Monument Cove as seen from above Boulder Beach.

Earlier this month we took a trip to Acadia National Park in Maine for a taste of autumn.  Living in the southwestern desert as we do we were expecting uncomfortably cold weather, but to our pleasant surprise it generally didn’t feel as cold as the temperature sounded.

Marsh like feature of Little Long Pond during a fall shower.

It’s been many years since I spent any time in Maine, and mostly I remember the rocky coast lines, light houses and fog horns.  While we managed to stop by some light houses, most of this trip was on or near Acadia National Park.

The fog lifting over Seal Harbor from Cadillac Mountain.

What we didn’t realize was that it was the Parks’ centennial, which made for an even heavier crowd than normal for the fall leaves.  Bar Harbor in particular was mobbed, yet we still managed to get away from the people without too much difficultly.  The picture from Cadillac Mountain was taken shortly after sunrise in 50 mph winds which have the effect of weeding out the weak ones!

The leaves start to turn at Duck Brook as fall comes to Acadia.

Acadia was largely the result of the efforts of John D Rockefeller, Jr. who sponsored much of the landscape architecture and the 50 odd miles of carriage roads and bridges in the park.  The family still owns property in the vicinity, with the area around Little Long Pond being privately owned but open to the public.

Underneath the Witch Hole Pond carriage road bridge at Duck Brook.

The weather ranged from steady rain to fog to wind to beautiful sunny days.  I understand where the New England expression of “You don’t like the weather?  Just wait a minute” comes from.

Lobster boats work as the October afternoon turns to dusk.

This was a really nice trip. I find myself wondering what it would be like to photograph winter scenes…