Day 1: The Long and Winding Interstate
Brooke and I always knew we would return to Acadia National Park ever since our trip in 2011 with friends Mark and Shauna, we just didn't know exactly when. That all came into picture this past winter when Brooke brought up the idea to take the boys to Acadia with the camper. We now had our own tow vehicle, and didn't have to deprive my Dad the use of his truck for days at a time, and what better way to break it in than to head up to New England's only National Park? Due to a confluence of bad luck, the majority of our trip planning was completed late Thursday afternoon, hours before we were to leave Friday morning. Because we pack like the Clampett's, squeezing all of our supplies into a Toyota Highlander along with two toddlers in their respective car seats was harder than we thought. Once everything was strapped down and crammed in, kids included, we hit the road, albeit a few hours later than we expected. We made the six hour trek in about, oh, six hours, and only had to stop once for gas & snacks. Lucky for me, L.L. Bean had an outlet store in Ellsworth, ME, so I got to poke around with a recent birthday gift card burning a hole in my pocket. One solo backpacking tent later, we were back on the road with only about a half hour remaining until we were in Bar Harbor. We found ourselves at the Blackwoods Campground run by the National Park Service at around 5pm, and Brooke was nice enough to keep the boys occupied and out of the way while I set up the camper, which was to everyone's benefit and safety. Within fifteen minutes our humble home away from home was completely set up. It was a gorgeous night, so we took a quick stroll down to the cliffs that are adjacent to the campground and enjoyed the majestic views. Being only four years old, Hunter obviously didn't remember being on those same cliffs three years earlier, but what mattered the most was that Brooke and I certainly did. We snapped a few dozen pictures of the boys on the rocks (under proper adult supervision, of course) and then headed back to the campsite.
Brooke had our meals planned out ahead of time, and had mapped out Friday night to be one of the few meals we'd eat in town. The six mile drive from the campground into town is a favorite of mine, and driving into the sunset really made for a beautiful drive carving between the island's mountains. We parked right alongside the common in the center of town and strolled down what I think is one of the best main streets in America. We had enjoyed a nice meal three years earlier at the Fish House Grill, right on the water, and opted to dine their again. Our table was overlooking the docks of the harbor, the sun was setting, our boys were behaving, the food was good - I mean, the stars couldn't have been any more aligned. After a great dining experience like that, the only thing on our minds AND the mind of our four-year-old was ice cream. Luckily for us, Bar Harbor's main street and side roads are peppered with ice cream shops. We enjoyed our ice creams sitting on the grass of the common, and then proceeded back to the camper to get a good night's rest. Brooke had only recently discovered she was pregnant with tike number three (three!), and she found herself exhausted pretty early every night. She retreated to the camper with the boys while I struggled to catch the overpriced and under-seasoned firewood on fire. With my frustration slowly rising from a simmer to a boil, I decided to put a pin in the fire situation and get some shut eye. Our sleeping situation was going to be Hunter and I in the king size and Brooke and Max in the double, but it was cold enough at night to warrant the four of us cramming in the king size and using both blankets to keep warm. It got down to 40* that first night, but our happy little family was toasty warm all snuggled up in flannel sheets underneath two down blankets! The same can't be said for when we had to get out of bed, though.
Day 2: Hiking Jordan Pond, and More Ice Cream
Despite the cold nighttime temperatures, our little family unit stayed quite toasty. Middle-of-the-night bathroom runs were quite chilly, but we were otherwise treated to an incredibly comfortable night's rest. I fired up the two burner stove on the outside of the camper and quickly brewed a whole carafe of coffee. While enjoying camping's most necessary supplement, I cooked up a feast of scrambled eggs, pancakes, and bacon. What's camping without a breakfast feast? After devouring what was probably too many calories for the physical activities we had planned, we cleaned up and took yet another stroll to the cliffs that abutted the campground. A few dozen pictures later, it was time to head out and explore the park. Our first stop was at the beginning of Park Loop Road, Sieur de Monts.
