May 19 Rockland to Brunswick, Maine

Adventure Cycling and I add mileage differently or I’m riding in circles adding on mileage every day.  Either way I need to use my rainy rest day on Monday to do a bit of recalculating.  Each day my odometer is reading at least five miles over what my maps are saying.  I’ve had a couple of reroutes because of construction, poor conditions, missing turns etc so I think I need to start planning that into the equation as I think about my route for the next day. I ended up riding about ten miles further than expected today and even though I made it with lots of light and time for shopping and dinner, it is psychologically hard because I end up feeling like I’m lost. I did miss one turn where the instructions said unmarked road. And I didn’t trust my instinct to turn.  Instead I asked the guy living on that corner if he lived on Old Stage Road and he said no and gave me a name I didn’t recognize at all.  Grumble, grumble. Anyway it worked out with a bit of remapping.
But that aside, my ride today was beautiful.  I rode by lakes, along the Merrymeeting Bay and through some lovely small towns.  I went through Waldoboro, a very quiet town on an early Sunday morning.  I’m not really sure anyone lives there.  I then had lunch in Damariscotta where I crossed the river and rode for a while along River Road.  In Wiscasset the Bridge was wide enough that I stopped and took a picture fighting the wind again. But that picture gives you an idea of the views I see as I’m entering the towns.  The bridges in Woolrich and Bath were intimidating and I was unwilling to stop for a photo.  Actually I missed the pedestrian path across the Bath Bridge. I followed the signs but ultimately followed a couple of cyclists right across the bridge.  No arrests or anything so I’m good.  Bath is a pretty town along the water and the ride through was pleasant.  I ended the day on the Androscoggin River Bike Path into Brunswick.  The path is lovely on the side of the river but it runs along I-95.  Noisy.
I’m staying the night in Brunswick in an Airbnb that Molly found for me.  Washing machine and all.  It’s predicted to rain all night into tomorrow and from the sounds of it the predictions are correct.  I’m looking forward to a rest day watching the rain from indoors.

May 18. Bucksport to Rockport Maine

Much better weather, roads and traffic today making for a great ride.  I traveled around 20 miles on US1 to go across the Penobscot Bridge and through Searsport and Belfast.  Both of those towns were quaint little harbor towns.The bridge was an adventure because of the wind.  I didn’t get off the bike  to take the picture below because I feared my bike couldn’t withstand the wind without falling over.  After Belfast I rode on SR 52 and it was pleasant with beautiful scenery and lovely villages.  The riding wasn’t as easy as I expected along the coast. Of course I am riding with an extra few pounds.

Camden Maine

Lake between Camden and Rockport 

Bridge

Safe Harbor church.  I liked the name.

I met three different cyclist today along the way.  I’m learning that they are the best for helping with directions because of their awareness about what it takes to move the bike forward. Two of the cyclists were mostly interested in looking at my maps and understanding the route.  One guy,Giovani, has a trip planned to Italy and is considering a new bike, anther had done two cross country rides and was curious about my maps.  But my favorite was the guy in Belfast who rode with me for a while even though he was on a carbon fiber bike and was having trouble going as slowly as I was going on the hills.  He was grumbling about the terrible road conditions in Maine and when I mentioned how lovely Belfast is, he said “It’s okay now but it used to smell like chicken poop when the chicken plant was here.”  Ambassador for Belfast and lives on Grumble Corner.  Cyclists are usually a bit more optimistic.
The photos below are the view from the bridge and several villages along the way.

May 17,2019 Bar Harbor to Bucksport, Maine

I left Bar Harbor in hopes of taking advantage of the sunny weather and getting some miles in before the rain came. This was harder than I thought partially because the construction planners have made it almost impossible to leave Bar Harbor on a bike.  I had lots of good advice on safe and scenic routes but they forgot to mention that the trucks had also been detoured that way to avoid the construction. So it was an exciting ride with minimal shoulders and impatient truckers.  I tried to veer off to other routes but it only gave me a few minutes of relief and set my pace back when I needed to renter the route.  I was thrilled when I came to SR 230 and it was quiet and pleasant until Ellsworth.  It did start raining but wasn’t really heavy so I was able to move forward.
Ellsworth was a tough transition back to traffic craziness.  Apparently several main highways end there for people to then access the coastline and there was a steady and speedy stream of traffic. I pulled over after one major hill where I couldn’t stop and the trucks couldn’t pass me and started looking at the map for an alternative route.  Luckily a man who is a Warm Showers host stopped to ask me if I needed a place to stay.  His place was about twenty miles further on my route. But better than that he helped me find a better route with wider shoulders and less traffic.  But of course the new route took me away from his place so I missed that Warm Showers opportunity.
I ended my day in Bucksport, a tiny town on the bay where I found the Fort Knox Inn that looks over the Penobscot bridge that I cross tomorrow.  I might be the only person staying in this inn tonight. Sweet older than me lady is running it but it is quiet.
Several people have told me that Maine is struggling with finances for their infrastructure and consequently the roads are in terrible shape.  So by the end of the day I bounced two of my panniers off of their rakes.  Hard to do with these Arkel Panniers.  The innkeeper told me that the state has started several projects and stopped midway leaving these extremely rough surfaces.  Hopefully as I move further the roads will get better.
Not many photos today because of the rain.  I love the street sign and that’s the Penobscot bridge.

May 16, 2019. Touring Acadia National Park

Today I picked up my bike at Bar Harbor Bicycle Shop. They had received it when I shipped it from Knoxville and put it together for me.  I think they fitted it better than it has been so I was quite comfortable when I biked to Schooner Point and then the loop road in Acadia. One very challenging mountain.  But Wow.. It was cool to show my senior park pass.  Thanks Jessica and Mary Lee.
The bike shop guys gave me the scoop on the most scenic and safe way out of Bar Harbor. So now hoping for no rain and warmer weather.

Bar Harbor,Maine

All flight plans went well and I arrived in Bar Harbor without incident.  The shuttle driver, Helen, is a long distance bike rider and was so excited to tell us all about her travels by bicycle.  I found it interesting but not too sure about the other two passengers.  She even drove me on the route she thought I should use to leave Bar Harbor.  According to Helen Adventure Cycling is the reason she began riding and her first trip was 17 years ago with AC for the Southern Tier.  She was 57 at the time and had retired from teaching and AC provided the challenge she needed.  But she is convinced that AC searches for hills to include on their routes. It does appear that her route is less hilly.  I plan to double check the route with the guys at the bicycle shop, that by the way is sanctioned by Helen so I’m feeling pretty safe.  So far good people, good food and beautiful terrain.  A bit cold and drizzling last night but better weather today.

View from my porch when I arrived.