Alice in Wondeland
Seasonal beauty on Road 132 from Perce, QC to the NB border. New Brunswick to Maine: In Campbelton, quaint bilingual border town, I heard local stories at the cozy Super 8 spa. Crossing the border at Van Buren was a bit challenging. I rounded up the day with a seafood meal in Machias, ME, and the Bluebird Motel.
Acadia National Park – Maine’s Precious Jewel
Acadia National Park, Blackwoods Campground is a good hub for exploring Acadia, a park rightfully deserving its reputation. Beauty is everywhere and glorious. Specifically, the Jordan Pond Loop Trail is a highly rewarding experience photographically and ecologically.
The Cadillac Among Mountains
A bonanza for the body and spirit, climbing Mt. Cadillac South Ridge Trail was challenging, but doable. Meeting wonderful people and sharing food and life stories made the day. The landscape turned from forest to stark bedrock, but life still thrived in rain pools, enlivening the barren landscape. View from the top was wondrous.
Eagle Lake, Acadia National Park
Eagle Lake, Acadia National Park, ME. Circumnavigating the lake was a perfect way to round up my sola trip. Inexhaustible beauty, from smallest details of the forest floor to grand vistas of mountains in automn colors reflected in tranquil waters. Using walking path over carriage road made hike interesting.
Last Visit at the Pond
As automn is coming to a close, I kayak over the pond for the last time and take some loon pictures on location, with the row in my hand and the cellphone in the other. We enjoy a great getout with oldies music and beer. Eventually I pack up my wonderful trip, ready (kind of) to resettle in the Middle East…
Epilogue
The epilogue is an attempt to appreciate the physical and psychological long-term effects of my sola camping trip, especially my decision making processes. “On this trip nobody penetrated the space between me and my agency, so every mistake or misstep were clearly mine and owned, as well as every decision well taken.”