Champlain Mountain and the Bowl

Wednesday July 19, 2017                                                                    Most Recent Posts:
Acadia National Park                                                                 On the Rocks more than the Path
Bar Harbor, Maine                                                         Gorham Mountain, Cadillac Cliffs and the Shore Below

 

 

Today is Wednesday, infusion day for David so he’ll have the car all day.  He drops me off early at the trailhead on the park loop road so that I can hike up Champlain Mountain.

 

 

It’s a rocky start but not difficult.

 

When the trail hits the blueberries my pace slows WAY down.

 

 

Enough easy berry picking, back to the rocks.

 

The web builders have been seriously busy.  Looks like the close quarters of some RV parks.

 

 

 

I’ve really been looking forward to the views on this hike.  Bill and Nancy said they were great.  I hadn’t bargained on yet more early morning fog.  I should have of course, but in my enthusiasm I didn’t.

 

 

At least there are  “sort of” steps at the beginning of this section..

 

 

 

Not totally socked in.  I can see what I think is the Bowl.   The bowl is described as “a spring fed kettle pond …nestled in a glacier cirque on the south ridge of Champlain Mountain”.   I’m currently hiking up the North ridge so I think I’m nearing the summit when I can see the Bowl.

 

 

Hiking over the rock face into the fog.

 

 

What in the world are these?  Shrooms having a bad hair day?  Any micologists out there?

 

 

 

More rocks, more fog.

 

 

With all the fog, I’m forced to look even more than I usually do at the things around my feet.

 

I thought it was a trio from above, but it turns out to be a quartet.

 

 

 

 

Not the bowl, just a temporary rainwater capture.on top.  Pretty neat!

 

 

 

And here I am.  The skies above are blue but the fog is still below.

 

 

It never ceases to amaze me how oportunistic Jack Pines are.  They’ll grow on a rock mountain top.

 

Heading back down, I’m in the fog again. 

 

 

From a bit lower down the south rim, it looks like the fog may be lifting.   I’ve missed all the great views going up the north ridge and at the top but perhaps I’ll get some coming down the south and at the bowl.  At least I can see it from here.

 

 

Walking down through the trees, I’m serenaded again.  I love hiking to bird song melodies.   He’s in the top branches of what I think is a White Spruce.  That he is up there on top is the only reason I can find him.

 

 

Views at last.  Not full but much better.

 

 

The last stretch down to the bowl is in the woods and down . . .down.. 

 

 

 

Things are beautifully clear at the bowl.  That’s the Beehive in the background.  It’s a very popular rungs and ladders hike over what from some directions is a beehive shaped mountain. It’s heavily trafficed and not for those with a fear of heights.  So I’m expecting to see a lot of folks from this point on, especially now that the fog has cleared.    It is after the 10am witching hour after all.

 

 

 

As I walk on around the bowl I do see many people along its Beehive side shore.  Nobody is on the downward trail which is mostly stairs at first and then a regular path and then serious ROCKS.

 

 

At least nobody until I catch up to them near the bottom of the steps.

 

And we all catch up to more on the path.

 

I turn around to get pictures of the rocks I’ve just come down.  Nobody behind me.

 

 

Stopping for the picture means when I turn around to proceed there is no one in front of me either.  Glad I brought my hiking pole for this section.

 

By the time I’m at the bottom there is starting to be a line to go up to the top.

 

 

I walk on over to the Sand Beach bus stop and find the bus to Bar Harbor Village Green will be here in just 4 minutes.  Great timeing!!

 

 

From the village Green I walk back down toward the harbor and through Agamont Park on my way to the Shore Path which goes along the harbor and out of town connecting with other walking possibilities.  This is not to be confused with the Ocean Path which is what we did on Monday also in the fog along the coast by the loop road.

 

I’ll pick up the Shore Path just beyond the gazebo.  Looks like the fog is here.

 

 

The Shore Path goes right by the lovely Bar Harbor Inn which has a great outdoor dining area where the yellow umbrellas are.

 

 

I pass it by and turn around for a picture of both the indoor dining room with its walls of windows and the outdoor umbrella area known as the Terrace Grille. Great views both when the skies are clear.

 

Love seeing kids so interested in tide pools that they are taking cell phone pictures.   Guess these are “rock stars” too!

 

 

I’m headed to this spot to have my lunch before catching the bus back to the campground.  Lucky for me the bench is free.

 

 

Back in town I’m feeling a bit like this guy but think I’ll wait for my nap on the bus.  The ride is 45 minutes long.

 

 

But I don’t have to drive and I love having the buses go pretty  much everywhere you might want to go on MDI.  Without them I’d be stuck on Wednesdays and I have really enjoyed riding them.

On the Rocks more than the Path

Monday July 17, 2017                                                                                 Most Recent Posts:
Acadia National Park                                                  Gorham Mountain, Cadillac Cliffs and the Shore Below
Bar Harbor, Maine                                                       David Reports on the Seal Cove Auto Museum

 

 

After our walk on the Ocean Path yesterday, we decided to come back today and do the whole thing.   Unfortunately the fog that was supposed to lift, did for about 5 minutes.  But there’s not a bad day in Acadia and we had a wonderful time.

This time we started out early at Sand Beach.   It’s before 7am. It’s in the upper 50’s but still there are  folks already here back in a corner.  We wonder if they slept on the beach.

