bending steel

I was delighted to be contacted by George from Chicago Metal Rolled Products as he was preparing to write about the new Memorial Bridge connecting Portsmouth and Kittery. George saw my photos of the bridge and called to ask permission to use several of the photos in his blog entry about the bridge. Why the interest and the blog entry? Chicago Metal Rolled Products curved the steel used to construct the bridge.

We had a discussion about the bridge design and bridges in general. I was happy to chat with someone else who shared my fascination with the structure and the design.

I think you'll find George's blog entry interesting. Click to read The First Gussetless Truss Bridge in the World.

Snipped from the Chicago Metal Rolled Products blog entry

George also gave me a link to what he considers to be one of the best articles on the new bridge, BRIDGE DESIGN: Truss with a twist.

late day light

A foggy start to the day made the afternoon light seem quite special.

looking over the water from Bar Harbor, on May 10, 2013

conversations

Do you ever wonder if birds are talking to each other? I'd like to know what these two are thinking.

wild!

The sky was blue, the wind was howling, and the ocean was wild.

Two spots called for visits before I headed for home. The first was the top of Cadillac Mountain where I felt the wild wind as I soaked in the views. I walked the short loop around the summit, fighting the wind to walk in somewhat of a straight line.

Next I headed back to the tip of the Schoodic Peninsula to add a blue sky view to my foggy visit last Thursday. The wind was whipping there too. Watching the waves crash over the rocks was simply amazing.

The east side of the peninsula was a bit calmer, still beautiful. The beach here was composed of rounded rocks that tumble in the waves creating wonderful sounds.

a short day out

The weather wizard's forecast was spot on; my four full days in Maine were gray and wet. I drove here in sunshine and it appears (I hope!) that I'll be playing in sunshine tomorrow. Today was the wettest of the days with bands of heavy rain interspersed with drizzle and sometimes with dry air. No matter... the rain gave me the incentive to find some places to wander.

Somehow I managed to be in the car during the heavy downpours instead of walking with my camera. That was equal parts good luck (in not getting caught out) and learning a little patience, waiting out the very wet spells.

I started my morning with a walk along a part of the closed Park Loop Road. I followed Kebo Street and Harden Farm Road in Bar Harbor to the closed gate at the entry to the park, walking in from there. I didn't have an end point in mind, walking in air that started out dry changing to a bit of drizzle. The heavy rain waited until I was back at the car.

Next I headed to a new to me place that jumped off the map at me this morning, the Indian Point Blagden Preserve. It's a delightful place owned by the Nature Conservancy and nicely open to the public. I walked part of the trails, turning back before reaching the coast. The footing was somewhat slippery in light rain; I didn't want to risk a walk back in a downpour. I walked through a beautiful forest, trails interlaced with tree roots and moss. The predominant color was bright green, simply amazing. The coastal part of the preserve is the home of harbor seals and many winged creatures. I heard the sound of busy woodpeckers as I walked. Again, as I finished my walk and opened the door to my car a heavy downpour started.

The rain grew lighter as I reached Bar Harbor, leaving me enough time for an almost dry walk along the Shore Path. I thought about calling it a day at the end of that walk but then I found myself in the car again. I drove to Schooner Head to do another new-to-me short walk. As soon as I pulled in to the parking area a new band of heavy rain rolled over me. I sat for a bit, then decided to head back to Sieur de Monts again. Walking the boardwalk section of the Jessup Path seemed like a reasonable thing to do in the rain. I started in the rain and then it just stopped. Dry air tempted me to drive back to Schooner Head where I followed a paved trail to the ocean.

It was a good day.

photo by phone, at the Wild Gardens of Acadia

wet wanders

What a funny day! It was dry as Denise and I headed for the quiet side of the island. We followed the Ship Harbor trail to the turnaround point and then it started raining. Oops! Luckily Denise stuck an umbrella in her camera pack so she just needed to pull it out. We walked back in the rain.

Before we started driving we looked at the map to find our next wandering spot. It needed to be flat; hiking up a mountain in wet and foggy weather didn't seem like a good idea. Denise decided we should head back to Park Loop Road.

