A day without windshield wipers is like a..... Believe it or not , it did not rain today! However it was soooo..... muggy that I am ready to shave my head. Oh well, I'm not going to see these people again.
After a restful night at the B&B (listening to the rain) we had a breakfast buffet plus a cooked to order dish (French toast for me and pancakes for the man). The eating area was charming - huge fireplace and low ceilings, etc. We headed off for Portland via Rt 302, a two lane "highway" with lots of local color on both sides of the road. Big Tom is convinced every town looks the same - a cemetery, a post office, a garage and an eatery of some sort attatched to a shop - and that every road looks alike. "Weren't we on this road yesterday?" Never mind that we were in a different state. Something I finally figured out about the houses in New England - they don't have gutters and downspouts (They'd freeze up in winter anyway), so there's a cleaner looking roofline..
We wormed our way into Portland's dock area to find the Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum. They tried to hide it (really well in an old warehouse, one of many that all looked alike) but we tricked 'em and got there anyway. We had time to look around the museum - several old cars, a coach, a caboose,etc. and some interesting ones like a "bus" used when there weren't enough riders to warrant running a full train. It's just a small engine with some covered benches - they towed the luggage on behind on a flatbed. We had skipped the RR trip yesterday, so for a little extra we could take a ride on a restored train. It didn't go far or fast but it was a very pleasant ride along the Casco Bay in which the Queen Elizabeth happened to be docked. Some of the passengers were from the ship - a 24 day cruise from South Hampton to New York, Boston, Portland, Halifax, Quebec and Newfoundland and back to England. Whew! I thought we were taking on a lot!
One of the interesting points on the ride was the fort built on an island in the bay during the Civil War (never fired a shot). In order to protect the roof from fire they put sand on it. Through the years the soil was enriched until vegetation started. Now it's tree covered - looks very strange. Later we visited the home of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow complete with all the family possessions and furniture. A marvelous guide gave a very interesting tour. The house is the only residential building to remain in the downtown commercail area.
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The next stop was Freeport and the LLBean store - a HUGE store with a least two parking lots. All types of outlet stores abound in what otherwise would be a quaint New England town.
Finally The Captain could get on the Interstate and "make tracks". Both sides of I95 are lousy with trees just as it is going south from DC to Florida. There were splotches of fall color but I really enjoyed the very skinny and lacey pines - I've found our Christmas tree.
It was dark by the time we got to Bar Harbor, reaching our hotel a little after 7:00. The Chart Room was recommended to us by the lady at the front desk so we took off down the road through the freshly rolled in fog and located it. We had a good dinner (I cheated and had the Lazy Man's lobster which did not require a cracker or a bib) and pleasant atmosphere. I think it's on the water's edge - have to check it out on a clear day.
We're back in the room surrounded by all our possessions, studying the brochures and watching the weather forecast. Sunday looks to be the better day. Pictures should be up tomorrow - so stay tuned!
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