8 October 2019, Tuesday
N leaves shortly after breakfast for a meeting in Bar Harbor. He will remain there to work for most of the day. Meanwhile, O, G, and I decide which trail to try today. We settle on the Gorham Mountain Trail which begins on the eastern side of the park loop road. Before driving to the trailhead we once again head to the top of Cadillac Mountain. After all, it is an iconic view and G has never been there. Besides, O and I would like to see how it looks in the absence of wind and rain.
Today, Cadillac Mountain’s summit is much different. For one thing, there are many more cars here. There is a long line as we wait for earlier arrivals to depart so we can claim a parking space. We luck out. A car leaves from a space right next to us. We grab the spot. On the summit winds are light and there is even a bit of sunshine. Fall colors are popping on distant hills. Soon we are back in Vincent driving to the trailhead. There is much more traffic today and the loop road is lined with tourists. We turn into one of the parking areas a bit shy of the Gorham Trail lot and walk down the Ocean Path, past Thunder Hole. Thunder Hole is a crevice in the rocks along the shore that booms when the waves hit just right. We hear several booms as we observe from the rail.
Soon after Thunder Hole we arrive at the trail head and begin our climb. About ¼ mile into our hike we detour onto the more strenuous Cadillac Cliffs portion of the trail. Here we climb up large boulders, walk along impressive cliffs, and even pass an old sea cave formed over 12,000 years ago when this area was at sea level due to compression of the land by glaciers. The land rose significantly when the pressure was relieved as the glaciers melted. At one point along the trail we hang onto iron rungs as we climb onto a ledge. When we rejoin the main trail, O decides the bouldering has loosened his knee cartilage too much to continue. He heads back down the gentler main trail while G and I continue our hike. The blazing autumn colors are striking as we take in the view from the granite ridge.
From the summit we descend through a birch and maple forest, back along the Ocean Path and then to the parking area where O awaits. He reports having received several offers to trade various vehicles for Vincent while he’s been waiting for us.
The afternoon is passing quickly. We drive back to the quieter side of Acadia to meet N at Echo Lake. G and he are hoping to get in a late afternoon hike before heading back to Rogue Restaurant for dinner. O and I remain at Echo Lake Beach and enjoy the scenery. O spots a great blue heron in the rushes, busy stalking fish. We watch through binoculars at it catches a large one, spends some time orienting it’s catch properly in its mouth and then gulps it down. We can actually see a bulge descending through the bird’s long neck. The great blue shakes itself and walks up onto the bank for a few minutes. Then it returns to the shallow water where it successfully captures a smaller fish. It’s a good day for the heron. For the fish – not so much!
Soon G and N meet us back in the darkening parking lot. They took a shortcut down from their hike using metal rungs attached to the cliff face. The four of us drive five minutes down the road to Rogue for another delicious dinner. Then it’s back to camp for the night.