October in New England usually means fall color and post-season baseball. Unfortunately, the Red Sox ended the season in third place and ruined our plans to watch a playoff game in historic Fenway Park. Of course the main reason we were there was to find a revolution.
The Freedom Trail
A two and a half mile long red line, mostly red brick, leads to some of the most iconic sites in American history. The Trail begins at Boston Common and works its way through town and across the river to Charlestown where it ends at the Bunker Hill Monument. It may be difficult to preserve history in the middle of a growing, vibrant city, but Boston has done just enough to let you imagine things as they once were.
The Old State House
The center of the historic district is Faneuil Hall. It's a busy and colorful place performing the same meeting, ceremonial and shopping services today that it has since 1742. Instead of talking sedition, they were swearing in new citizens the day we were there. At Boston Common, costumed guides lead walks over small portions of the Freedom Trail but we joined a National Park Ranger for a walk and talk. We started at the Old State House, then went west on the Trail to the Old Corner Bookstore and then on to the Old South Meeting Hall. From there we looped around through the Boston Massacre Site down to Faneuil Hall.
At this point, Paul Revere became the focus of the talk. Most famous for his "midnight ride", recent research has found him to be perhaps the key Son of Liberty, the man called on time and again when anything truly important needed to be done. We walked to his home, the oldest building in Boston, and continued just a few steps more to the Old North Church famous for the two lanterns. Our Ranger-led walk ended here, but on the night of April 18-19, 1775, things were just beginning. The British Regulars were crossing the Charles River heading for Concord to confiscate rebel arms and Revere was crossing the river in a race to get there in time to warn the militia.
Today the Visitor's Center at Minute Man National Historic Park has a multimedia presentation of the events of that fateful day that does a great job of separating the facts from the legend. And, if Revere's ride wasn't the total success of legend --he was actually captured by the British before he reached Concord-- it was enough.
The British easily routed the few militiamen waiting for them when they reached Lexington at dawn but things were different at the North Bridge in Concord. The British withdrawal down Battle Road became a nightmare for them as thousands of militiamen poured into the area and even the Regulars' final retreat to the safety of Boston was only the beginning of the year-long siege that would see the Battle of Bunker Hill (actually fought on Breeds Hill), the arrival of George Washington as the Commander in Chief of the Continental Army, and, finally, the evacuation of British troops from Boston in March 1776. The war had begun and in Philadelphia, the Continental Congress was preparing to declare independence.
The Rest of Boston
There's really a lifetime of things to see and do in Boston but we did what we could.
The Boston Duck Tour - We have seen these in Pittsburgh, Ketchikan, Washington DC and, most recently, at Lake Tahoe, and we had heard that the Boston Duck Tour was the one to take, so we did. The land tour was a fun trip through the Boston neighborhoods. You sit up high enough on the land portion to have great views of everything, but the water tour was a little bit of a disappointment. We entered the water from a construction area and didn't get to see any of Boston Harbor and only went upriver to the Longfellow Bridge. Once the novelty wore off, I realized we were in an area of the Charles River of absolutely no interest and no importance.
Kennedy Presidential Library - The controversies that delayed the library for so long are now over and it is well worth a visit. There was a special display of the 1960 presidential campaign which I found completely fascinating. It was that campaign that turned me into a total political junky so it was fun to revisit it. But, having also visited the Reagan Presidential Library in California, what struck me most was how short the Kennedy presidency actually was. Both libraries have displays about the period before each man held office but the focus is on the presidential years and there is a major difference when one covers an eight year administration and the other only three. If Reagan's presidency had been cut short after only three years, his legacy would be far different than it actually is. It's sobering to consider what Kennedy's might have been.
Boston Public Garden - Boston Common is simply a green open space, but just west of it is a beautiful formal garden and lagoon. It's home to Boston's mute swans, Romeo and Juliet (although apparently both are female), as well as numerous statues including the famous Make Way for Ducklings bronze sculptures and Washington on horseback.
Salem - When we left Boston to head north, our route took us near Salem and we decided to visit. This was a mistake. In October the place becomes a sort of Halloween Town and the tragedy of religious hysteria and the murder of 20 innocent people is forgotten as the party goes on. The National Park Service has a presence here but it is solely about the maritime history of one of the most historic ports on the east coast.
Acadia National Park
A group of eastern millionaires saw all of those new National Parks out west and thought to themselves that this was something they didn't have. So they made one of their own. When it was dedicated as Lafayette National Park in 1919, it was the first National Park east of the Mississippi but it was also less than half the size it would finally become. It seems two members of the group had unfinished business. Rockefeller (Junior) wouldn't finalize his donation until he finished building carriage roads throughout his property. And another one didn't like the French and wouldn't donate his until Congress changed the name from Lafayette to Acadia National Park.
It's been reported that Acadia is now the second most visited National Park and I didn't understand how this could be until we rounded the bend and had our first view of Frenchman Bay. Sitting at anchor was what was obviously the Queen Mary 2. Two other cruise ships were anchored closer to Bar Harbor and after those three departed that evening, they were replaced by three more the next morning and then three more again. I later saw the Harbor Master's report that listed the 120 cruise ships that had already visited Bar Harbor this season.