We scored a great parking spot right adjacent to the visitor's center, and did our first "hike" of the trip, a quarter mile stroll through the Wild Gardens of Acadia. It was here that I properly educated Hunter about tadpoles. And by "properly," I mean I pointed them out and explained that they were baby frogs. I'm not wrong, you know. After the trip's first (and only) science lesson, we popped into the visitor's center where the boys could take a glimpse at all of the taxidermied wildlife that one can find in the park and eventually made our way back to the car. It felt great being back on Park Loop Road, the 27-mile loop that runs through the heart of the park. It was a memorable drive for us back in 2011, and we were no less than thrilled to be able to make the rounds as many times as we wanted this year. We drove by many landmarks that brought back a rush of memories, but our destination that morning was Jordan Pond.
The parking lot was only half full, which caught us by surprise, but we later learned that the park doesn't get busy until closer to July when the temperatures really start to warm up. Having to get out of the camper to pee at 3am earlier that morning, I understood why people stay away for a few more weeks. We tossed the boys into the Kelty kid carriers and made our way down to the water. What is one of Acadia's most iconic backdrops, Jordan Pond and the North and South Bubble served as our backdrop for one of our best family pictures to date. We headed down to the water and found the trail that wraps itself around the pond. We hiked for only a half-mile or so until the boys determined that it was lunch time. Being the incredible, infallible parents that we are, we had packed food for the boys. I know, right? We sat at the shoreline of the pond drinking our Gatorade and eating our PB&J and chips, and watched as the boys goofed around on the rocks and did their very best at seeing how close they could get to the water without soaking their shoes. Spoiler alert: the shoes got wet. Right around the time we finished lunch, Hunter thought it would be fun to do a goofy pose on a rock that sat in the water. Everything was going swimmingly until Hunter lost his balance and ended up in the drink. His ego shattered but his will intact, we packed everything back up and continued our way down the trail. We hiked for probably another mile or so and decided to head back, as we were flirting with nap time and didn't want our first meltdown of the trip to be mid-trail. I mean, meltdowns are a fact of life with young kids - the secret is planning them accordingly, of course. Back at the Jordan Pond House we discovered they didn't open for the season until the next day, so we perused the gift shop where we scored a few stickers for the boys' water bottles and a new one for Brooke's old Nalgene because, apparently, the one she bought in 2011 wasn't cute anymore. Makes sense, I guess.
It was now early afternoon, and with no set agenda we decided to hop back on Park Loop Road and make our way back into Bar Harbor for a light snack before dinner. We settled on a cool looking spot called Rupununi that had some outdoor dining and a menu replete with local craft beer. Brooke was craving nachos, so we ordered a mountain of those and I treated myself to a draught Allagash White Ale, one of my favorite New England beers. We kept the boys occupied with place mats and crayons, the savior of hundreds of meals, and Brooke and I enjoyed a great afternoon treat. After ponying up some money for the bill, Brooke and I treated the boys to some ice cream right on the town common, again, and then headed back to the campsite.
Despite having just eaten a couple hours earlier, I couldn't wait to get dinner started. I had two behemoth ribeyes with a nice dusting of Montreal seasoning in the cooler that I was saving for cooking over an open fire. I got a fire going in the cast iron fire ring while Brooke romped with the boys, and promptly threw the steaks on the cooking grate along with ears of corn wrapped in tinfoil and some tinfoil packets of cubed potatoes and onions. It was shaping up to be quite the bountiful feast! While dinner cooked, Hunter asked if I could make him popcorn. Brooke had bought one of the stovetop popcorn packets, but I failed to read the directions that said to cook on low. I fired up the stove, cranked up the flame, and in about 30 seconds had smoke and the pungent aroma of burnt popcorn wafting through the campground. Hunter's reaction to his dad burning his popcorn? "It's OK Daddy, thank you though!" Score one for parenting.
