So, one of the worst things you can do on vacation is go hiking after you got up before the crack of dawn to see the sun rise and are getting by on very little sleep. But this is exactly what we did the morning after we watched the sun rise at Cadillac Mountain: we set out to hike the Gorham Mountain Trail. The panoramic views of Acadia from the trail were incredible, but man, were we cranky.
Cranky Hiker, version 1
Cranky Hiker, version 2
Trail snacks are extremely important when the hikers are cranky.
The hike offered typical rocky Maine trails and lots of views of the ocean and the coastline below. Some of my pictures look fake/over-photoshopped because the colors are so vibrant, but that's really what the Maine coast looks like on a sunny day. We made hundreds of attempts at rock-as-tripod self-timer photos of the two of us together, which all failed miserably due to the bright sun overhead and our bad attitudes. Luckily, the scenery was more picturesque than our sullen faces!
You could even see all the way to Sand Beach from the trail.
And we made it to the top. 525 feet seems rather anti-climactic, but that's about 44 floors above the ocean, so the view of Acadia's coast was spectacular. I mean, who needs a fourteener? I guess that's an advantage to hiking on the east coast - you can actually make it to the top.
So, we can't really complain about spending the day on a beautiful trail. I just wish we had been able to do it after more sleep!
And you know what's good medicine when you're tired, hot, dirty, and cranky? ICE CREAM. After our hike, we headed into Bar Harbor for lunch and the best ice cream I've ever had. I was a little skeptical of the sweet shop with the giant lobster out front because it seemed kind of touristy, but it was amazing. I had one scoop of KGB (Kahlua, Grand Marnier, Baileys, OMG) and one scoop of coconut. So good!
If that wasn't enough, we then drove back up Cadillac Mountain to check out the view during the day. And then on the way back to the cabin, we made the same wrong turn on the park's loop road three times and ended up stuck driving on a one-way loop over and and over again. That did not help with the crankies!
All in all, it was a jam-packed day. We were very happy to hit the hay that night!
8 comments:
What gorgeous pictures! Glad you got the hike in on such a beautiful day, despite the crankiness.
Haha you took a picture of the ice cream lobster too! We tried the ice cream spot across the street and around the corner: Mt. Desert Ice Cream. Also the best ice cream I've had in a long time.
I can't believe we were in Maine over a year ago. I want to go back!
I love the opening line of this post because it's the exact opposite of how I vacation. I would start out with "One of the best things you can do on vacation is get up early before the crack of dawn to see the sun rise and go hiking in solitude with nature before everyone else is up." :)
Jonathan - We like a lot of the same things, but are completely opposite in the way we approach them!
I enjoy being up early on vacation (usually I need to fly west for this to be possible for me! I was down on the beach in Waikiki in the early morning before the surfers showed up and it was so peaceful - except for the bums sleeping on the beach...), and I enjoy getting away from everyone else on an empty trail, but not when I've only had a few hours of sleep the night before!
Veronika - I just went back and read your post about hiking the Beehive Trail. Amazed at how similarly we spent our days - right down to doing the hike on the same day as watching the sunrise, the 500' summits being anticlimactic, and taking pics of the ice cream lobster in Bar Harbor! Too funny!
We also went to Mt. Desert Ice Cream and it was horrible! Not sure if we just chose bad flavors or if they were having a bad day - the ice cream was icy and not creamy. :(
Haha! I imagine many people visiting Acadia/Maine for the first time have very similar itineraries, but even moreso if they are like-minded. Even Larry's eating the ice cream pose is usually my classic pose!
That sucks about Mt. Desert Ice Cream! Wonder what happened? It was sooooo good when we visited and extremely creamy. Then again I usually order boring flavors like sweet cream (my fave) and salted caramel. I'll hold up the line trying all the flavors but usually end up wuthering some version of vanilla.
*wuthering = with. Damn you auto-correct.
Oh yeah, vanilla is my favorite flavor, too. People think it's boring, but if you can't get vanilla right, why bother with other flavors? But the boozy flavor combo I had at the lobster place was incredible!
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