Patriots Day is a unique holiday in Massachusetts where we celebrate the patriots who were instrumental in our fight for independence as a nation at the start of the American Revolution. It is a three day holiday culminating in the Patriots Day celebration held on the third Monday of April on or about April 19. In Boston the Red Sox play an 11:00 AM game and the Boston Marathon runs from Hopkinton, Mass to downtown Boston.
The Minute Man National Historical Park preserves several areas associated with the battles of Lexington and Concord which officially kicked of hostilities between the colonies and the British empire. On Patriots Day re-enactors recreate the battles at Lexington, Concord and on the “battle road” back to Boston.
Rita and Alex went early to all three locations taking in the festivities.
The re-enactors at Lexington each take the place of a soldier or farmer that was at the battle identifying himself with that person. This provides an interesting perspective to the re-enactment. You can note who falls to the ground wounded or killed and know that that corresponds to the actual people on the battlefield back in 1775. After witnessing the “battle” at Lexington green they made their way to the battle road to see further re-enactments near the Munroe Tavern. They were lucky enough to see Andrew Zimmern filming an episode of his show Bizarre Foods. You can see the 2017 episode titled “Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride” for a view of the festivities and catch a brief glimpse of Rita and Alex in the crowd scene.
The type of small yet historically or culturally significant National Park site that is in almost every state. This being the only NPS site in New Hampshire with the exception of the Appalachian Trail it gets a little more attention locally than it might otherwise. The park celebrates the life of Augustus Saint-Gaudens a renowned american sculptor if the 19th century. The site preserves his home and has copies of some of his most important works.
There is a rotating art exhibition in a building behind the visitor center. The grounds adjacent to the visitor center have sculpture and gardens that make a pleasant stroll.
There is a sculptor in residence and a nice grassy area bordered by a steep ravine. My favorite activity is during the summer on Sunday afternoons there is a concert series.
Saugus Ironworks is the type of low key National Park site that we love as a family. It brings to life an era in history that most are unfamiliar with and is a great learning opportunity for young and old alike. The history lesson is presented in an idyllic park like setting with green grass, reconstructed colonial buildings and tree lined walks just minutes away from a busy suburb of Boston. A perfect place for a picnic and a great place to adopt as your local park if you live anywhere in the area.
The small park is readily assessable with a small parking area. Both parking and admission are free! Pack a picnic lunch and bring it with you as you make your first stop in the visitor center. This is the place where you get your Passport to the National Parks stamped. After getting your stamp tour the museum and take in the short film “Iron Works on the Saugus.” While in the visitor center you can arrange for a ranger led tour of the park or tour of the 17th century house on site. At times during the summer there will be blacksmith demonstrations.
History aside, take a stroll along the short nature trail find a nice spot under a tree on the beautiful grass and have a picnic lunch in quiet and serenity. This is the type of site you can explore in an hour or so but my suggestion is you spend the day and relax in this oasis in the middle of suburban sprawl.
The park is only open May to October and there is a junior ranger program available.
My mother was born in Eastport, Maine about ninety minutes north of Arcadia. We would visit her home town at least once every year and when my parents retired they bought an old farm house and spent summers in the area. All the while I was growing up and into early adulthood I would visit Arcadia and I came to consider it my “home town National Park.” Because of my familiarity with the park and my unbridled love of the area I was very excited to take a trip with Rita and Alex and act as tour guide.
We booked a room at the Wonder View Inn on a bluff overlooking Frenchman’s Bay. The view of the bay was spectacular out the window with views of the bay and visiting cruise ships. A reasonable $150 per night provided a clean, comfortable moderate level accommodation.
You will most likely be flying into Bangor or driving up from Portland or southern New England. Either way you will be passing through the gateway city to the park Ellsworth, Maine. Ellsworth is a typical National Park border town with fast food restaurants, numerous mid-range brick and mortar restaurants, Walmart, etc. Stock up on needed supplies for picnics, hiking supplies and other sundry items before crossing over to Mount Desert Island the site of the park.
We drove up route one from our home in New Hampshire leaving early in the morning. Our first stop for lunch was in Camden, Maine. We drove up the auto road to the top of Mount Battie where we climbed the tower and had a pleasant lunch overlooking the harbor. Across the street from Mount Battie you will find the Camden Hills State Park with access to the bay.
One stop I highly recommend as an interesting diversion, especially if you are driving up on Route 1 from the south as we were, is the “Big Chicken Barn Books and Antiques.” It is exactly as the name implies an old chicken barn turned into an antique shop and used book store. The entire second floor of the barn is dedicated to magazines and books. It is a great way to spend an hour and pick up some treasures before embarking on your tour of the park.
After checking into the Inn we decided to get some dinner at the restaurant adjacent to the hotel. The Looking Glass Restaurant had the same spectacular view as the hotel room and being able to sit and enjoy dinner while watching the harbor made it all the more special. As we were waiting for our meal we saw the chef hop out to the garden and snip a few herbs, the resulting meal was exceptional.
The visitor center has several displays, a nice book store and a short film about Arcadia. There is a passport to the National Park stamp cancellation station here but Arcadia has a wealth of stamp locations at many sites around the park. I will make note of them in the body of the blog as we get to certain areas. From the visitor center take the Park Loop road; this is a one way road going along the coast with numerous pullouts and stops for sightseeing or hiking.
There is a small walk through botanical garden with local plants and a small visitor center with a unique passport cancellation station. Proceed out the back of the visitor center and a short walk will bring you to the Abbe Museum. There are some native American artifacts and some craft items for sale. Next up is the Precipice Trail. I have not done this trail for many years, not since I was much younger. It is less than a mile to the summit but it is literally straight up the side of a mountain. There are spaces where metal rungs are driven into the cliff face and narrow ledges and ladders in other places. My nephew and I did not have too much difficulty but when we got to the top and looked down we had second thoughts. We decided to take the gradual descent along a ridge line but the hike down was more than five miles. Be prepared and bring plenty of water but a great experience.