 

 

 

 

From there we take the stairs up to the Ocean path.  We’re going to do the entire round trip.   Here it is a lot of stairs up to the “Trail Head”..  So unless you want to see the beach first, as we did, don’t go down there from the parking lot.  You’ll just have to climb back up.

 

 

The path is mostly gravel and we head through the trees until we come to the first rock face.  As I mentioned before, we walk the rocks rather than the path whenever we can. 

 

 

Some bright pretties along the path

 

Onto the rocks we go.

 

 

 

At this point it’s still foggy.  The ocean is not very visible in the picture or to me beyond what’s right by the shore.

 

 

Looking South.

 

 

Fog to the north as well.  These Rosa Rugosa seem to be very much in favor of this rocky humid environment.  Can’t wait for the hips.   They make the bees happy too.

 

 

Droplets of fog on the pine.

 

 

Is it the old man of the sea??

 

Some of the fun of walking on the rocks rather than just the path is not only closer views but being able to go “down in”.

 

Of course then you have to come back out.  Turned out this was not the way. 

 

But I was close enough to get some foggy pictures of one of the many Black Guillmots just riding the waves as casually as you please.

 

 

 

Good thing I’m wearing pink or you’d never see me next to these rocks.  This gives a better sense of how large they are than pictures without anyone in them.

 

Not a big surf today but just enough to be beautiful.

 

 

Close up, it doesn’t look too foggy as I climb back up the rocks.

 

 

 

 

The colors in the rock are so amazing.  This black is a basalt strip.  All due to volcanic activity and glacial carving.

 

 

 

Sea stacks on a cobble beach.

 

 

 

This is why he likes his stick.  Looks like he’s in rocky no man’s land.

 

 

I am just in love with these rocks and their variety.

 

 

 

 

 

Looking down and out – can you see the sea?

 

 

 

 

Everywhere we go, he’s at it again.

 

 

This coastline is very dramatic.  We are not going down there.

 

 

 

Wow to the number of cones on this spruce back on the trail on our way to Otter Cliffs.  Wonder if that means it’s going to be a tough winter and they are trying like crazy to get their seeds out there?

 

 

At Otter Cliffs the rock climbers are  numerous even on a Monday.

 

 

Perhaps a beginner

 

 

Not a beginner.

 

The Black Guillemots are also on the rocks and I’m lucky enough to get one, not well centered picture, of both his red feet and his red mouth.    What a design!  

 

We watch for a little while and then pass on by behind the climbers.   The fog appears to be lifting.

 

 

 

 

We can actually see Sand Beach from here.  Amazing all the views we missed in the fog.  Just another reason to walk this path again.

 

 

Sadly the clearing doesn’t last long and by the time we’re around the cliffs and headed for the point, it has returned.  We pass by this artist on the trail.

 

 

 

 

Clearing comes and clearing goes.  At the point, there wasn’t anything to see so we don’t stop and just take the path back up to the road.

 

 

 

We’ve made it from one trail sign to the other.  Over 4 miles on my pedometer but then we did a lot more than walk the path. There is a bus stop right here on the loop road so rather than walk back up the shore path to the Sand Beach parking lot, we catch the bus and head into Bar Harbor.  It’s lunch time by now after all.

 

 

 

We get off the bus in the Village Square and walk down the street headed for the Downeast Deli.

 

Along the way David gets all excited and we have to stop and take tons of pictures.

 

A closer look at the object of his affection.

 

We’re having lunch here because they advertise a “naked” lobster roll meaning just the meat in butter, no mayo.  That’s actuallly how we like our lobster.

 

 

We’re more than ready but we have to wait in line.  Everyone else wants lobster too.  Well to be fair, some people have pastrami on rye but they must be locals who are lobstered out.

 

As you could see, Downeast is just a counter.  No seating.  So we take our lunch down to Agamont Park at the foot of the street by the Harbor and snag a bench.   David gets a picture of me and our view sort of, we are over looking the water.   

But neither of us thinks to take a picture of the lobster roll.  Possibly this is because we were quite disappointed in the amount of lobster meat in this $14.99 roll.  Most of the bun was filled with lettuce with some lobster on top.  Even though it was in butter, there was just too much lettuce and too little lobster.  The smile is before I’d had a bite.  Thumbs down on Downeast Deli’s lobster roll.

 

 

I did take a picture of and enjoy the local Old Soaker blueberry soda we bought to go with the rolls.   That was great and really really really sweet.

 

 

Heading back up the street to the Village Green to catch the bus back to Ruby at Sand Beach we find more interesting things than I can report.  Bar Harbor never fails to amuse.   It’s a day for artists.   I assume he painted his car as well as the canvas and that he paints pretty fast, it’s 2 hour parking.

 

 

 

 

We did not stop for ice cream but saw these folks coming out of the ice cream shop. 

 

If I didn’t have just too many t-shirts already, I would absolutely have gotten this one.

 

Last fun of the day was as we were leaving and heading off the island.  David is driving and he exclaims excitedly  “I think that’s a moose”.  Well I’m pretty sure there are no moose on MDI any more but I tell him to pull over and let me out and I’ll walk back and see if I can get a picture of the moose.

And here it is.   Nice velvety antler on an obviously very well fed deer.  

 

 

We’ve had a great day.  Fog or no fog!   Moose or no moose!
Love being in Maine for the summer!!