Our dinner now cooked, we gathered at the picnic table and dug into yet another classic camping dinner. Sure, I may have overcooked the steaks a tad (the fire got just a bit hotter than my 1993 Weber Genesis gas grill), but all in all it was a delicious meal made difficult to eat only because we had devoured nachos a few hours earlier. Taking full advantage of our optimal location, we took yet another stroll down to the cliffs after dinner. It was just too beautiful of a night not to go down and enjoy such a gorgeous vista. The hike down and back was enough to wear the boys out and get them ready for bed. Brooke was also pretty tuckered out, what with being in the earliest stages of carrying our third child, so within a matter of minutes I found myself sitting by the fire, poking it regularly with a stick carefully adjusting each log to achieve optimal burn. That's right, optimal burn. I called it a night around 10pm, where I not-so-stealthily made my way into the camper, changed, and crawled into bed with the three (soon to be four) loves of my life. Yet another chilly night, we made sure to snuggle up and stay toasty warm in our flannel sheets. Some of the best sleep to be had is while camping in cooler weather.
Day 3: Two beaches, a Horse, a Cadillac, and Popovers
Our last full day in the park was one of the busiest. We wanted to make sure we crossed everything off our mental to-do list, so after another hearty (read: unhealthy) breakfast of scrambled eggs, home fries, bacon, and coffee, we packed up the trusty family-hauling SUV and headed west on Route 3 to Stanley Brook and Stanley Beach. We had passed it a few times both in 2011 and the day prior, but this time we decided to park and walk around. I had Max in the smaller Kelty backpack and walked down to the surf, enjoying the bright sun and classic New England seascape. Brooke and Hunter explored a different section of the beach, opting instead to enjoy the brook that runs right through the middle of the beach, pouring into the Atlantic. After 30 minutes or so of enjoying this beautiful morning we hopped back into the Highlander and got on Park Loop Road again, which had an entrance right next to the small beach parking lot. We were headed to Cadillac Mountain, but got sidetracked halfway there when we pulled into the Wildwood Stables. It was a place we had explored back in 2011 via mountain bike, and wanted to check it out again. The large stable and adjacent fields were even prettier with the backdrop of Acadia's mountains. Max was sound asleep in his car seat, so Brooke and Hunter walked along the fence down to where one seemingly enormous horse was eating. Hunter had no issues with being mere feet away from such a large animal, at least until the horse acknowledged his presence and grunted. That is when Hunter decided in an instant that he was ready to go.
We were now back on the road to Cadillac Mountain, the highest peak in the park (and the site of the earliest sunrise in the U.S.), and forgot how long and windy the road to the top was. Hunter wasn't enjoying how close to the edge the road got, but we made it in one piece thanks to Brooke's expert maneuvering (I was busy videotaping). Our packs were filled to the brim with all of the latest and greatest snack foods, so after a bathroom break and a quick summit exploration we found some good flat rocks to set up our pseudo-lunch. The view from the top of the mountain, which is a full 360*, makes cruise liners look like bathtub toys and nearby lakes seem as small as countertop spills. Despite not technically being a mountain (it's only 1,528 feet high), because it practically borders the ocean it seems much, much higher. The boys obviously had no real appreciation for their snacktime surroundings but Brooke and I drank it in, reveling not so much in the vista but in the company in which we were dining. Watching the world's two cutest kids enjoy their snacks on boulders atop this National Park mountain made us just that much more excited for #3 to roll along in January.
We had a few more stops on Park Loop Road before we could officially consider our vacation complete and one of those spots was Sand Beach, aptly named because it's (probably) the only sandy waterfront on the entire island. We weren't completely prepared for the beach (one towel, mostly) but we still managed to get comfy, walk the beach, put our toes in the frigid water, and generally enjoy all that a really nice beach has to offer. Max spent the majority of his time finding out what sand tasted like, over and over and over again, and Hunter couldn't have been happier alternating between playing with his truck in the sand and running up close to waves - but not close enough to actually get wet.