Next up is Sand Beach. As the name suggests it is a sandy beach area which is not easy to come by on the typically rocky coast of Maine. The water is Northern Maine cold! Thunder Hole is the next stop. There is a small gift shop with another unique cancellation station for your National Park passport. When the tide is right the surf comes crashing into a rock crevasse causing a loud thundering sound and a huge splash. If you catch this during a storm surge it can be really spectacular.
The Park Loop is a one way two lane road so if you see an interesting vantage point just stop, park and explore. My wife and I have a couple of private spaces where no one else goes where we can sit watch the surf and spend some time together.
Arcadia is well known for its carriage roads. This is a system of roads built by the philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr. that is only for pedestrians, bicycles or horses. We booked a ride on a horse drawn carriage that took us up to the summit of one of the nearby hills. Great views and a romantic ride for couples and fun for the kids. Last on the itinerary is Cadillac Mountain. Take the auto road to the summit for the best views on the island. Another cancellation station is in the gift shop.
For dinner we went to the Jordan Pond House where you must order the popovers. These are airy puffy muffin like appetizers that are out of this world. The food is of good quality especially the seafood. Next up on the other side of the island, a short drive away, is the famous lighthouse.
The Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse is one of the most photographed in the country. To get the iconic photo, take the short trail from the parking lot and climb out onto the rocks looking back at the lighthouse.
After sleeping in for a few hours the next day we went to downtown Bar Harbor for a morning stroll.
I hear that there is another unique cancellation station in the downtown area but we did not find it. We booked a cruise on the Sea Princess going out to Little Cranberry Island in the afternoon so we stopped at the Downeast Deli and picked up some wonderful sandwiches, highly recommended. The cruise left from the opposite side of Mount Desert Island so we made our way to the dock in time for the 1:15 departure. The ranger led cruise sailed by seals sunning themselves and numerous Guillemots frolicking in the surf.
On Little Cranberry Island the ranger opened the doors to the small Islesford Historical Museum where there is another unique stamp location. A short walk brings you to the village and if you are lucky the one general store will be open and you can some freshly baked pastry.
The next day we stopped at the visitor center at the entrance to Mount Desert Island got another unique passport stamp and Alex received a special Junior Ranger badge from the nicer than nice ranger on duty.
We decided to take a family road trip to Killington, Vermont in early august was a perfect time to experience this winter resort area in the summertime. The trip did not start out as auspiciously as we would have liked… As with most trips that we take I started with a detailed itinerary of where we would go, what we would do and where we would stay. I pre-booked our Hotel and listed several attractions that we would see. After a pleasant drive from our New Hampshire home through southern Vermont we arrived at Rutland, Vermont our first destination. We found a parking garage near the town center and after several false steps made our way to a closed off street that was set aside for pedestrian traffic. This was a nice albeit small area with several food carts, some sit down restaurants and shops.
The first attraction that we wanted to see was the Wonderfeet Children’s Museum that we were taking Alex to. The “museum” turned out to be a glorified play area for toddlers with some Legos and a couple of toys. Obviously Alex was too old for this so we decided to head to the hotel so we could get some swimming in.
I did not have a lot of time to plan this trip so when I booked our hotel my only priority was that we had a pool for Alex to enjoy. We found our way to the Rodeway Inn in Rutland to check-in. To our dismay the pool was drained and overgrown. After some finagling with Expedia and the hotel manager we were able to cancel our booking and not incur any cancelation fee. It was now my job to find a last minute replacement so as not to completely ruin our trip. We ended up booking North Star Lodge and Resort on the road leading up to the Killington ski area.
The lodge was a little bit tired and dated but had extremely inexpensive summer rates and turned out just right for this trip. One unusual feature for our room on the fourth floor was that the elevator emptied directly into the lounge area also on the fourth floor. During the summer season the lounge was closed but it would have been uncomfortable going through a busy lounge with suitcases or swim clothes if it was open. The rooms were clean with refrigerator and microwave. There was a small game room on the third floor with several old video games (one broken) and an air hockey table.
The Mount Killington area itself has numerous summer activities for the entire family. You can purchase an Adventure Center day pass that gives access to activities such as alpine tubing, maze, paintball, zip line and the scenic lift to the summit of Killington Peak.
The cooler in the Mountains free summer concert series is also held each Saturday afternoon. Numerous events such as mountain bike races or Spartan races are scheduled throughout the summer.
A fun activity for young ones is the Mendon Mini Golf and Snack Bar in nearby Mendon, Vermont. Always fun for the kids and the young at heart Rita and Alex thoroughly enjoyed the 18 holes around and into the water hazards and obstacles.
As I was watching the family play golf I was noticing a steady stream of locals pull up to the snack bar for takeaway. We decided to sample the fare and were pleasantly surprised at the hand cut fries, great burgers and battered seafood.
You cannot go wrong with scenic drives in this area. We had a slightly drizzly day so decided to take a drive into the Green Mountains. The combination of mountain and rural scenery was wonderful with great picture taking opportunities at every turn.
We purposely drove to one covered bridge but saw two more by shear happenstance and all were very photogenic. In the same areas take advantage of iconic Vermont products by taking in the Vermont Marble Museum and visiting a maple syrup or artisan cheese manufacturer.
One must stop in the morning is the Sunup Bakery on the Killington Road. The best scone I ever ate (blueberry) and this is from someone who has eaten scones in England. Unfortunately we stopped here on the morning of our drive home and I will have to wait for a return trip to revisit this taste treat.
