Maine: Day 5
Slept in this morning in our cozy cabin. Down the street we ate bagels for breakfast. I don't think I have eaten at a fast food restaurant since getting to Maine (except once for breakfast at McDonalds since there was nothing else). I'm really enjoying all of the local food Maine has had to offer, especially the non-seafood type. Our adventure for the day was to get to Swans Island, the island that Anson's mom grew up on in the 60s. To get there we were going to have to get a ferry ride over. We momentarily thought around riding over without the rental car but the island is rather large for walking, especially since we weren't exactly sure how far away things would be. The ferry ride was so relaxing. I love the sounds of a ferry and the slow rocking of ships, the smell of fish mixed with fuel and rusty metal. They squeezed us in the very center, right in front of the chain that blocked the exit ramp. If there had been a big wave our car would have been the first one off.
Swans Island seen through my infrared camera.
First impression of Swans Island was remote and desolate as we neared shore. The thick evergreen pines covered the rocky shoreline with only one or two houses in sight. Once on land there was more then just a main road, some side roads that were paved and unpaved took you to several different towns. We had to ask for directions twice as we didn't have a map to find the quarry pond Anon's mom grew up swimming in. A kind lady at the library let us follow her to the spot. There was a middle aged couple swimming when we got there, the woman had just gotten out and was toweling off. I wasn't completely sure but it would seem they were enjoying the pond in the nude.
Swans Island quarry pond with gulls bathing.
After leaving the quarry pond we were able to find Anson's mom's childhood home along the main road. It was a lovely red house. The owner was renovating it so some of the siding was missing and a friendly dog barked at us from the screened door as we paused on the road outside. The neighbor across the road was still living there, Mrs. Staples, who knew the Debus family. I was glad we were able to find the house and paint a slightly more vivid picture of mom's past.
Our ferry reservation was at 1:30 but we had to arrive 15 minutes early, which we were 1 minute late according to the very rude ferry attendant, and were told to forgo our reservation and wait at the back of the line with all of the other cars. We made it back quickly. It was noticeably warmer on Swans Island, Mount Desert Island was covered in cold fog.
The rest of our evening was spent driving around the island some more in hopes of seeing a sunset. The fog covered everything so I didn't get a sunset but I did get some nice photos before it got dark.
Otter Cliffs
