Road Trip NE- Pics and Notes

[JSFM35X]

My son and I take a trip every summer. Sometimes it is a day trip, a flight, a ball game at an out of town park or a drive. Usually just a weekend or part of a weekend. This year we took a 4 day road trip, covered 1,270 miles in 4 days and did / saw a lot of the North East !


The car was great, had my kit of ONR, 1Z Glass Cleaner mixed extra strong and a doz MF`s. Liquids in a drywash pump up non aerosol, aerosol bottle.




I keep a journal of places I`ve visit. I thought I would share this trip here for anyone interested.

Friday (Day 1)
Left LI, NY at 4AM on Friday. We were out of the city way before the rush. We arrived in Newport, RI for a lite Breakfast. Did three Mansion visits- Breakers, Marble House and The Elms, had lunch. Did the Cliff walk and headed out of town Friday Night. We drove a good stretch and arrived in Portland Maine! We had a late dinner on the waterfront. The place was packed, it had live music was great and passed the time while we waited for a table. The lobster dinner is always a treat and since we dropped the car at the hotel first and took a shuttle over, a good time was had by all! We both passed out Friday night, I slept like a rock.














Saturday (Day 2)
We got up early (On road 5AM) Saturday AM headed for Acadia National Park. Maine is a big state and it seems like we were driving forever especially because the last 15% of the route in not on highway, route 1 and 3 are mostly single lane secondary roads and well, people from Maine, are extremely "not in a rush to get anywhere" LOL. On the way we stopped at "the best lobster" roll place for 100 miles - per their 1000 plus positive Yelp reviews and they were right. I cannot imagine a bigger or better lobster roll . When I heard they were 39 bucks each I figured I got Tourist Trapped but it was insane16 oz of Lobster meat. (And I`d go again!) Pic below:






Still Saturday (Day 2)Day
1st Day @ Acadia
Pulled into visitor center at Acadia got our map, created a to do list with my son and started exploring. All I can tell you guys is if you have never been to Acadia-GO. You feel so small and humbled being immersed in the natural beauty that cannot be captured in a picture. You NEED to experience it with your own eye. We drove the One Way and Two way loop around the main section of the park stopping at the set pull off stations to see the sights. That took about 2 hours b/c we were keeping to a tight schedule but you can easily spend more time everywhere. Highlights are Sand Beach, Thunder Hole (natural structure that makes a boom as high tide rolls in). Thunder Hole was pretty timid the 2 days we tried to see the Boom, it was more like a gurgle. After that, we did Tea at Jordan`s Pond- a beautiful lake with Adirondack chair`s all around allowing you to catch your breath, enjoy your favorite beverage and take in the scenery and grab some lunch. Next we did the beginner Gorge trail hike, listed as beginner-challenge along a very rocky river gorge, Mostly walking on rocks above a stream of water, and then into a wooded area. This was an easy hike for anyone and really beautiful. Loads of bird noises and small wildlife like chipmunks scurrying around you. We took a water break enjoying the shade of the trees for a bit and headed for the Double Bubble mountain Hike. This was to be my warm up for the next days intermediate Hike! The double mountain hike is listed as advanced beginner and was not too challenging but the views were just amazing. We were up and down the taller of the 2 trails in about 1.5 hrs and that included plenty of time to stop-take in the views revealed at each level, sit and talk with each other as well as with other people we met along the way, take pictures and just BS about life. We left the part at 7:30PM and headed to hotel. (We stayed about 15 Minutes from Acadia National Park in NE Harbor, The hotel was right on the waterfront of NE Harbor.) We took a well needed and earned shower, cleaned up before going to dinner in Bar Harbor. We did not realize that the restaurants stop serving dinner at 9:30PM so we ended up at a Mexican Restaurant that was very good. The fact that we were starving and they agreed to serve us dinner may have increased this restaurants rating with us! We ate and then walked the town of Bar Harbor. The town is very cute, and loaded with quaint shops, restaurants, hotels and bars. I was driving on this night so we skipped the bar scene and just checked out the local Crafty type stores. We were debating the 4AM wake up which would have allowed us to see the sunrise at the top of MT Cadillac, highest point on the East Coast and the fist to see the Sunrise. We ended up nixing the idea because we felt it would have left us too exhausted to continue with the days plans and it was our last day at the park. Plus, we were planning on driving 4-5 hours at the end of the day to Portsmouth NH.









