Category Archives: scenic drives

Guess What Day it is

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Guess What Day it is

hump day camel

Guess what day it is? Yup, it’s hump day, Wednesday, the middle of the week. My vacation is half over! I didn’t want to get out of bed. I didn’t want to think about the number of miles I’d logged looking for a stupid moose. It was time to get up and try again but oh my, I didn’t want to. It’s my vacation, roll over and go back to sleep.

A Scenic Drive is just what I need

I managed to laze around until 7:30 am when I gave in and packed up for another drive. This time I was going on a Scenic Drive. I was not looking for moose or any other kind of wildlife. This was going to be a relaxing 2 hour drive with maybe a stop to see a waterfall. The sun was shining and it was kind of cool so I tossed my hoodie in the car just in case.

Scenic Drive number 2Mama Duck and baby ducklings

On my handout from the resort I had 4 scenic drives. I did half of scenic drive #1 but ran into road construction before I could complete the 2nd half. Today I’d give #2 a try. The first step was to find Route 16 East. I had a good idea where Rt 16 was but I wasn’t sure if it was east or west. Remember , I am not looking for wildlife. With no expectation  I was pleasantly surprised that just as I saw the 16 east sign I also saw a duck. I pulled over and walked back with the camera. As I got closer the grass and weeds around the duck began to move and 4 baby ducklings emerged running to Mom. I stopped in my tracks. They were so cute but I didn’t want to scare them away so I took my pictures from where I stood and then backed away.

Route 16 East to Stratton

Maine Moose by the side of the roadBack on the road I headed down Route 16. I was the only car on the road this early so I poked along mentally ticking off what animals I’d seen most of so far…black flies, black flies, black flies. Ok so maybe a chipmunk or two, lots of crows (ravens?), 1 bat, that cute little fox kit and now the ducks. Just as I ticked them off I saw a moose. Yes, really! She was standing in a small field next to the road. I pulled over as carefully as I could. Mindful of the warning not to leave car doors open, I tried to slide out slowly so I could get the camera out of the car.

The Moose and IA Moose heading for the trees

The moose watched me carefully, ears twitching forward and back but she didn’t run away. I snapped a couple of pictures and tried to move a little closer. She took a couple of steps away then stopped. I stepped another couple of steps forward. She move a little too. We had quite the little dance going here. I’d move , she’d move. But like Cinderella at Midnight, the approach of an 18 wheeler sent Ms Moose heading for the trees. For such a big gangly creature she sure could move. I guess the universe rewarded me for my persistence even when I didn’t want to go driving around.

 

 

On the Road to Angel Falls

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On the Road to Angel Falls

angel Falls maineMy handout from the Chamber of Commerce describes Angel Falls as one of Maine’s tallest Waterfalls. It claims to be 90 ft. We saw Bash Bish Falls at 60-80 feet and that was pretty impressive. Time to top that one with a 90 ft drop. The directions were pretty specific. “Turn right on to a unnamed gravel road (adjacent to a large open field)” Now that’s pretty clear don’t you think? believe it or not, I found it!

Cross the Swift River

This was starting to look like a real adventure. One of the reason I got an SUV was to be One Lane Bridge over the Swift River, Maineable to navigate the back roads of the places I wanted to visit, like Maine, New Hampshire and Duxbury Beach. (that’s another story). I turned onto an unnamed gravel road next to a large open field and there was a one lane bridge over the Swift River. This matched my directions perfectly. That bridge look pretty questionable but I tried it anyway.

Bemis Road

Bemis Rd, Maine, A dirt Road with RutsMy directions then told me to take a right on Bemis Road. That’s a little confusing because there is no right and I thought I was on Bemis Road when I went over the bridge. No worries, I’ll just keep going a little farther and see where it takes me. After passing a cute little house surrounded by lilac bushes the road made a sharp right. A hand lettered sign said “Gate Closed” 1 mile.  I continued on. The road was bumpy, rutted and filled with pot holes. The deepest holes had sticks standing upright in them as a warning, or so I assume. A friendly Maine driver waved at me so I pulled over. He assured me I was headed in the right direction and told me to ignore the “private” signs and “no trespassing”! he said it was beautiful out there and I might even see a moose.

Angel Falls to the Left

I bumped along what seemed like forever. I kept reminding myself this was why I have an Road to Angel Falls, MaineSUV as we lurched over another set of ruts.  Finally, as I passed a car parked on the shoulder, I saw a sign with an arrow, Angel Falls. It pointed left but as I gazed at the dirt road down the hill my stomach almost flipped. I felt like I was at the top of a roller coaster about to start down! Yikes! I don’t do roller coasters!

Another day another Song, Tuesday Afternoon

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Another day another Song, Tuesday Afternoon

I like this theme of musical song titles each day but this one might not be too accurate. It’s Tuesday but  I actually had morning and afternoon. Mid-day was just lazing around waiting for the passing showers to end.

Tuesday morning

Pine Trees of Maine on a Tuesday MorningI can’t say Tuesday was the most successful day I’ve ever had but I certainly made every attempt to accomplish at least some goals.  At 7 am I left the cabin in hopes of spotting that elusive moose, or even a deer. It was pretty much me and the road and the morning shadows. I stopped to take some scenery photos like the long rows of pines. After all, this is the Pine Tree State and a field of Lupine. A hour later I turned for home without seeing so much as a rabbit much less a moose.

Sunshine go away todayField of Lupine

Yes another song title. My sunny Tuesday began to cloud over as I turned for home. I figured I’d clean out some emails and read a book until the storms passed. I also napped a little. That’s what vacations are for, right? It was after lunch before the sun broke out again in full glory. Time to get on the road again.