After hiking our sandy butts back up to the car and loading everything back into it, along with a couple pounds of sand (souvenirs), Brooke and I took our scrubby little boys back to the campground. It was now early afternoon, and we had a few more fun things planned for our last night. Once back at the camper, Brooke took Max to the nearby showers while Hunter and I defended our food cache from one of the most intuitive squirrels I've ever encountered. Right before my eyes, this little guy hopped off the camper's bumper onto the far edge of our soft-sided trash can, utilizing his weight to topple the can and let all of the goodies inside spill out. I was having none of it, though, and decided to scare him away, hide the trash can, and pack away the rest of our food. I didn't exactly come up with an equally-brilliant plan to save our food supply, but I still evened the score. Kind of. Once Brooke and Max returned, it was my turn to hit the shower with Hunter. Public showers are public showers, and they'll always be nasty. Despite feeling like a million bucks after the shower, there was still a fair amount of my dignity that went down that drain along with the soap suds and Hunter's piddle. Now that we were a fresh and clean little family, we got dressed in our Sunday best and headed to the Jordan Pond House which was now open. We got a table on the lawn overlooking the pond, devoured our popovers, and relished the fact that our family vacation to Acadia had played out perfectly. After our snack we let the boys run around on the lawn, deceiving them into tiring themselves out in the hopes that Brooke and I could enjoy some quiet time once they went to bed.
It was now dinnertime, so Brooke and I fastened the boys back into their co-pilot seats in the back of the Highlander and took Park Loop Road back into Bar Harbor. We found a parking spot on one of the main side streets of downtown and walked around for close to twenty minutes, passing up a slew of restaurants in the hopes of finding "the one." Well, everyone makes mistakes. We passed up a lot of probably very good restaurants and opted for a pretty crappy one. It was my fault, clearly, as Brooke let me pick where we ate. Why on earth would I pick the obvious tourist trap with the 50's diner theme? I would never, ever pick a place like that, and there I was, picking exactly that. The inside was nice, and the decor was seemingly authentic, but the food was just OK, and it bummed me out that our last dinner in my favorite town in New England (and an easy Top 5 in the country) was spent in a rather empty, rather mediocre diner filled with classic 1950's American kitsch. I soon found out, though, that one way to make up for a blah dinner is to wash it down with ice cream. Ice cream, you say? Of course! We couldn't not get ice cream on our last night after getting it the previous two nights. We let the boys run around the common and tire themselves out before heading back to the camper for our last night. The boys were completely tuckered out so they went to bed instantly, but so was my pregnant wife who admirably "laid down with the boys to get them to sleep," and ended up falling asleep herself. I wasn't far behind, being almost as tired as the other 75% of my family.
Day 4: Bar Harbor > Freeport > Home
We were all up pretty early after such an early bedtime and quickly brushed our teeth and packed up the rest of our belongings in anticipation of our six hour drive home. We planned on eating breakfast in town, so as soon as we were dressed we started chucking things in the back of the car and in the camper. A frustration-free 20 minutes later, and we were completely packed and ready for the road. Instead of stopping for breakfast once we were on the road and in that long-drive rhythm, we stopped right in Bar Harbor and stuffed our collective faces at Jordan's Restaurant. We enjoyed all that Jordan's had to offer and left completely full. After fueling our bodies with coffee, eggs, pancakes, and two different kinds of breakfast meats, it was time to fuel the vehicle and hit the highway.
We took a slightly different route home, opting to take Route 3 out of Ellsworth and follow the coast for a hundred miles or so before reconnecting with 95 in Augusta. Freeport, the home of L.L. Bean, is about halfway between Bar Harbor and home so we stopped there for lunch on our way home. We didn't have time to walk around and enjoy the collection of outdoorsy shops in town, but we managed to have what was probably our best meal of the entire weekend at the Tuscan Brick Oven Bistro. I know the name sounds severely overplayed just like a million other generic Italian restaurants, but this place was unreal. Check out the menu and make sure to stop in if you're ever within 40 miles of Freeport. It was that good.
We continued on for another two hours or so after lunch, and before long found ourselves pulling into our driveway with another perfect family vacation in the books. It was another hour or so of unpacking before things were getting settled, and when Brooke and I finally hit the couch after putting the boys to bed we just couldn't stop gushing about how amazing our trip was. Bar Harbor and Acadia are definitely becoming a special place for our family. 2015 is planning to be quite busy with our next child due in January, but don't be surprised to see another trip to Acadia on the site in 2016.
