A Day Trip Near Hunting Island S.P. S Car.

On October 9, 2014, the day started with a drive of an hour or so heading toward the nature area. It is one of many areas where in many days gone by rice was grown. Dikes were built so that area could be flooded. Sluice gates and other means to control the water were implemented. This has left very large areas where nature can return and hunting and nature watch can be enjoyed.

As we entered the region on a sand road we were greeted by an alligator sunning on the road. It took it a while to decide to slide into the the growth along the road. It did leave us a memento to observe. As good students of nature, we opted to leave it undisturbed for others to see.

  

(Remember to click on image to enlarge it. Use back arrow to return.)

Driving further into the property we observed several biomes. There were many oaks with their spreading limbs covered with Spanish moss.(Did you know that Henry Ford used this moss to stuff the upholstery on his early autos?) There were stands of pines with their tall straight trunks.

  

There was also an area of marsh with many colors of plant life and a clearing where we could stop and use our binoculars to glass the marsh for birds. (No worry about blocking the road. No traffic although we met a gentleman who frequently travels several hours to “bird” the reserve.) Lou has a eye for detail and usually spots the specials first.

     

Looking out over the marshy area she spotted a tree with what looked like ducks in it.

  

On closer observation, the are ducks. Whistling ducks to be sure. It always amazes me to see web feet in a tree. I believe that these are Black Belly Whistling Ducks. They do have a whistle in their call although we did not hear it.

  

This was only the beginning of our tour but there enough pictures here to make a large file for slower Internet connections. I will post part 2 in a few days, time permitting.

Fort Beausejour Fort Cumberland

 

Fort Beausejour was built in 1751 by the French. Four years later the British and New England Troops captured and renamed it Fort Cumberland. Some of the descendants of early French settlers, Acadians, were forced to fight against the British. After the battles, the Acadians were rounded up and deported by the British.This was before the deportations from Grand Pre’ and Pisiquid. Some of these deported ended up down the coast to the south. Others as far as what is now Louisiana.

The fort is basically a series of high mounds with limited access to protect the buildings inside the compound

Here you see Lou and our Canadian host friend Bob atop one of the embankments that surround the enclosure. Bob is pointing out what is visible from this advantage while Lou is photographing the scene.

  

This is what you can see. Hostess Raylene and Tom looking up at the climbers while resting on a well foundation.

With the fort on a high hill over looking the surrounding land and the navigable waterway in the background, an army could control commerce into the area. All that was required was some heavy artillery. There were four types of “cannon” installed to thwart an enemy. Raylene and Tom are again resting. This time on a couple of the cannons.

There are stone walls like one would expect to find in a 260 year old fort.

There is a stone memorial to an early religious leader and of course the Canadian tricolored flag with maple leaf flies proudly over the grounds.

     

 

Canadian flag is twice as wide as high with the red stripes each being half as wide as the white stripe.

Bay of Fundy New Brunswick

We were on our way to visit our good friends Bob and Raylene in Amherst, Nova Scotia with a day to spare on the way from our summer retreat on the Island of Mount Dessert in Maine. (Sounds pretty posh, ehh?) We decided to revisit the Bay of Fundy from a different perspective. The last time with Yankee RV Tours we walked on the ocean floor where, when we visited 6 hours later, we would have been 40 feet under water! Yes  they have the largest tides in the world. (The closer to the open ocean you get the smaller the tide change. In this area of the bay the tides vary by as much as 15 feet.) This time we drove the back roads along the coast, These are a few of the pictures that we snapped.

Please remember to click on pictures to enlarge. Pictures never measure up to the “real” thing but enlarging gives a better feel for the scene. Use the back arrow to return. Thanks.

 

  

Several of the shots show the steepness of the coast. It is almost all rocky, granite. These are mountains, east coast style.

  

At many locations, when the tide goes out boats are left sitting on the bottom of the ocean floor. (Technically, this not the ocean but a bay or arm of the ocean.) In France we saw double keeled boats that would sit on the keels like two legs.

  

The picture above on the left shows a manmade breakwater at a low tide. The purpose was to create a more protected area for mooring boats. The picture on the right shows the beach composed of small round stones. We saw very few sandy beaches in this part of the world. Actually only Sand Beach at Acadia NP.

  

A look down the rugged coast line. And our intrepid travel companion with a waterfall backdrop.

No blog post of travel would be complete without a selfie of the travellers (sun darkened glasses and all).

The pictures were taken by Lou and Tom.

Thanks for looking and comments are always appreciated.

Schoodic Point–Acadia National Park

 

It was a nice, sunny and laid back day at KOA Woodlands when my friend Tom ask me to accompany him on an afternoon away. We started with a lunch break at Jordan’s. It is a very well attended ice cream, burger, fried foods joint with a separate dining room. You order at a window and wait for your number to be called. I ordered as I would have in the 50’s. Cheeseburger, onion rings and a chocolate shake. Tom ordered a cheeseburger basket with fries and an ice tea. We swapped rings for fries as we ate excellent cheeseburgers. Below are a few pictures to show the Maine coast.

A nice place to read without interruptions.

A nice place to contemplate the horizon.

A nice place to get away to.

It looks like this when the surf is up.

People have been known to want the wave spray in the background with themselves in the foreground. Stand with their back to the water, smile and wait for a big wave to break and hope the camera operator can catch the action. What happens … the wave breaks so high it washes them off the rock to die in the pounding surf,

Lower Hadley Pond

Today, July 10, was a beautiful day for an adventure.

Our first stop was to visit Lower Hadley Pond. It is a water supply for some of the small towns. Being an island in the saltwater ocean means you need to have a fresh water supply. There a number of these small water resources on the island. Naturally, swimming, dogs or entering the water is taboo. There are hundreds of miles of trails on the island of which the Hadley Ponds Trail is a shorter one.

We drove off route 102 to a place to pull off of the gravel Hadley Pond Road. Tanzy was very excited as we were there a couple days ago. The first view you get looks like this…

Another look a short way down the trail shows some reeds in the fore ground.

The water is very clean and clear.

The trail is lined with conifers and deciduous trees. The needles make for a soft and quiet trail walk.

Once in a while you encounter a birder out on an expedition to see and hear that illusive symbol of the north woods, the common loon.

THERE HE IS !!!

After a successful exploration, there are many relaxing vistas to see on the stroll back to the Honda.

Thank God we have such a beautiful country and the freedom to wander it without the hassle of crossing political borders.

 

Our day continued with a stop at the Farmers’ Market in Northeast Harbor where we purchased fresh baked bread, cookies, a scone and two jars of special sauces for use primarily on seafood. One is white and the other red.

After leaving Mount Desert Island, we took back roads to the Ellsworth Library (mentioned in a previous blog). On the way we could not resist a stop for homemade ice cream at a small stand on the Union River. We returned one book and took out four books and a DVD at the library.

Our last stop was Wally World for a few grocery, a spray lubricant for our non-functioning steps and some cash. We are not near a branch of our bank so we get cash back and avoid ATM fees.

A Walk Up Beech Cliff Trail and Back