Acadia National Park

We woke up to more rainy weather. When you only have three days at a National Park, you can't really afford to pull the covers back up over your head. We bundled up in rain gear and headed out for the Visitors' Center.

We learned a lot about Acadia National Park after watching a short video at the VC. It's a small island park, but always in the top ten most visited parks. It was the first NP founded east of the Mississippi River. Within its boundaries is the highest point on the eastern seaboard. It once was the summer home of people like the Rockefellers, Morgans, Vanderbelts, Carnegies, and Astors. In 1947 most of the park burned down along with these famous "cottages." Since then the park is has regenerated itself, and seems to be a place for everyone.

Since it was raining, we decided to take the CD tour of the 27 mile park loop. This turned out to give us a fantastic overview of the park. At many points along the way the rain subsided, and we were able to get out and see some spectacular scenery. There are so many different ecosystems on this one island. We saw a beautiful sandy beach, rocky coastlines, high peaks, forests, and picturesque harbors. This place has everything. We have some specific areas we want to return to tomorrow. By the end of the day, the sky cleared and the sun shined brightly.

The last few hours of the day we shopped the town of Bar Harbor. It's a lively harbor town with typical shops (lots of moose and lobsters) and restaurants. I had my first whole lobster tonight, and it was delicious. The other thing we have to eat before we leave is blueberry pie. Blueberry stuff is everywhere.

We're back at the hotel and waiting to watch the Palin/Biden debate tonight.