Thu 20 Jun - Bar Harbor, ME

Beautiful weather again so - Kayak day and then walking day.

We did 4 hours kayaking from 8.30am which is when our selected kayaking business opened for the day. And by the way, it was a fabulous day for it as well.

We chatted to the guy, Steve, who ran the place, about how we were there the other day and he said that the young lads (his grandsons) then said that they wanted to "adopt us". The owner also knew the owner of our motel, Jimmy. We were photographed for their Facebook page and were made to put a pin onto a world map to show where we came from. All fun and jokes early in the morning.

Here is the ramp from where we set off. Hans had the blue and Di had the red orange kayak.

And Di is in the water with her kayak...

Action Jackson.

The lake at 9am was almost completely still, and as a result it was fantastic to be out on the water.

The world of the Long Pond, as the lake is known, as seen from Hans kayak. And Hans skinny knees...

The Long Pond is 4 miles (about 6.4km) long (hence the name) so we had plenty of space to explore. We did just that, going around a peninsular and trying to find an island known for Loons nesting.

Loons are a lovely water bird local to here. They swim like ducks, fish for food like Cormorants and call.... well like a loon! The calls can sound like dry hacking coughs or almost an Aussie cooee and anything in between. We saw a few fishing loons nearby as we paddled. Lovely birds.

On the way we saw this (see photo below). We were not quite sure what this was, but we think that it may be an artificial bird's nest. It was built like a tiny island out on the water some distance from land. No signs of birds or feathers or eggs in there, but it looked "flattened" as if it had been used.

And Di is off again... Wait Di...

A self portrait in our kayaks on the lake.

We eventually found the small island in the lake, known for loons that are nesting there, i.e. keep your distance and don't disturb them. We did find one loon nesting. The photo below was a long distance shot and not very clear, but the loon can be seen in there - she has a long black head, narrow black beak and white collar then a mix of black and white body markings.

Close to where we started our kayaking adventure, there was a little bay where the kayak owner, Steve, told us that an eagle could be found. We could see or hear nothing of that, but this is where the lake was dammed up as you could hear that spillway. Better stay away and not get too close.

Here is looking back out from that little bay.

We finished off our kayaking around noon, after paddling about 5 miles (8km) and went back to our motel for a shower and a change of clothes.

We were now up to lunch time and we wandered into town to get a bite. Our first lunch choice, Cafe This Way, was closed as it does only breakfast and dinner, but not lunch. We then found a small deli selling lunch to go, sandwiches and salads, which is where we did our purchases. Lunch at the town park was a perfect location.

Hans tried one of the region's "famous" lobster rolls, which are sold everywhere. Not much food, and not cheap ($12.95) but very tasty. The lobster roll didn't really fill you up though.

Di had a tuna mayo roll which was slightly bigger and equally tasty, but still not much of a meal.

Once again, the vendor threw into a small bag of Frito Lays crisps each with our orders. We don't know where this custom came from, but we speculated that Lays may have had a campaign of free crisps with every sandwich at some stage and the punters just got used to getting them. We've seen this all over America.

After lunch, we wandered the Shore Trail again and then back onto Main Street. We passed an ice cream shop with the most amazing names for their ice cream flavours. Appalachian Trail? Maine Survivor?

Di purchased a soft plain yogurt after which we crossed Main Street and walked into the Village Green for her to consume it there. Very English... BTW, the village green is wired and provides free wifi. Like that!

We found a map of Bar Harbor with points of interest marked that are publicly accessible to view.

We then wandered back to our motel for an afternoon break.
 
Around 4pm, we are on the road again to drive the short distance to where we could walk the Eagle Lake Loop. We had visited this trail briefly on Tuesday and thought that we would like to do the full loop, which is just under 6 miles (10km) long.
We assumed that a later afternoon start would mean less people, cooler air and better light for photography. And we think that we were right on all counts. It was a lovely walk, mostly flat but with a few gradual hills along the way. Here we are looking across Eagle Lake from north to south.

The path is part of the 45 miles carriage way network established by John D Rockefeller II. So a smooth wide path suitable for horse and carriage. The paths are well sign posted so there was no chance of getting lost - Di knew the map by heart anyway. She is very clever that way...

The Lake Loop is a really pleasant walk, we can't call it a hike as we are not skipping over boulders or tree roots etc. The carriage way is in great condition, no potholes etc which is why any people we did see were joggers or bike riders.

Even the run off for water has been engineered and is supported by rocks.

The gravel road that makes up the Carriage Way is in excellent condition. Very well maintained.

Dianna on the rock(s)

A self portrait back on the south side of Eagle Lake to complete our walking of the Lake Loop.

We found this note and a pink ribbon on a tree next to the parking lot that we used. The pink ribbons were frequently seen around the park and we didn't think anything about it. But there you go...

We finish our walk around 6pm and drive back home.

Dinner is in the room, well outside on the porch, and consist of prawn soup from a can and a couple of TV dinners. It may not sound like much, but it is surprisingly good.

Early night tonight, we plan to raise by 3.30am tomorrow morning. Good night.

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