Acadia's Carriage Roads

Great biking on Acadia National Park's carriage roads.

One of the really great features of Acadia National Park is the network of carriage roads that meander through the park. Built in the 1920s and 1930s by John D. Rockefeller, Jr., the roads are constructed of crushed rock and are open to horse-drawn carriages, hikers, and bicycles. An added feature are the more than 30 stone bridges Rockefeller had constructed, each with a unique design and perfectly blended into its surrounding setting. Since we are avid bicyclists, the carriage roads offer great views, challenging terrain, and a wonderful way to explore the park. More than 45 miles of carriage trails are open to bicycles and are well marked with signposts at key intersections.

FDR's Summer Getaway

The Roosevelt's summer home on Campobello Island.

During our visit to Franklin Roosevelt's home in Hyde Park, NY, we noticed many photos of the young Roosevelt at his family's summer home on Campobello Island, New Brunswick, just across the Canadian border from Lubec, Maine. The home and surrounding gardens are now part of Roosevelt Campobello International Park, the only national park in the world administered by two countries. Franklin Roosevelt spent most summers here while he was young and it was here in 1920 that his polio symptoms first appeared, although he apparently contracted the disease at a Boy Scout camp in New York. Amazingly enough, he only visited the estate three more times after 1920, most likely due to his blossoming political career. Eleanor Roosevelt and Franklin's mother, Sara, continued to use the house for many years however. The park offers house tours, walking trails, and amazing views of the Bay of Fundy and its spectacular coast.

A Light at Land's End

The West Quoddy Light is perched at the eastern-most point of the US.

About 100 miles up the coast from where we are in Acadia National Park is the town of Lubec, Maine. Lubec is a fishing community of about 1,500 located on the border with Canada and is the main access point for Campobello Island from the US. Campobello is home to Roosevelt Campobello International Park. We spent a night in Lubec as part of our visit to Campobello and discovered the West Quoddy Lighthouse has a wonderful museum that tells the history of this corner of the country. A stone behind the lighthouse marks this as the eastern-most point in the continental US. Perched on a rocky coastline with treacherous underwater rocks lurking just off shore, the West Quoddy light and many others along the southern coast of Main continue to provide much-needed guidance to mariners as they have since this area was settled.

Pots of Pink Gold

Most lobster pounds in Maine cook their lobsters in sea water over a wood fire.

I'm not sure how much revenue the lobstering business brings into the state of Maine, but it plays a major part in the economy here. Hard to believe that lobsters were once considered a trash food. They were so abundant that farmers used them as fertilizers and there is a popular story about a prisoner revolt initiated because the inmates were served lobster every night. Times have surely changed the standing of this pink crustacean in our culinary pecking order. Maine lobster fishermen can harvest any lobster between 3.5 and 5 inches long (measured along the carapace) but must throw back egg-bearing females. Lobstermen can have as many as 800 traps in the water at a given time, meaning they are constantly checking and re-baiting traps throughout the peak summer lobster season. Needless to say, lobsters are on virtually every menu here and keep a lot of folks employed in the region.

A Whale of an Afternoon

Humpback whale feeding on krill and small fish.

This graphic shows how large these whales are.

One of the biggest reasons people visit Cape Cod is the opportunity to view whales relatively close to shore. We thought our chance was gone after a spell of rainy, windy weather that forced the whale watching fleets to remain in the Provincetown harbor. But, on our final day on the Cape, we caught a break and took a 3 hour whale watch trip out to Stellwagon Bank, a shallow spot in the ocean off the tip of Cape Cod and one of the most accessible places to view migrating humpback whales. Humpbacks are large (40 to 50 feet long and 80,000 pounds) baleen whales that spend the winter months in the Carribbean and the summer feeding months in the waters of the cold North Atlantic. They eat krill and small fish, mostly by blowing rings of bubbles below the surface which "herds" the fish in a big circle, allowing the whale to fill its massive lower jaw with thousands of fish as it slowly rises to the surface. A trip on a commercial whale watching vessel is a great way to observe these amazing creatures up close.

The Cape's Most Popular Tourist Attraction

Okay, I know it's a truck but they didn't allow photos on the tour.

Yeah, I don't know how they figure out what makes something the most popular, but on a rainy Cape Cod day, we made the drive to Hyannis for a tour of the Cape Cod potato chip facility. We have made a tradition of taking at least one industrial tour during our summer journeys, so we can check that off our list for this year. And, apparently, we are not that unusual -- more than 250,000 people take the tour each year. Cape Cod Potato Chips began as the dream of two small business owners who set up shop in a small store front in Hyannis in 1980. The big crunch of the kettle cooked chips soon became a local favorite. News of the chips quickly spread as tourist sampled the chips and took bags home to share. The business soon grew out of the store-front and the rest is history. The self-guiding tour takes about 10 minutes and lets you view the various processes that go into making the chips. Best part is the finale when the tour ends up in the gift shop and free sample bags of chips!

Cape Pedaling

Easy, scenic riding on the Cape Cod Rail Trail.

Great view of the Atlantic Ocean at trail's end.

We were fortunate to get a break in the rainy weather long enough to ride the magnificent Cape Cod Rail Trail. The trail is fully paved and runs for 22-miles from Dennis to Wellfleet. If you curl your left arm  like you are making a muscle, your arm would be in approximately the same shape as the Cape. Dennis would be about where you bicep is and Wellfleet would be halfway up your forearm. Like most rail trails, the Cape Cod Rail Trail has a fairly level grade, making for an easy ride. And, it passes through several historic towns and along picturesque ponds, cranberry bogs, and marshes. Highly recommend if you are on the Cape and have access to a bike.

I Landed in Provincetown and All I Got Was This Lousy T-shirt

This plaque commemorates the spot where the Pilgrims landed near Provincetown.

This shop might have been where the Pilgrims purchased their souvenirs.

If the Pilgrims had sailed into Provincetown in 2012 instead of 1620, that might be have been a popular seller among the crowd on the Mayflower looking for a place to practice religious freedom. They spent a short time in P-town before moving on to Plymouth. Now, we were very impressed with the number of high-quality artist studios and interesting restaurants located in the main tourist areas near the waterfront, but, like most similar seaside destinations, P-town has its share of tacky t-shirt and fudge shops. We rode our bikes from the Cape Cod National Seashore visitor center into town to avoid having to navigate around the narrow streets in my dually. That was a tip suggested by a ranger at the park and it was a great recommendation. The 5-mile paved bike trail traverses the dune landscape of the park and ends just a short ride from downtown P-town. It's a great place to stroll on a sunny afternoon. We also were fortunate to see a pod of humpback whales splashing just off the coast from the park visitor center observation deck.

JFK's Summer White House

The JFK Museum in downtown Hyannis, MA.

The museum features many items from the 1960 Presidential campaign.

Keeping with our visits to historic sites related to US Presidents, we drove over to Hyannis to the JFK Museum, which commemorates John F. Kennedy's ties to the area and the role the Kennedy compound played during his 1960 campaign and through his presidency. The museum houses more than 80 photos, mostly candid shots of JFK with family and friends, spanning his years there between 1934 and 1963. A video, narrated by Walter Cronkite, includes some rare footage of JFK during the time the Hyannis property served as his campaign headquarters and, after his election, as a popular setting for hosting visiting foreign dignitaries or for getting away from the pressures of the office. Since the Kennedy compound is not open to the public, this is a good way to learn about the ties the 35th President has to Cape Cod.