Brooke and I always knew we would return to Acadia National Park ever since our trip in 2011 with friends Mark and Shauna, we just didn't know exactly when. That all came into picture this past winter when Brooke brought up the idea to take the boys to Acadia with the camper. We now had our own tow vehicle, and didn't have to deprive my Dad the use of his truck for days at a time, and what better way to break it in than to head up to New England's only National Park? Due to a confluence of bad luck, the majority of our trip planning was completed late Thursday afternoon, hours before we were to leave Friday morning. Because we pack like the Clampett's, squeezing all of our supplies into a Toyota Highlander along with two toddlers in their respective car seats was harder than we thought. Once everything was strapped down and crammed in, kids included, we hit the road, albeit a few hours later than we expected. We made the six hour trek in about, oh, six hours, and only had to stop once for gas & snacks. Lucky for me, L.L. Bean had an outlet store in Ellsworth, ME, so I got to poke around with a recent birthday gift card burning a hole in my pocket. One solo backpacking tent later, we were back on the road with only about a half hour remaining until we were in Bar Harbor. We found ourselves at the Blackwoods Campground run by the National Park Service at around 5pm, and Brooke was nice enough to keep the boys occupied and out of the way while I set up the camper, which was to everyone's benefit and safety. Within fifteen minutes our humble home away from home was completely set up. It was a gorgeous night, so we took a quick stroll down to the cliffs that are adjacent to the campground and enjoyed the majestic views. Being only four years old, Hunter obviously didn't remember being on those same cliffs three years earlier, but what mattered the most was that Brooke and I certainly did. We snapped a few dozen pictures of the boys on the rocks (under proper adult supervision, of course) and then headed back to the campsite.
Brooke had our meals planned out ahead of time, and had mapped out Friday night to be one of the few meals we'd eat in town. The six mile drive from the campground into town is a favorite of mine, and driving into the sunset really made for a beautiful drive carving between the island's mountains. We parked right alongside the common in the center of town and strolled down what I think is one of the best main streets in America. We had enjoyed a nice meal three years earlier at the Fish House Grill, right on the water, and opted to dine their again. Our table was overlooking the docks of the harbor, the sun was setting, our boys were behaving, the food was good - I mean, the stars couldn't have been any more aligned. After a great dining experience like that, the only thing on our minds AND the mind of our four-year-old was ice cream. Luckily for us, Bar Harbor's main street and side roads are peppered with ice cream shops. We enjoyed our ice creams sitting on the grass of the common, and then proceeded back to the camper to get a good night's rest. Brooke had only recently discovered she was pregnant with tike number three (three!), and she found herself exhausted pretty early every night. She retreated to the camper with the boys while I struggled to catch the overpriced and under-seasoned firewood on fire. With my frustration slowly rising from a simmer to a boil, I decided to put a pin in the fire situation and get some shut eye. Our sleeping situation was going to be Hunter and I in the king size and Brooke and Max in the double, but it was cold enough at night to warrant the four of us cramming in the king size and using both blankets to keep warm. It got down to 40* that first night, but our happy little family was toasty warm all snuggled up in flannel sheets underneath two down blankets! The same can't be said for when we had to get out of bed, though.
Day 2: Hiking Jordan Pond, and More Ice Cream
Despite the cold nighttime temperatures, our little family unit stayed quite toasty. Middle-of-the-night bathroom runs were quite chilly, but we were otherwise treated to an incredibly comfortable night's rest. I fired up the two burner stove on the outside of the camper and quickly brewed a whole carafe of coffee. While enjoying camping's most necessary supplement, I cooked up a feast of scrambled eggs, pancakes, and bacon. What's camping without a breakfast feast? After devouring what was probably too many calories for the physical activities we had planned, we cleaned up and took yet another stroll to the cliffs that abutted the campground. A few dozen pictures later, it was time to head out and explore the park. Our first stop was at the beginning of Park Loop Road, Sieur de Monts.
