morning fog, afternoon sun
Fog draped over the landscape this morning, disappearing in spots, then dropping down again.
I started my day with a check on the colors at the Asticou Azalea Gardens. It's early for azaleas but there was color popping out of the fog. A cherry tree was in full bloom, accompanied by a few azaleas and some wonderful yellow flowers close to the centerpiece pond.
My next stop was the small open piece of Park Loop Road. I've always enjoyed the Gorham Mountain trail, usually hiking it as a loop starting with a walk along the coast from Sand Beach to the trailhead, a hike to the top continuing along the top to hike down to Sand Beach. That was the destination in my head when I started hiking (from Sand Beach). I stopped for a while near Thunder Hole, watching the waves pound the rocks and listening to the sound of crashing waves.
When I arrived at the Gorham Mountain trailhead the mountains were still hiding in the fog. Hiking uphill to no view at the end didn't appeal so I kept moving forward (not up). I walked a bit further before turning to retrace my steps back to Sand Beach. It was early afternoon by then. I drove the small piece of Park Loop Road that is currently open (2 miles out of a total length of 27 miles), turning inland on Otter Cliff Road. Just a short distance inland I could see blue above me, awesome!
Hmm... where to go? I decided to head to the Beech Mountain trail on the other side of the island. The road was barred by a gate when it crossed back into Acadia. Ah, time to park the car and walk up the road to the trailhead. The sun stayed with me as I walked although I could see fog starting to swirl back in as I approached the summit.
A beautiful blue sky stayed with me as I headed back to Bar Harbor. Given that the forecast for tomorrow is for rain I wanted to take advantage of the bright afternoon. It was close to low tide so the sand bar connecting Bar Island to Mount Desert Island was exposed, a good time for a walk to the island. When I reached the beach I was greeted with a splash of white across the pure blue sky.
Here are images representing the two pieces of my day, coastal fog in the morning, a bright cloud painting in the afternoon.
photos by phone