We drove back to the eastern side of the island, parking at the Fabbri picnic area which is in the middle of a narrow peninsula. It's on the road right after the point where the open section of Park Loop Road ends. We headed out on the closed to cars section of the road, walking around Otter Cove, then turning back and making the long loop back to Otter Point and then past Otter Cliff. We passed from the closed section of the road back to the section where cars are allowed. There weren't too many cars today, and we only ran into one other person during our walk. We wandered on the rocks again. Denise was careful - she thought the rocks were just wet, not slippery, and she wasn't that close to the ocean so I thought she would be fine. No slipping today! I did a little bouncing on my own when the rain stopped but when the water was dripping from the sky I rode in Denise's camera bag. I could always poke my head out to see where we were wandering.

When we turned inland from the coast the fog lifted and the clouds did too. Since the road up Cadillac Mountain opened today we decided to drive up the mountain to see if the top was above the clouds. It wasn't. Oh! that was a very foggy drive.

After we emerged from the fog we took a minute to look at the map. Denise found a short hike to Compass Harbor, one that was new for us. She didn't remember seeing the trailhead before, and we drove right by it at first. It was right before a private road called Old Farm Road. Denise knew we missed it when we got to Schooner Head Road so we turned around and the tiny parking lot popped out at us. It was an interesting loop hike through the remains of George Dorr's estate. Oh, you want to know who George Dorr is? He was known as the father of Acadia.

It was a quiet day, very relaxing.

--- Rover

photo by phone

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

back to the island

It was afternoon by the time we popped back onto Mount Desert Island but it wasn't time to stop wandering. Denise parked the car just past the park entrance near the Wild Gardens of Acadia and we walked in. As it turned out the parking lot at the gardens was open - it was just the entrance to Park Loop Road that was blocked.

We walked past a lake and then down a trail leading to the gardens and then to the Jessup Path. I like the Jessup Path - it's a boardwalk through an area that's a combination of wet and trees. It's so beautiful! And the boardwalk means I can bounce along comfortably. Denise was fascinated by the lines the boardwalk made. It looks straight as we looked at the sections where we were walking but there were places where if you looked far ahead you could see little squiggles in the boardwalk. Cool!

While we were in the woods it seemed like the fog was clearing but when we got back to the car it was really foggy again. I thought we were going to head back then but Denise decided to head to the small part of the loop road that was open. She has always been fascinated by the water behind Sand Beach; she thought the foggy conditions this afternoon would make for an interesting view. And oh! she was right!

I told Denise I thought it would be a good idea to grab a couple of photos with her phone so you could see a little of what we saw today. The first shot is a view as we were facing the ocean from Sand Beach. The second is of the water behind Sand Beach - the mountain that stands there is hiding in the fog.

--- Rover

photos by phone

gray skies, fog, Schoodic

I woke up this morning not sure of my wandering spots for the day. The sky was gray as predicted and heavy rain started as I was eating my "Evin special" breakfast. I always know I'll have a good food start to the day when I stay at the Holland Inn!

Given the wet weather I took my time heading out. Evin suggested a visit to Deer Isle, a new spot for me. Her suggestion made sense since it is south and west of here and the rain seemed to be moving to the north. I headed off island planning to turn to the left in Ellsworth. Oops! The right turn leading towards the Schoodic Peninsula grabbed me first. Schoodic is a favorite spot and the chance to see it in possibly foggy conditions pulled me to the northeast.

I drove through a bit of light rain, no downpours. There were places where fog hugged the road and places where it lifted. The temperature hung in the low to mid 50s, very reasonable for walking. I was the only human walking on the rocks at the tip of the Schoodic Peninsula, sharing the space with a few sea gulls. There were the always present pools of water sitting on rocks that were also wearing a gleam of water from the occasional rain and drizzle. Waves crashed against the rocks providing a focus for my eyes and music for my ears.

road update

Oh! Denise and I are about to start our drive to Bar Harbor and I decided to check the Acadia National Park web site once more. I thought we wouldn't be able to drive up Cadillac Mountain, but guess what! The road up the mountain is opening earlier than the full Park Loop Road.

Delayed Openings UPDATE May 6, 2013: The entire Park Loop Road will open on May 17, but the Cadillac Mt. Summit Road will open on May 11. Enter at Cad. Mt. entrance on Rt. 233. Also, the 2 mile regular winter driving route, including Thunder Hole and Sand Beach, is open. From the alerts section of the Acadia National Park web site

We'll be in the park the day it opens. I just told Denise and she smiled.

--- Rover