We scored a great parking spot right adjacent to the visitor's center, and did our first "hike" of the trip, a quarter mile stroll through the Wild Gardens of Acadia. It was here that I properly educated Hunter about tadpoles. And by "properly," I mean I pointed them out and explained that they were baby frogs. I'm not wrong, you know. After the trip's first (and only) science lesson, we popped into the visitor's center where the boys could take a glimpse at all of the taxidermied wildlife that one can find in the park and eventually made our way back to the car. It felt great being back on Park Loop Road, the 27-mile loop that runs through the heart of the park. It was a memorable drive for us back in 2011, and we were no less than thrilled to be able to make the rounds as many times as we wanted this year. We drove by many landmarks that brought back a rush of memories, but our destination that morning was Jordan Pond.
The parking lot was only half full, which caught us by surprise, but we later learned that the park doesn't get busy until closer to July when the temperatures really start to warm up. Having to get out of the camper to pee at 3am earlier that morning, I understood why people stay away for a few more weeks. We tossed the boys into the Kelty kid carriers and made our way down to the water. What is one of Acadia's most iconic backdrops, Jordan Pond and the North and South Bubble served as our backdrop for one of our best family pictures to date. We headed down to the water and found the trail that wraps itself around the pond. We hiked for only a half-mile or so until the boys determined that it was lunch time. Being the incredible, infallible parents that we are, we had packed food for the boys. I know, right? We sat at the shoreline of the pond drinking our Gatorade and eating our PB&J and chips, and watched as the boys goofed around on the rocks and did their very best at seeing how close they could get to the water without soaking their shoes. Spoiler alert: the shoes got wet. Right around the time we finished lunch, Hunter thought it would be fun to do a goofy pose on a rock that sat in the water. Everything was going swimmingly until Hunter lost his balance and ended up in the drink. His ego shattered but his will intact, we packed everything back up and continued our way down the trail. We hiked for probably another mile or so and decided to head back, as we were flirting with nap time and didn't want our first meltdown of the trip to be mid-trail. I mean, meltdowns are a fact of life with young kids - the secret is planning them accordingly, of course. Back at the Jordan Pond House we discovered they didn't open for the season until the next day, so we perused the gift shop where we scored a few stickers for the boys' water bottles and a new one for Brooke's old Nalgene because, apparently, the one she bought in 2011 wasn't cute anymore. Makes sense, I guess.
It was now early afternoon, and with no set agenda we decided to hop back on Park Loop Road and make our way back into Bar Harbor for a light snack before dinner. We settled on a cool looking spot called Rupununi that had some outdoor dining and a menu replete with local craft beer. Brooke was craving nachos, so we ordered a mountain of those and I treated myself to a draught Allagash White Ale, one of my favorite New England beers. We kept the boys occupied with place mats and crayons, the savior of hundreds of meals, and Brooke and I enjoyed a great afternoon treat. After ponying up some money for the bill, Brooke and I treated the boys to some ice cream right on the town common, again, and then headed back to the campsite.
Despite having just eaten a couple hours earlier, I couldn't wait to get dinner started. I had two behemoth ribeyes with a nice dusting of Montreal seasoning in the cooler that I was saving for cooking over an open fire. I got a fire going in the cast iron fire ring while Brooke romped with the boys, and promptly threw the steaks on the cooking grate along with ears of corn wrapped in tinfoil and some tinfoil packets of cubed potatoes and onions. It was shaping up to be quite the bountiful feast! While dinner cooked, Hunter asked if I could make him popcorn. Brooke had bought one of the stovetop popcorn packets, but I failed to read the directions that said to cook on low. I fired up the stove, cranked up the flame, and in about 30 seconds had smoke and the pungent aroma of burnt popcorn wafting through the campground. Hunter's reaction to his dad burning his popcorn? "It's OK Daddy, thank you though!" Score one for parenting.
