SEP 30-OCT 1, 2019 – Eastport, ME
We make our way without incident to Eastport and the Seaview Campground and Cottages where we’ll stay 2 nights. We’ve decided to spend 2 nights in each of three locations as we head back to Boston. As the camping season is winding down for the year there aren’t too many vehicles at Seaview. We are given a beautiful spot, on a slight hill, above the bay to the north. We can see the currents go by and an occasional fishing boat. If you are lucky you can see porpoises and even whales but we missed them. A neighbor closer to the water did see a whale but it vanished too quickly to report on the “bell”. The sign says “ring if you see something!”
We take a long walk into town on Tuesday Oct 1 where we enjoy the waterfront. The large pier seems to be a popular fishing spot. Lots of herring and other bait fish are running given the higher than normal tides. We walk thru the main part of the town, the main street that has the shops and restaurants and find a spot, just outside of town, for a nice lunch. They too are getting ready to close for the season so the beer is half priced!!! I’ve come to enjoy a scallop roll as it is the season for them.
OCT 2, 2019 – Campobello Island, NB CA
Wednesday is a long driving day in order to make a detour to FDR’s summer home on Campobello Island, New Brunswick. For many years there wasn’t a bridge there, only boats serviced the island. We crossed the bridge from Lubec ME to the island and passed through a pretty small border crossing.
Many of the roads on the island are designated “carriage roads” and aren’t available for RVs. We wanted to see FDR’s “cottage” and the views as we’d looked over to Campobello from Eastport. Now we were looking back to Eastport. And we had to keep driving on to get down the coast.
The house is wonderfully kept up by both Canada Parks and US National Parks Service. It’s the only national park managed by two countries. Our guide was terrific and all of the rooms on the first and second floors were fully accessible. There wasn’t much in the way of separation or a “don’t touch” atmosphere. The kitchen was terrific and the upstairs bedrooms where many had small windows but nevertheless great views. Seemed all but the children’s rooms had a writing desk near the window. I guess that was in the day when staying in touch was done by letter.
Turns out all of the 800+ residents of Campobello Island are dual citizens. The only hospital available for delivering babies is in Lubec. Any Canadian baby born in Lubec has dual citizenship.
At the end of our tour we headed back to the US. We did not stay for “Tea with Eleanor” which is supposed to be a fun time. We crossed back over the bridge and through US border control and headed on a very scenic drive to Bar Harbor. We arrived early enough to drive into town for some groceries and get the lay of the land. The Mt Desert Narrows Campground is a few miles out of town but is on the shuttle system so it will be easy to get around on our day to explore.
OCT 2-3, 2019 – Bar Harbor, ME
The town of Bar Harbor is a typical small New England town with narrow streets and many tourists, everywhere. I wouldn’t want to be here in the summer! Seems the crowds are partly due to the foliage and the upcoming Columbus Day weekend. Even so, it’s midweek and it’s hard to drive around the town.
As we drove around late yesterday we learned a few things about Mt Desert. 1) Some of the roads on the mountain have very low bridges, so an RV only has a few choices when trying to see things; 2) RVs aren’t allowed on the road up to the top of Mt Desert. Apparently parking is such that there’s no room for the length or the volume of RVs. On a busy day the park rangers will close the road to all vehicles when the parking gets backed up. We learned this yesterday so were able to book a visit to the park on the trolley tour. It’s always nice to get the narrative on a tour.
After the tour we wandered along the water front, and saw boats and a cruise ship. I think the harbor is much more crowded in the summer. We found a terrific little place for lunch – called Lunch! They serve breakfast and lunch and are thinking about extending to dinner next year.
