Acadia Mountain

September 12, 2010 - Acadia Mountain Elev. 681' - Hike #2 -
Well just 3 days after the first hike we head out for the second one on a Sunday morning. That is the plan, that Thursday & Sunday mornings to hike in Acadia will be the schedule unless life gets in the way then we improvise and reschedule. It was predicted to be sunny but a few clouds were deciding to hang tough. But that didn't dampen our spirits. The temp was cooler this mornin' but again we are Mainers you can scare us off that easy.

We parked in the Acadia Mountain parking area right along the roadside on Route 102. We cross the road to start the hike by going in by the metal gate that is the entrance to the Man O' War Brook Road. We follow that for a bit then take a left at the start of the Acadia Mountain Trail.
We have both hiked Acadia before but not together. So the ascent begins and we gain elevation quickly. There is many different types of trees to look at heading up Acadia. Most of them are pine trees with several varieties adding interest to the hike. They each seem to have their own grove as you continue to climb. Many places are steep and require quite the leg stretches and use of hands to reach your destination. We find we are not as easily winded today as we are getting conditioned to the cardio but we do notice that talking and laughing uses a fair amount of oxygen as well!

We come upon many open ledge areas that gives you views to the west and you can see parts of Echo Lake below. You can see neighboring Beech Mountain, where we had just been 3 days ago, as well as Mansell Mtn to the west. The skies are not clear but it's not completely overcast either. But we don't seem to mind as long as it's not raining and we are hiking. Many of the open ledge areas have grooves in them and it seems over time water has carved it's name in the stone.

We continue up the mountain and continue our chit chat back & forth. Sometimes it seems to be the fuel that helps propel us up the mountain. We stop for a brief moment at another overlook area to the west and discuss if the mountain range in the way distant to the west could possibly be the White Mountains. We doubt it as the skies are not super clear today and could we really see that far into New Hampshire? We debate it and discuss it and realize we must look it up upon our return to civilization. Of course Renee suggests she should have brought her partners hand held GPS that he suggested she bring and we quickly distinguish that thought! We laugh some more and off we go to the summit.

As you come upon the summit of Acadia it is like the world opens up in front of you. Somes Sound and the Atlantic Ocean seems to say "Hello & Welcome, we've been waiting for you". You stand in awe and just say Wow. All the outer islands off Southwest Harbor lay quietly to the south. We wonder why it took us so long to hike Acadia again.
The water wasn't a brilliant blue as usual today but it gave off a serene and peaceful vibe as we stood and stared at our surroundings. We know then that we will hike Acadia again as it is one of the best on MDI.
And since the sun was not as brilliant today we know we will be back again to see it on a crisp sunny fall or spring day.

We take a "timed" photo of us both at the summit and realize we have to do this every time to "prove we were here". We don't know who we are proving it to but that is beside the point. I learned that 10 seconds is longer than you think to get in the shot.

After soaking in the summit of Acadia we make our way along the trail to begin  the descent and we realize after a brief few minutes that there really is not a bad view coming down the Acadia Mountain Trail going in the direction we chose. We did not back track the same way we had come we had continued on to make the hike a loop. We were headed for the base of the mountain to the Man O' War Brook Road. We can see the Sound and Valley Cove as well St. Sauveur & Flying Mountains ahead of us to the south and this view continues the whole way down the trail.

We say it over and over..."there is no bad view coming down this way" or "we get a view all the way down, can you believe it?". We both can't remember that from the previous time we had hiked Acadia. For me it had been awhile and I had had my husband & two sons with me. The boys were younger so I had to help watch their footings as well as my own that day so I believe I missed the views or had really forgotten how beautiful this mountain hike really is. You keep seeing the view as you zig zag down the trail until you get below the tree tops and by then you are almost to the Man O' War Brook Rd. We take a right at the trail marker at the bottom and head west out on the Man O' War Brook Rd.

Our feet welcomes the flat and smoother terrain. The road has had been washed out in many areas again due to the unusual heavy rains we have had the past spring and in the fall of 2009. Park crews have yet to rebuild as I am sure the priority isn't high in this particular spot as it is still very safe & passable. They have many trails to maintain and will get to this road when they can.
On the walk back to the truck we plan the next hike just the addict plans the next fix. We will head out in 4 days to the next summit to be conquered.