Our dinner now cooked, we gathered at the picnic table and dug into yet another classic camping dinner. Sure, I may have overcooked the steaks a tad (the fire got just a bit hotter than my 1993 Weber Genesis gas grill), but all in all it was a delicious meal made difficult to eat only because we had devoured nachos a few hours earlier. Taking full advantage of our optimal location, we took yet another stroll down to the cliffs after dinner. It was just too beautiful of a night not to go down and enjoy such a gorgeous vista. The hike down and back was enough to wear the boys out and get them ready for bed. Brooke was also pretty tuckered out, what with being in the earliest stages of carrying our third child, so within a matter of minutes I found myself sitting by the fire, poking it regularly with a stick carefully adjusting each log to achieve optimal burn. That's right, optimal burn. I called it a night around 10pm, where I not-so-stealthily made my way into the camper, changed, and crawled into bed with the three (soon to be four) loves of my life. Yet another chilly night, we made sure to snuggle up and stay toasty warm in our flannel sheets. Some of the best sleep to be had is while camping in cooler weather.
Day 3: Two beaches, a Horse, a Cadillac, and Popovers
Our last full day in the park was one of the busiest. We wanted to make sure we crossed everything off our mental to-do list, so after another hearty (read: unhealthy) breakfast of scrambled eggs, home fries, bacon, and coffee, we packed up the trusty family-hauling SUV and headed west on Route 3 to Stanley Brook and Stanley Beach. We had passed it a few times both in 2011 and the day prior, but this time we decided to park and walk around. I had Max in the smaller Kelty backpack and walked down to the surf, enjoying the bright sun and classic New England seascape. Brooke and Hunter explored a different section of the beach, opting instead to enjoy the brook that runs right through the middle of the beach, pouring into the Atlantic. After 30 minutes or so of enjoying this beautiful morning we hopped back into the Highlander and got on Park Loop Road again, which had an entrance right next to the small beach parking lot. We were headed to Cadillac Mountain, but got sidetracked halfway there when we pulled into the Wildwood Stables. It was a place we had explored back in 2011 via mountain bike, and wanted to check it out again. The large stable and adjacent fields were even prettier with the backdrop of Acadia's mountains. Max was sound asleep in his car seat, so Brooke and Hunter walked along the fence down to where one seemingly enormous horse was eating. Hunter had no issues with being mere feet away from such a large animal, at least until the horse acknowledged his presence and grunted. That is when Hunter decided in an instant that he was ready to go.
We were now back on the road to Cadillac Mountain, the highest peak in the park (and the site of the earliest sunrise in the U.S.), and forgot how long and windy the road to the top was. Hunter wasn't enjoying how close to the edge the road got, but we made it in one piece thanks to Brooke's expert maneuvering (I was busy videotaping). Our packs were filled to the brim with all of the latest and greatest snack foods, so after a bathroom break and a quick summit exploration we found some good flat rocks to set up our pseudo-lunch. The view from the top of the mountain, which is a full 360*, makes cruise liners look like bathtub toys and nearby lakes seem as small as countertop spills. Despite not technically being a mountain (it's only 1,528 feet high), because it practically borders the ocean it seems much, much higher. The boys obviously had no real appreciation for their snacktime surroundings but Brooke and I drank it in, reveling not so much in the vista but in the company in which we were dining. Watching the world's two cutest kids enjoy their snacks on boulders atop this National Park mountain made us just that much more excited for #3 to roll along in January.
We had a few more stops on Park Loop Road before we could officially consider our vacation complete and one of those spots was Sand Beach, aptly named because it's (probably) the only sandy waterfront on the entire island. We weren't completely prepared for the beach (one towel, mostly) but we still managed to get comfy, walk the beach, put our toes in the frigid water, and generally enjoy all that a really nice beach has to offer. Max spent the majority of his time finding out what sand tasted like, over and over and over again, and Hunter couldn't have been happier alternating between playing with his truck in the sand and running up close to waves - but not close enough to actually get wet.
