Fall is Fast Approaching
🚘Downeast Day Trip
Fall is fast approaching. And it is indeed the best time for leaf peeping!
I've never heard of "leaf peeping" before I moved to Maine. In Boise, Idaho, aka the City of Trees, fall is always the best time to take portraits as the background colors bring more color to the subject. Greenbelt in downtown Boise is the place to be. It's also the best time to hike up Camel's Back and see all the trees in their beautiful colors... well... City of Trees they say.
And then I saw this in October of 2021... a few months after moving to Maine...
I'm like... Boise lied to me!!! This is Borestone Mountain in Monson, Maine and it was indeed, jaw dropping. Mother Nature was like... you want colors... I show you colors!
From then on, I always look forward to cold weather as I know that it will be another opportunity to see them beautiful colors.
And now to my Downeast adventure.
When driving down (or up depending on your starting point) the coastal highway of Maine, aka Route 1, you have to stop at Perry's Nut House. As the business name suggested, it's nuts! You'll not only feast your sweet tooth but you'll also feast your eyes!
They have novelty items and displays that make you chuckle. Even zombies will crack a smile when they see their displays.
And if you're lucky, you might buy something there that you definitely don't need but have to have!
And besides lobsters, when you say Maine + coast + downeast = lighthouse!
The Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse is a must see especially if you're an active person that wants to get some steps in while maybe getting a little wet in the process. The breakwater is more than 4,000 feet (1,200 m) long, that's three quarter of a mile according to Google. Oh and by the way, it's an ankle breaker so be very very careful when walking on it. Parts of it, especially closer to the lighthouse can be wet and slippery.
If you happen to see a sign for Belfast, Maine, stop there and take in the scenery of the harbor and Belfast Bay. You'll definitely feel the authentic New England atmosphere.
Whether you walk around downtown (which is not super big) and hit the stores and bars or get some steps in via the Harborwalk which is a mile-long paved pedestrian footbridge that follows the shoreline along the city's harbor starting at the boathouse at the south end and ending on the opposite side of the harbor and Passagasaawakeag River, you are sure to enjoy this stop before you head to your next Downeast Maine destination.
⛰Big Moose Mountain
This blog will not be complete without sharing a hiking adventure.
Remember my blog about Big Squaw Mountain? This is what it looks like before it's covered with snow.
The Big Moose Trail is a 4.3 mile trail in and out, so yeah... 8.6 miles total. You better get there early in the AM to make sure that you're back in your car before it gets dark. And you don't want to be going down the trail when it's dark unless you have a really good headlamps because it.is.scary.rocky.
The summit is 3,150 foot and it has one of the best views I've seen roaming around the trails of Maine. The trail also leads past a now abandoned fire warden's cabin.
Big Moose Mountain is in Greenville, Maine and is part of the Moosehead Pinnacle Pursuit. If you have a week or two to spend in Greenville, this challenge should be in your list!
💛The Golden Road
The road that made famous by the reality show American Loggers, the Golden Road is a 96-mile private logging road (surprise!) in Maine. Built by the Great Northern Paper Company, this rugged dirt road stretches from the St. Zacharie Border Crossing to Millinocket, Maine. Yup! you can sneak in to Canada via this road.
The other main reason people go here and bare the bumps and humps and dirt is the view of Katahdin Mountain form Abol Bridge, especially in the fall. I wouldn't be surprised if you see a painter or a bunch of photographers huddled around this area to try and capture the right moment.
And if you're lucky like I was, you'll see at least 2 eagles staring back at you wondering if you're good enough to eat and if you'll put up a fight.
If you do plan on venturing out this way, make sure that you stop at the Ripogenus Gorge. It's a rock-walled canyon where the West Branch Penobscot River intersects the Caribou Lake anticline. What is an anticline you ask? It's the reverse of an incline 😄. It's an arch-shaped fold in rock layers, forming an upward convex curve with the oldest rocks in the core. These folds are typically formed by compressional forces during mountain building and are often associated with hydrocarbon (oil and gas) traps because the upward arching can trap fluids beneath an impermeable cap rock (thanks again, Google!). What is an impermeable cap rock you ask? No.
Oh yeah, and of course there's Ripogenus Lake and the Ripogenus Dam that was in 1916.
Where to next, Puu?
Mount Pleasant hiking and more pictures of the Aurora Borealis 😍
In the meantime, check out my store to see more images like this! Or maybe follow my Instagram page. Or maybe get some free stock photos. Thank you internet!
I'll leave you with this great line from one of the best love songs ever written...
"A fool will loose tomorrow wishing back for yesterday. I won't turn my head in sorrow if you should go away. I'll stand here and remember just how good it's been. And I know I'll never love this way again."
-Will Jennings/Richard Kerr, I'll Never Love This Way Again
