Here it is... the last leg of our New England Adventure!!
We left Martha's Vineyard on Sunday to head north. I have to note that both times we arrived at the ferry well ahead of our scheduled departure (Brad is nothing if he's not prompt!) and both times we were able to get on an earlier ferry. We were SO happy! Thank you ferry personnel! (see top left pic below - Bennett loves the ferry!)
Anyway, we got back to the mainland and headed north through Boston. We were so excited to drive down through the 'big dig' (top row, right pic)- we had heard so much about it on our trolley tours in Boston. Brad was an excellent chauffeur!
Our final destination on Sunday was Wentworth by the Sea in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. This hotel was gorgeous (bottom 2 pictures)! We swam for the rest of the afternoon and enjoyed a nice dinner at Latitudes.
On Monday morning we headed for our final destination - Bar Harbor, Maine! We stayed at the Atlantic Eyrie, which had the most beautiful view (above, middle picture). That night, we enjoyed a little dinner down by the pier and got settled into the room (I like to clean everything at each hotel :)
On Tuesday we went whale watching on the Atlanticat catamaran. This was such an adventure!! I was worried about Brad getting sick (he has a tendency for sea-sickness), but he did great! We saw 3 whales - one mom (Fundi) and baby- and one by himself named Breakers. We also saw tons of birds, including Puffins (but you couldn't see them really wel without binoculars...) It was so amazing! It was also cold out there on the water - about 40 to 50 degrees on the water, 90 on the land!!
That afternoon we walked around town and learned quickly that Bar Harbor's many souvenir shops were not 8-year-old friendly. Many of the store were like the old 'Spencer's' store, and I found myself ushering Bennett out quickly, telling him to quit reading... Brad commented that Bar Harbour was much like Key West - a little rough around the edges :)
On Wednesday, Brad and Bennett went on a sea kayaking adventure in the Gulf of Maine! You could only go in pairs, so I walked down the way to the sand bar that they would be exploring. The sand bar becomes totally crossable during low tide! I was able to capture a lot of their journey from afar. They had a great time!
After a less than exciting lunch at a restaurant whose name I can't even remember, we headed out to Acadia National Park. I don't know that I've ever seen such breath taking landscape in my life! The whole park is totally driveable and laid out so beautifully! We stopped at Cadillac Mountain, Thunder Hole, and the Wild Gardens nature center. Bennett also took part in their Junior Ranger Program and was given a patch after he took the oath... it was a big deal! Below are our pictures from the park.
That night, Bennett and Brad took one final dip in the pool (above, bottom row, right picture) and we got packed up. On the way to the aiport the next morning, we were running early (remember Brad's internal early clock??) and we were lucky to stumble upon the Children's Museum of MN. We really enjoyed it.
Bennett's Favorite Maine happenings: the pool where we stayed, drinking Shirley Temples, and sea kayaking.
Brad's favorites: Whale watching, Acadia, and sea kayaking
Amy's favorites: Whale watching and Acadia
There are a few 'themes' to this trip that I don't want to forget:
Bennett found Shirley Temples and once he did, he always wanted to go to a restaurant with a bar. You can imagine that we tried to keep his request on the DL :)
Bennett searched for key chains at every stop.
We played the 'jeepers' game throughout our trip. Martha's Vineyard was certainly the Jeep haven.
Bennett was a wonderful traveler. He was up for anything that we wanted to do. We did a good job, I think, of balancing what he wanted to do and what we wanted to do.
It was HOT on this trip, but we all (even me for the most part!) made the best of it.
If you get the chance to go to New England, do it! It was a trip that we will never forget!
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