After hiking our sandy butts back up to the car and loading everything back into it, along with a couple pounds of sand (souvenirs), Brooke and I took our scrubby little boys back to the campground. It was now early afternoon, and we had a few more fun things planned for our last night. Once back at the camper, Brooke took Max to the nearby showers while Hunter and I defended our food cache from one of the most intuitive squirrels I've ever encountered. Right before my eyes, this little guy hopped off the camper's bumper onto the far edge of our soft-sided trash can, utilizing his weight to topple the can and let all of the goodies inside spill out. I was having none of it, though, and decided to scare him away, hide the trash can, and pack away the rest of our food. I didn't exactly come up with an equally-brilliant plan to save our food supply, but I still evened the score. Kind of. Once Brooke and Max returned, it was my turn to hit the shower with Hunter. Public showers are public showers, and they'll always be nasty. Despite feeling like a million bucks after the shower, there was still a fair amount of my dignity that went down that drain along with the soap suds and Hunter's piddle. Now that we were a fresh and clean little family, we got dressed in our Sunday best and headed to the Jordan Pond House which was now open. We got a table on the lawn overlooking the pond, devoured our popovers, and relished the fact that our family vacation to Acadia had played out perfectly. After our snack we let the boys run around on the lawn, deceiving them into tiring themselves out in the hopes that Brooke and I could enjoy some quiet time once they went to bed.
It was now dinnertime, so Brooke and I fastened the boys back into their co-pilot seats in the back of the Highlander and took Park Loop Road back into Bar Harbor. We found a parking spot on one of the main side streets of downtown and walked around for close to twenty minutes, passing up a slew of restaurants in the hopes of finding "the one." Well, everyone makes mistakes. We passed up a lot of probably very good restaurants and opted for a pretty crappy one. It was my fault, clearly, as Brooke let me pick where we ate. Why on earth would I pick the obvious tourist trap with the 50's diner theme? I would never, ever pick a place like that, and there I was, picking exactly that. The inside was nice, and the decor was seemingly authentic, but the food was just OK, and it bummed me out that our last dinner in my favorite town in New England (and an easy Top 5 in the country) was spent in a rather empty, rather mediocre diner filled with classic 1950's American kitsch. I soon found out, though, that one way to make up for a blah dinner is to wash it down with ice cream. Ice cream, you say? Of course! We couldn't not get ice cream on our last night after getting it the previous two nights. We let the boys run around the common and tire themselves out before heading back to the camper for our last night. The boys were completely tuckered out so they went to bed instantly, but so was my pregnant wife who admirably "laid down with the boys to get them to sleep," and ended up falling asleep herself. I wasn't far behind, being almost as tired as the other 75% of my family.
Day 4: Bar Harbor > Freeport > Home
We were all up pretty early after such an early bedtime and quickly brushed our teeth and packed up the rest of our belongings in anticipation of our six hour drive home. We planned on eating breakfast in town, so as soon as we were dressed we started chucking things in the back of the car and in the camper. A frustration-free 20 minutes later, and we were completely packed and ready for the road. Instead of stopping for breakfast once we were on the road and in that long-drive rhythm, we stopped right in Bar Harbor and stuffed our collective faces at Jordan's Restaurant. We enjoyed all that Jordan's had to offer and left completely full. After fueling our bodies with coffee, eggs, pancakes, and two different kinds of breakfast meats, it was time to fuel the vehicle and hit the highway.
We took a slightly different route home, opting to take Route 3 out of Ellsworth and follow the coast for a hundred miles or so before reconnecting with 95 in Augusta. Freeport, the home of L.L. Bean, is about halfway between Bar Harbor and home so we stopped there for lunch on our way home. We didn't have time to walk around and enjoy the collection of outdoorsy shops in town, but we managed to have what was probably our best meal of the entire weekend at the Tuscan Brick Oven Bistro. I know the name sounds severely overplayed just like a million other generic Italian restaurants, but this place was unreal. Check out the menu and make sure to stop in if you're ever within 40 miles of Freeport. It was that good.
We continued on for another two hours or so after lunch, and before long found ourselves pulling into our driveway with another perfect family vacation in the books. It was another hour or so of unpacking before things were getting settled, and when Brooke and I finally hit the couch after putting the boys to bed we just couldn't stop gushing about how amazing our trip was. Bar Harbor and Acadia are definitely becoming a special place for our family. 2015 is planning to be quite busy with our next child due in January, but don't be surprised to see another trip to Acadia on the site in 2016.