Better later than never, right? I’m determined to blog more about my vacation in Bar Harbor, ME, before I forget all the things I wanted to share, LOL.

Upon arrival in ME, I was utterly disappointed to find that the heat wave I left behind at home had followed me. Sunday and on into Monday, temperatures in the lower 90’s. Definitely not expected, a bit depressing, truth be told. Highly unusual for Bar Harbor, the locals assured me.

Driving around Mount Desert Island on Monday, looking for blooming lupines, I found myself reluctant to leave the air-conditioned car. Recognizing the need for drastic measures, I picked myself up by the scruff of the neck and gave myself a kick in the behind. That is not as easy as it sounds, by the way.

This spot was a gorgeous view, but I had hoped for more lupines. Given that the previous week had been cold and rainy, the blooms were not yet at their peak. By the end of the week they would be, thanks to the unseasonable heat. Am I saying I’m grateful for that heat? No, definitely not! But I do recognize it helped speed up the blooming process.

Later that afternoon, again using drastic measures of motivation, I ventured out for a hike up the Bubble Trail. The ascent was relatively easy, although I was huffing and puffing, face beet red. Some folks coming down from the top clearly thought I looked hot, or discouraged, or ready to collapse. They encouraged me as they passed: “one step at a time,” “you’ll get there,” “not too much farther!” We shared a quick laugh and I kept moving up.

Upon reaching the top, the views were glorious. Definitely worth the hike, as nearly every trail is at Acadia. See for yourself!

Exploring at the other end of the summit, I found this view.

After spending time at the top, I began my descent and decided to follow the guide books suggestion to take an alternate path down. The Bubbles Divide was the recommendation, and I must say that the description of the trail did not do it justice.

Descending the Divide made the entire hike significantly more difficult. The path down was not one I would want to repeat (although clearly I will do it again) but turned out to be a baptism by fire into more serious hiking. Steep, rocky, slippery… I went as slow as I could, losing faith in my hiking ability with every slip of my hiking boots. I hung on to trees where possible, sat down quickly on my butt to keep myself from hurtling forward out of control, searched desperately for blue signs to indicate where the path was… I prefer the trek up the mountain, which allows me to take advantage of big, strong leg and butt muscles. The descent is so much more pressure on my knees – even my “good knee” was ready to give out.

I was so happy to finally reach the bottom of the Divide. I had looked at turning back a few times, but the thought of having to go up what I had just descended kept me moving forward. What goes up must come down, as they say. Clearly “they” say nothing about someone so stupid as to take a more difficult path down, lol. A family of five who I’d seen at the summit caught up to me, or at least the two boys did, for which I was thankful. Now I had someone to find the trail for me, lol.

Still, they were much younger than me, and I made it down the same as they did, albeit much more slowly. Good lord, there were a few moments I wasn’t sure I was going to though. 😉

Finally down the Divide, the trail quickly got easy with a short jaunt around a portion of Jordans Pond, which I love, and then back into the woods for a relatively easy finish.

The day ended with a lovely sail on the Margaret Todd, and a stunning sunset. I know I shared these pics during my vacation, but I see no harm in including one or two again in this post. 🙂

Though Monday was hot and humid, I managed to do enough to get a taste for more. It turned out to be just the perfect kick-start for the rest of the week.