Sunday (Day 3)
Day 2 @Acadia


Checked out of hotel, went to breakfast and a deli to buy sandwiches (and water) so we could eat Lunch at the top of the mountain. We got to the Park at about 9:30AM, Parked and got over to the trail by shuttle bus and began the hike up Mount Cadillac which is a 1,600+ foot above sea level Mountain Hike/Climb. Its listed as an intermediate hike/climb and I got through it for sure but it was a quad burning experience at times when the incline was steep over an long stretch of terrain. (plus I am not in the shape I should be in either) We hiked up the mountain and with stopping along the way to rest, water up, we made it to the top in about 2+ hours. I have not sweat so much in a long time. I was so happy to sit and eat lunch when we arrived at the top. We actually hiked down a short while to eat in the shade which is many degrees cooler than the sun. We returned to the top to snap some pics, and visit the store to buy some more water. While we were online to pay for the drinks, discussing the hike down we inquired with the girl at the cash register if there was a bus down to the visitors center? . She said no, if you didn`t drive up there is no public transportation down. I groaned, my son laughed, and we were resolved to burn the balance afternoon hiking down the mountain. When out of nowhere an angel of a lady on line behind me asks if we want a ride down. You need to picture this, I have sweat through my shirt 100%, my face is red from a combination of sun and strain and she offers us a ride in an air-conditioned SUV with her family. We graciously accept and offer to buy the drinks she has in her hand. She declines the offer but is very appreciative. We take the ride, with the nicest people and have a great convo, they were told not to hike up because it was very hot day. Them Smart, Me not so much! They dropped us off at the visitor center where I was parked, we thanked them very much and we jumped in the car and headed to Sand Beach where were visited the day before but didn`t swim. Today, the 54 degree water did not sound so bad. We changed in the dressing rooms and jumped into the 54 degree water. Refreshed and less icky, we changed into fresh T shirts and shorts and at about 4:30PM headed to Portsmouth, NH. We drove about 5 hours to Portsmouth having gotten caught in some traffic. Arrived at the Hotel we showered and hit the Uber app and entered a restaurant/bar that was recommended to us by the front desk girl. We got there, and it was dead but the strip down the block was hopping with people so we walked around found a craft beer bar that looked interesting. The place is packed with college kids plus me. We made our way to the bar, and ordered a 12 beer flight of their craft beers to be able to sample several. After that we order favorites and ask for a food menu. We were then told the kitchen closes at 8PM on Sunday and it was already well past that. We ask where we can get some food. Bartended tells is there is a trolley car a block away open until 2PM. Burgers, Dogs and Chicken fingers. That sounded pretty god to me. We arrive to find this Trolley car out of history. We ordered burgers, walked to another bar we passed touting 116 beers on tap, we tried a few and hit the Uber app to get home. Back at the hotel, exhausted my son proceeds to hooked up the apple TV (really roughing it on this road trip) to watch the GOT episode we missed, but I was out like a rock before my son got the show on, so don`t anyone tell me what happened please.









Monday (Day 4) Last Day
No alarms set on this last day. We had some fun the night before so we slept until a record late for this trip of 7AM. We hit the DD for coffee, and jumped in the car with the intention of heading straight home. On the route we saw a sign for Frank Pepe`s Pizza. Yup-stopped in for Lunch. If you never had this before, it`s a must stop if you are passing through New Haven, CT. I highly recommend the White clam sauce pizza and the Onion, Mushroom, pepper and sausage personal size pizza`s. We split both ! Rolled myself back behind the wheel and drove the rest oif the way home with a fix smile. Got home, unloaded the car, talked with the wife, shared some funny stories for a bit and went out to clean the car.

[Ronkh]

Great pic of what sounds like a great trip.

THanks for sharing!

[rlmccarty2000]

Thanks for sharing. The lobster looked great!

[Ronkh]

<---- jealous

[nickclark08]

I`ve got family in Portland - will be there for thanksgiving. Looks like y`all had a blast! Thanks for sharing your trip

Edit: my dad went to highschool with the founder of Shipyard brewery; the pumpkin ale in the fall is awesome.

[Justins00ss]

Awesome bud!!! Next time you need to swing by and visit!

[Buster906]

I`ve got family in Portland - will be there for thanksgiving. Looks like y`all had a blast! Thanks for sharing your trip

Edit: my dad went to highschool with the founder of Shipyard brewery; the pumpkin ale in the fall is awesome.

Have you been to Voodoo doughnuts?

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[nickclark08]

No, unfortunately I haven`t. They opened up after I left Austin (where I grew up). Everyone I know that has tried em really likes it - I`ll have to swing by during my next trip to my parents.

Have you been to Voodoo doughnuts?

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[Buster906]

I lived in Gresham for a spell but did not know of Voodoo doughnuts at the time. I really want to try the maple bacon long john

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[trashmanssd]

Thanks for sharing. The lobster looked great!

Your saying it wrong its Lobstha!