Category Archives: USA

Acadia in Autumn

Acadia, Maine was our first stop on the search for Autumn colours – timing was perfect and coincided with arrival of a cruise ship – also chasing Autumn. This meant Bar Harbor restaurants tables were scarce and the popular viewing points were busy. However, going even a small distance off the beaten track we were alone.

An obvious problem with looking for Autumn colours is that the season is a close relative of Winter which means potential for cold winds and rain. We got them both.

It was wet underfoot on the trails but we happily took the good along with the wet and uncomfortable – just for those colours.

It remained clear enough that we did manage to get in a glider flight to the cloud ceiling and back. Stunning – Acadia Autumn colours from above with just the wind and the pilot for company. No eagles unfortunately.

At night deer wandered the gardens, backstreets and main roads around town – very cute with big ears and easy to miss in the dark.

Share

Walden Pond, On a clear Autumn day

Could that be ….?

Returning from a trip to northern Maine searching very successfully for Autumn colours we decided to ignore the online reviews(overpriced, crowded, grumpy parking attendant,….) and stop on our way back to Boston.

There were no crowds or grumpy parking attendant and great visitor centre staff. I doubt we saw more than 50 people around the lake including joggers in the forest, staff and visitors.

I enjoy Henry Thoreau’s writing and here we were at Walden Pond as it is in 2018 at least – I checked where the railway line is now and confirmed it is in exactly the same place as when Henry grumbled about this new technology in the 1840’s.

Another query to the staff was about Henry’s habit of lying on the clear ice in early winter and checking the trails and activities of the critters on the lake bottom.

Has anyone tried it since? ‘Oh regularly, and most of them fall through the ice’. Apparently people forget that modern Americans are much larger and heavier than at Henry’s time.

Henry’s cottage

There is a replica of the cottage, based on his writings, near the visitor’s centre. This is, despite being a best guess, still worth a visit before strolling further.

The site of his actual cottage has been identified – a favourite with Henry’s fans – many mementoes and notes on rocks nearby.

It was a perfect day for a stroll around the pond.

Share

Route 66

Route 66 Weirdness 1

Amboy – Roy’s

No bloody pictures!

Shortly after taking the photo below a voice from somewhere near the gas station bellowed “None of your bloody pictures around here”

 Roys Motel Cafe0303

We moved away a little, past the gas station on the opposite side of the road and took the photo below – including a madonna sitting on a pile of white blocks between the buildings – we did not manage to get close before the voice was there again “Didn’t you hear me – none of your bloody photos around here!”.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

We had not seen any other cars for a long time and visualising the headline “Tourists disappear on Route 66” left town.

Looking back my wife spotted a man with binoculars in the shadows of the gas station forecourt watching us closely.

We discovered later that the gentleman with the binoculars was well known at the time for yelling at people who stopped in Amboy – he has long since moved on and last I heard the gas station actually even sells fuel.

Route 66 Weirdness 2

Route 66 9

Route 66 Weirdness 3

Stranger in town or maybe my pants were unzipped

I walked into the Cafe – the whole restaurant fell silent and everyone watched me walk to the counter, I bought a coffee and feeling all those eyes on me promptly left – the world outside was still reassuringly normal – suburban driveways and passing traffic – phew!

Route 66 8

 

En Route

The proof
The proof

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
We followed the asphalt

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
Back on the interstate

Share