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This was a day for driving, starting at the north-west tip of Maine
(Edmunston, NB) and ending at the Oceanside resort city of Bar
Harbor. It was a scenic, long drive, interrupted by the small cities
that dot this part of the world. We crossed to the USA at St Leonard,
drove south to Presque Isle (famous to us as the airport that is
farthest north and east that Delta Air Lines flies to), then down to
Houlton the northern terminus of I-95.
It was there that we cruised once around town and met its famous
statue "The
boy with the leaky boot". The marker nearby said there were
around a dozen copies of this "famous" statue around the
world, so we decided to start a new hobby. Here is the first
installment of our new collection. |
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  Bangor,
ME was interesting, with the airport that all transatlantic
flights use for either refueling or disembarking hostile passengers,
depending on the requirement. The city, like most in this area was
being redone, with abandoned centuries old woolen mills and factories
being redone as lofts, condos, offices, and restaurants. We could not
resist the giant Paul
Bunyan statue, with Lyn and Jesse pictured in front. We also
stopped at a McDonalds drive-thru, when a banner advertised
"McLobster Rolls". |
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drove down the two lane road to Bar
Harbor, ME, spending the night in Ellsworth,
ME (a city midway between Bangor and Bar Harbor). After
checking, in, we drove down to the Bar Harbor ocean front, walked
about the several blocks of shops and restaurants, then had dinner in
a fun and noisy pub. After another stroll, we drove back to Ellston,
hit Wal-Mart and a grocery store for supplies (running low on
batteries and cookies), then dropped Lyn off at the laundry-mat to
recycle our clothes supply.
Jesse and I shared a couple lines of "Candle Pin Bowling"
at a local lane. If you are not aware, candlepin differs from its
more famous cousin "Ten Pin Bowling" in several ways.
First, the pins are indeed almost cylindrical. Second the balls,
pictured, are smallish, about the size of cannon balls. Third you
receive three rolls per frame, instead of two (although only two
receive bonus points, as in Ten-Pin). Finally, the dropped pins are
not cleared, allowing the "dead wood" from the first ball
to help knock pins from the second and third. It was a novelty I
first learned about on a trip to Boston, and the few lanes that
remain are speckled about the northeast. In a conversation I
once had with the owner of a dying candle pin alley, I learned that
such operators are having all the difficulties of ten pin owners
(dying interest, high cost, land more valuable than the business
sitting on it), with the additional pressure that Ten-Pin lanes in
their own area are more popular due to national TV coverage, with
very waning interest in this ancient regional recreation. My advice
to you is this: find an alley and roll your line soon, if you wish to
ever have the experience.
After bowling, we picked up Lyn and helped repack, and headed to bed. |
Drive Across Maine to Bar Harbor