Cruise Ships at Bar Harbor
We know how cruise ships work, so we were generally able to work around the crowds they create. For example, we knew that the only cruise passengers who would see the sun set from the mountain top were the ones who had missed their ship. And our efforts paid off. Giving credit where it's due, I have to say that Acadia is one of the finer National Parks I have visited. Although one is a valley and the other an an island, there was much here that reminded me of Yosemite. The millionaires done good.
The main part of the park is Mount Desert Island (pronounced "dessert" from corrupted French) and half of it still remains in private hands. There are a number of roads providing access to all parts of the island but the Park Loop Road is entirely within park boundaries and leads to the most scenic areas.
Cadillac Mountain, the highest mountain on the east coast of North America at 1,530 feet, is the jewel of the park. From early October to April, it's also the sunrise capital of North America, being the first place to see the sun. It has sweeping, magnificent views from Bar Harbor to Seal Harbor including the Porcupine islands and in October the view is improved further with the fall color.
The Loop Road goes to Sand Beach and Thunder Hole along the coast (their names pretty much describe them) and then turns inland toward Wildwood Stables and Jordan Pond. Wildwood Stables is the starting point for the carriage roads and while a lot of people consider a carriage ride to be a requirement for anyone visiting the park, what I noticed was that the roads are now primarily used by bicyclists. For every carriage I saw, I also saw 200 bicycles.
Jordan Pond is very pleasant spot with fine views of the two rounded hills known as the Bubbles. But the real attraction there is the Jordan Pond House and their famous tea and popovers. Service is perfect and very reminiscent of the Ahwahnee Hotel's restaurant. Each popover is delivered individually to ensure that it's warm when you eat it.
We took a boat tour with a National Park Ranger to view wildlife, cruise Somes Sound and visit Ilesford on Little Cranberry Island. Wildlife spotting began early when three white-tail deer crossed in front of us as we drove to Northeast Harbor to catch the boat. And, once on the water, we spotted several loons and harbor seals. We cruised by several osprey nests including one huge one that was estimated to be 100 years old. As we passed the lighthouse at Bear Island, we saw a single bald eagle gliding overhead, its white head and tail flashing in the light. We suspect this was the same eagle we had seen low overhead when we visited the Bass Harbor lighthouse the previous day.
About a third of the way up Somes Sound, we left the National Park and began to see some of the homes and estates of the island. Most of the original homes on "Millionaires Row" in the National Park itself had been destroyed by the Great Fire of 1947, but we certainly got a good idea of what they had been like.
The Rest of Downeast
One confusing thing about Maine is easily explained by adding a missing word. Maine is know as Downeast and when people from Downeast go to Massachussets, they are going "up to Boston." It doesn't make sense because they leave out the word "wind". The prevailing winds along the New England coast go from south to north, so when you go to Maine, you are going downwind and east. And when you go to Boston, you are going upwind. Simple enough.
Maine Lobster - Downeasters take great pride in their lobster industry and we showed proper respect. First, we visited a Lobster Pound where your selected lobster is boiled in sea water in the huge wood-fired kettles that sit steaming out by the road in front of the lobster shack. We also had lobster rolls: fresh-cooked lobster tossed with mayonnaise and served on a grilled bun. Finally, we did the obligatory, complete lobster-bib dinner with clam chowder, a full lobster with drawn butter and side dishes, ending with Maine blueberry pie for dessert. -- We're not afraid of the tough jobs.
Freeport, ME - We took Highway 1 up the Maine coast and it was just as interesting as we expected, but, for us, the highlight was Freeport. If you've heard of this place, then you know why we spent a night there. In Reno, we have Eddie Bauer, Orvis, Cabellas, Scheels, Dick's, REI, Sports Authority, Sierra Trading Post, Big 5, Sportsman's Warehouse, and plans for a Bass Pro Shop, but none of these is L.L. Bean. In Freeport, the L.L. Bean flagship store is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and is quite simply the catalog come to life.
LL Bean, Freeport, ME
Fall Foliage - New England is famous for its fall color and on our journey we saw all of the stages from "green" to "gone". Acadia was just approaching its peak and that really added to our enjoyment of that National Park. But we wanted more, so we took the long way back to Boston, driving west across Maine into New Hampshire's White Mountains. Probably the best color we saw was in the area from North Conway to Bretton Woods, but what fascinated me most was the color at the ski resorts. In the Sierra, the ski resorts are the same in summer and fall. Evergreens outline the bare, white ski trails. But New England ski slopes are far more colorful in October. The trails still have a hint of green and the trees are turning yellow, gold and red.
Returning to Boston
This was a long drive and I was tired when we reached Boston, but I felt right at home once we arrived. I like Boston a lot, probably because it reminds me so much of San Francisco. They do have a lot in common: They're about the same size in area with excellent public transportation (Boston's is absolutely superb). Both are very friendly to tourists (Fisherman's Wharf and Faneuil Hall are just the most obvious parallels) and both have great restaurants (on Salem Street in the North End of Boston we walked past one Italian restaurant after another, each more enticing than the last). Both metro areas are cosmopolitan and have universities with international reputations and high tech culture. But, the clincher for me is that Red Sox fans hate the Yankees the way Giants fans hate the Dodgers. That's something I can understand.
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