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July 3, 2021

11 Fun Adventures In North Maine Woods

North Maine Woods is not really like anywhere else I’ve ever been, in a very cool way…

Hi! I'm Vanessa, a 30 something, sunset chasing traveler. I'm here to inspire you to travel wherever, whenever, and with whoever you can. My Huskies, Loki and Freya are usually along for the ride. I have a soul that likes to wander, a desire to experience the unknown, and a curiousity to discover things off the beaten path. I hope you'll stick around for awhile!

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You can’t come to Bar Harbor and stay on land. You

You can’t come to Bar Harbor and stay on land. You can try, but with Frenchman Bay looking like that, it feels a little rude.

After 6 months of staying on Mount Desert Island, here’s how I’d rank the ways to get out on the water:

1. Kayak the Porcupine Islands
@coastalkayakingacadiabike half-day tour is the one I’d book. You get the islands, the coastline, and a little sea-glass hunting along the way. @that_nomad_brian guided here, so yes, I’m biased.

2. Puffin & Lighthouse Cruise with @barharborwhales
Genuinely magical. Puffins, lighthouses, Frenchman Bay, the whole thing feels slightly made up. Go late May through mid-August.

3. Go fishing with @acadianboattours
Light tackle, protected water, and they clean and bag your catch for you. Because the best souvenir is one you can eat.

4. Fall Lighthouse, Wildlife & Park Cruise with @barharborwhales 👌🏻 October on the bay is something else. Foliage reflected in the water, lighthouses, and pieces of Acadia you simply can’t see from land. Our tour had fog, and Bass Harbor Head Light appeared out of it like it had been waiting for the dramatic entrance.

5. Lulu Lobster Boat (@lululobsterboatride)
For the very Maine experience, without actually putting a lobster in a pot. 🦞

6. SUP or kayak Echo or Eagle Lake
If you want calm, beginner-friendly water without committing your entire day to it.

And then there’s the bonus: sail the Margaret Todd. The only four-masted schooner on the East Coast, and the sunset sail is the one.

You don’t need to do all of these.

But do more than one. Bar Harbor looks good from shore. It’s a completely different place from the water.

Save this for your trip, and tell me which one you’re booking. 🛶

It’s bison rut in Yellowstone right now, mating se

It’s bison rut in Yellowstone right now, mating season, which means the bulls are loud, territorial, and unpredictable. The bellowing carries across the whole valley.

A few things worth knowing: they run 35 mph (3x faster than you), they injure more people in these parks than any other animal, and the rule is stay 25 yards back, about two and a half school buses.

📸 Zoom lens, not zoom feet 🚫🦶

Oh, and the romance? A 2,000-lb bull will pee in a dirt wallow and roll around in it to impress the ladies, part prairie cologne, part flex, and yes, they smell exactly as awful as that sounds. 🦬

Where’s the best wildlife you’ve seen from a safe distance?

Everyone does Mount Desert Island - -> Want to esc $Everyone does Mount Desert Island - -> Want to escape the crowds at Acadia? Go here instead… Almost nobody drives the hour out to the Schoodic, the only part of Acadia on the mainland, and it got under 10% of the park’s 4 million-plus visits last year. Their loss. Same pink granite, same crashing surf, a fraction of the people. And here’s the part that got me: from Schoodic Point you watch the sun set behind Cadillac Mountain, so you’re seeing Acadia from the outside. Ya know what else that means? No Cadillac reservation, no parking war, your park pass gets you in, and it’s entirely dog-friendly since the no-dogs trails are all back on the island. 🛑 Always rememeber to leave no trace in these quiet spaces 🫶 ✨Save this for your Acadia trip. What’s the most underrated corner of a park you’ve found?$

Come for a sunset drive at T.R. with me 🌅 Theodore

Come for a sunset drive at T.R. with me 🌅 Theodore Roosevelt at golden hour is wild horses in the road, bison under a rising moon, and badlands going pink, and somehow almost nobody’s here to see it.

It’s the most overlooked national park in the country, and after 3 years on the road it might be our favorite. Their loss.

The first photo might be one of my favorites I’ve ever taken. Watching this bison herd just do its thing as the final flicker of light left the park was something I’ll never forget. Even though the smoke swallowed the sunset, it was still a beautiful one!

Save this for your someday trip, trust me, you don’t want to miss this one! 🦬🐎☀️🌙

kinda chic, if you ask me. Leaving a place better

kinda chic, if you ask me.

Leaving a place better than you found it.

Keeping your distance from the wildlife.

Getting up before the sun and complaining about it like you didn’t set the alarm yourself.

Packing the long lens because getting closer is, in fact, not the move.

And somehow still thinking a dusty road, and a questionable gas station coffee counts as a pretty good day.

A little wild.
A little dusty.
Kinda chic.
Kinda feral.

And honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way. 🦬

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