get up at 4:30a.m. and drive to the top of Cadillac Mountain in order to see the sunrise at 5:27a.m. – one of the first U.S. locations to see the sun come up. We had been to the top the day before and even mid-afternoon on a sunny day it was cold and windy, so when Robert stuck his head out our back door in the B&B after the alarm went off and discovered that the wind was whipping here at sea level, we knew the mountain would be miserable at that hour. So, we went back to sleep for an hour and a half and then got up and drove to a lake located at the base of Cadillac Mountain called Eagle Lake. There is what’s called a “carriage trail” around the lake which connects to a network or 55 miles of connected carriage trails in the interior of the park. The one around Eagle Lake was 6.2 miles which was perfect for our weekly “long run” as we are planing to run another half-marathon in October. Just a few minutes into our run it started to rain and the wind was already strong, but we kept going and ended up drenched at the end. Sounds crazy, but we actually enjoyed it. The large jacuzzi bathtub in our private bathroom was also enjoyable after a hearty breakfast back at the inn!

After we checked out on our last morning there we hiked the “Beehive.” It is a very popular short, but steep hike to a beautiful peak overlooking the park and ocean. And unlike the White Mountains of New Hampshire, Acadia has provided some nice, sturdy, metal hand holds in a few places along the way without which the hike would be impossible unless you had special gear.

And then we were off and headed south to Ogunquit, ME where our kids awaited us for three more nights of Maine fun and beauty. Just a short stop on the way to purchase some wild Maine blueberries – the little tiny ones – and some fresh picked blackberries. I passed on the moose antlers this man was selling, but he had LOTS and many people browsing through them!

So blessed.
So thankful the Lord provides gifts like this for us. Praising Him for His constant provision in our lives and also for the provision of 18 years of marriage!

Next up: Part 2: Family Beach Vacation!