 

The Afternoon scenic drive Funny Duck Crossing sign

After checking out Ecopelagicon for a canoe rental (Not open) I tried to call a guide service. No phone service so I sent an email. I figured I needed some serious help. At this point other than lots of crows I’d seen 1 fox kit, 1 chipmunk, a blue jay, a bat and a possible bald eagle…or maybe just a really big crow. I’m sure I saw a flash of white??? So you see the wildlife, with the exception of crows and black flies, were making themselves scarce. I couldn’t even find the ducklings at the duckling crossing!

 

Scenic Drive or Hike – that is the question.

I started out on another scenic drive. The problem is they all start from the same place so you have a 1/2 drive just to get to a new starting point. After filling the gas tank I heading out for Scenic Drive #2 on the list but my directions slid off the car seat. When I retrieved them it had opened up to Angel Falls. I took that as a sign and began to look for the turn off.

angel Falls maine

News Update:

I was interviewed by an online travel site called TravelOopsies.com

If you’d like to see my interview you can find it here: https://www.traveloopsies.com/not-checking-the-destinations-weather-dates-resetting-on-booking-websites-expensive-foreign-road-signs-and-other-travel-mistakes-peeves/

Monday Monday so good to me

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Monday Monday so good to me

From Here comes the Sun to Monday Monday, the song titles keep describing my days. Today was just a lazy day. The morning was overcast again so I did some computer work, cleaned out my emails and finished reading a book I brought with me. After lunch a thunderstorm came through. No rain just lots of thunder and wind. Then the sun came out.

Time to look for Wildlife

It was time to head out to look for animals again. So far the only wildlife I’d seen were those pesky black flies. blue jay in back yard on MondayA blue jay landed on the porch railing this morning so I’m going to take that as a sign. I picked another “scenic drive” and headed off.

Keep an attitude of anticipation

My mantra for the search was to believe I would see something. Wildlife don’t perform on cue. Just keep my eyes open. The scenery is nice . I stopped at each scenic overlook.Noyes overlook with storm clouds on Monday afternoon The first one, Noyes Overlook, had a nice panoramic shot but the black flies were nasty even with bug spray. Maybe because of the thunder storm earlier. I’m sure it rained somewhere.

Height of Land

This is the 2nd overlook. The lake viewed from this vantage point is Mooselookmeguntic Lake. Yes that’s a real name, I kid you not. This is also another point where the Appalachian trail crosses the road. The overlook here is well maintained. Being on the top of the mountain probably helped with the breeze so it kept the black flies to a minimum.Height of Land Overlook Mooselookmeguntic Lake

Finally a bit of Wildlife

And a little bit indeed! As I left the Height of Land overlook I was getting a bit frustrated. With cloudy skies again there’d be no sunsets to photograph and it would get dark early. Just as I was considering turning around  I spotted something on the side of the road.

Little fox on side of road on Monday

Luckily there was a shoulder to pull over. With the car stopped I could see it was a little fox kit. No mama or siblings, just the one youngster. I’d take a picture and then try to move a little closer. He’d get nervous but seemed fascinated by the camera clicking.Red fox baby on Monday

 

I don’t know how long our little dance would have gone on if another car had not come along. When he heard that one approach he took one last look over his shoulder and was gone. I hope his family is nearby.

Red fox kit Monday afternoon

Here comes the Sun

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Here comes the sun

Sunday I woke at 5:30! Something bright was in my eyes. I hadn’t noticed the skylight when I came in last night! I’ll have to remember to close the bedroom door if I don’t want the early morning sun waking me up. I  had some work to wrap up before I’d be truly free to enjoy the week and I wanted to spend some time revisiting what I’d passed on my way here yesterday. I wanted to figure out where I was  and where I’d need to go if I was going to look for moose and other wildlife.  Thankfully they gave me a map when I checked in.

misty mountain morning in Maine

Lets get our bearings, shall we?

By 10 am the clouds had given way and the overcast skies of the morning were a thing of the past. Sun was shining and it was bright and clear. I’d finished my work and felt the tension in my  shoulders melt-away with that task done. Time to grab the camera and explore. I stopped at the overlook to take some pictures of the beautiful lake.

Rangeley Lake in the sun from the Overlook

Now that the sun was behind me I was able to get better exposure.

Return to the Appalachian TrailAppalachia Trail sign

Then it was back to the Appalachian Trail head. When I was younger I wanted to hike the whole trail. I couldn’t afford to take the time off so it never happened. That will be regret for sure. Now with my bum hip it’s definitely out of the question. But I wandered a little way

brook near the Appalachia Traildown the trail and got some pictures of the brook that bubbled nearby. I was surprised that even that little bit gave me a thrill.

The Suds & Sizzle

I found the little laundry where I’d stopped the day before. In the bright daylight it lost some of its charm. This went on my list for an afternoon return for pictures.

Hunter Cove Wildlife Sanctuary

This is high on my to-do list so I wanted to be sure to locate it. Turns out it isn’t too far out on the other side of town. I pulled in briefly to check out the parking and the trails. They look manageable. There’s lots of trees so lots of bugs. Good thing I have extra strength bug spray along.

Afternoon plans get canceled

It was almost lunchtime so I returned to the cabin to make a sandwich and plan the afternoon. Suddenly I was very, very tired. A “power nap” seemed like a great idea. As I don’t usually sleep during the day I didn’t think I needed to set an alarm. Big Mistake! By the time I woke up it was 6:30 pm and the shadows were getting long. I really had no idea I was that tired. But that’s what vacations are for, right? Recharging.

downstairs bedroom with rocking chair