Maine-ly Fun

I can’t believe we have been in Maine for a week already!  Gosh!  Time does fly when you are having the time of your life.

I need to back up a bit and fill you in on a few other states we visited along the way.  Our time in Old Forge, NY was way too short, but a very special indeed.  Paul and Paulie Case showed us the sights and spent the evening catching up and praying for Katie, Paul’s six-year-old daughter who was badly burned a few weeks ago.  My heart aches for the entire family, but I know God has them all in His hands.

The Adirondack region of New York is quiet amazing.  Unfortunately, it rained, rained and rained some more while we were there…it even rained INSIDE the RV.  Yep, our first roof/ceiling leak, but, nothing major and it seems to have stopped since James climbed on top and caulked every possible opening he could find.  That’s my man!  Back to the Adirondack’s…autumn colors were in full bloom and the small, quaint towns we drove through made me feel like we were transported back in time.  I wish we could have stayed longer, but the short time has basically guaranteed that we will be coming back soon!

We then drove to Vermont and the beauty just kept blowing my mind.  Vermont is the “Green Mountain” State and what a perfect name it is!  As with NY, Vermont was at full peak in foliage color and for as far as the eye could see there were mountains with vibrant reds, yellows, orange and greens dancing in the rain.  Yes, the rain continued.  We stayed two nights in Vermont to do some RV maintenance and to watch some much missed college football.  It was lovely!

Next, New Hampshire.  We were only in the state for a short time, but with the few covered bridges and all foliage mixed with sunny, clear skies, it was simply perfect.  We had our destination in site and couldn’t wait to get there.

Maine.  All of Maine is gorgeous, but we are particularly fond of Bar Harbor.  I am sure it has a lot to do with the fact we have mountains and sea all in one beautiful vista.  We were thrilled to meet up with Tim and Diane for the first three days!  I couldn’t have asked for a better way to start our Maine visit. 

Everyday was special with them, but one really sticks out in my mind.  We decided to hit the local, and highly acclaimed, brewery, “Atlantic Brewery Company”, for a tour and beer tasting, which we did…at 10:30am.  Yep!  You read that correctly...10:30 in the morning!  The funniest thing was the fact that the “Master Beer Drinker,” as he calls himself, was not at all fazed by the fact that we were there well before lunch!  Don’t get the wrong idea, the size of the samples they give during the tasting aren’t enough to cause a buzz even if we were there all day!  There were some amazing beers and the most outstanding mustard I have ever eaten that made their way back to our RV.

Well, now it gets difficult to explain, but after the Brewery we decided to hit the company’s other business…a winery for a wine tasting.  It is now around 11:30am and still before lunch.  We had such a great time!  These little businesses in the area really rely on tourist and they show it by their incredible hospitality!  We felt welcomed at every stop.  The wine was good, not great, but set inside an 1800’s barn, it was tons of fun.

To continue with the “tasting” theme, I should tell you about our very favorite spot, “Fiore.”  This is an olive oil/balsamic vinegar specialty shoppe with complementary tasting of all their oils and vinegars.  Yes…I was in heaven.  We loved, loved, loved this stop and have enjoyed the Blood Orange Olive Oil with White Grapefruit Balsamic Vinegar several times since then!

To top it all off, we hit one of the local Lobster Pound for some delectable, sweet, succulent Maine lobster.  Now, I’m a Florida girl through and through, but give me a Maine lobster over Florida lobster any day!  Those who have had both know what I’m talking about.  We each had a 1.75lb lobster, well, except Tim, who went for the 2lb-er, and we all managed to eat every possible bite with no problems whatsoever.  We even joked about ordering more it was so good.  But, we opted to head to our RV, light a fire and sit under the gorgeous, star-filled night enjoying our wine from the local winery and some bread dabbed in the special oil and vinegar we bought from “Fiore.”  It was a day and evening to be remembered for all time.

Tim and Diane left on Wednesday and then it proceeded to rain for two straight days, which didn’t bother us too much as we enjoyed spending time relaxing and watching movies.  This was a much needed and appreciated down time for us.  Have no fear, though, we resumed our marathon driving/site seeing activities yesterday by visiting Lubec, Maine, the eastern most city in the United States.  We drove all along the coast to get there, about 100 miles, and enjoyed the little towns along the way.  We arrived in Lubec and was greeted with the "Annual Lubec Autumn Howl" happening downtown Lubec.  Vendors and musicians filled the street that overlooked the bay between Canada and the US.  Very pretty.  We went down to the water to watch the seals playing in the water and then a huge bald eagle flew right in front of us and I was hooked.  We had lunch, which I ended with a Fried Twinky…not so good.  Soggy, actually.  Yuk.  But, hey, I HAD to try it!

We are on the final leg of our trip.  We both have mixed emotions about this.  On one hand, we are sad that this wonderful adventure God has blessed us with is almost over, yet on the other hand, we are very excited to see where He has us next.  Yes, I know a lot of you want to know the same thing, so stay tuned!  I’m such a stinker!!   In the near future, we will be in Boston, New York and Washington DC. 

God Bless you all!