During my father-in-law’s visit to Maine, and after out Whale Watching excursion, we grabbed some lunch then headed to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens nearby. I had heard this was a great place and it didn’t disappoint. If you have and opportunity to visit, I highly recommend it.
Since a picture is worth a thousand words, below you’ll find several thousand words. Enjoy!
One of the coolest parts of the garden was this moving sculpture. It mesmerized us all.
Posted in General, Maine, Travel
Tagged Boothbay, Boothbay Botanical Gardens, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Flowers, Maine
It’s been a long time since I’ve been on a whale watching trip. We thought it would be fun to do with my visiting father-in-law. We drove to Boothbay Harbor for an excursion on Captain Fish’s Whale Watching Trips.
Unfortunately we didn’t see any whales but we did see some dolphins.
A video of the dolphins – the loved surfing in the wake of the boat.
Posted in Family, General, Maine, Observations, Scenery, Travel
Tagged Boothbay Harbor, Captain Fish Whale Watching, Whale watching
As I mentioned in my previous post, my father-in-law came to visit recently. The first day he was here we spent the afternoon on Peaks Island with a picnic lunch.
The next two days, after all that walking, we thought it might make sense to take it easy. We drove to Kennebunkport the day after Peaks Island and then meandered our way back along the coast, which includes views of Walker Point (the Bush residence) and Ferry Beach.
Walker Point, Kennebunkport, ME
Dad and Don at Ferry Beach
The next day we made our way around closer to Portland with a trip the the Observatory, Two Lights, including lunch at The Lobster Shack, and Fort Williams/Portland Head Light.
View of the Portland Observatory
View of Portland Harbor from the Observatory
My lunch of fried clams at The Lobster Shack
The last stop of the day was to the iconic Portland Head Light.
The most photographed lighthouse in Maine, Portland Head Light.
The best part of the week’s events planned was still yet to come. Stay tuned for that post!
Posted in Family, Friends, General, Maine, People, Portland, Travel
Tagged Ferry Beach, Fort Williams, Kennebunkport, Maine, Portland Head Light, Portland Observatory, The Lobster Shack. Walker Point, Two Lights
If you live in Maine, chances are you have people that visit from other parts of the country in the summer. It’s usually family but sometimes it’s friends, too.
A couple weeks ago my father-in-law came to visit. He had a break during classes (he just graduated from Eastern Kentucky University this spring and has started classes for his masters in History) so we had him fly up for a week’s visit.
He’s 76-years-old and spry! So we had a lot planned for the week.
One of the first things we did was go to Peaks Island by ferry. It’s approximately 4-5 miles if you walk all the way around, which we did and it was hot! We packed a picnic lunch and found a shady spot on the rocks under a piece of ledge.
A view from Peaks Island
Our lunch spot - a respite from the sun.
A healthy lunch for all of us consisting of fruit, veggies, humus and sweet potato chips.
Me & Dad
One of my favorite photos of the day was this one – I took it of both Don and his Dad taking photos of flowers. It made me chuckle.
Photographing flowers.
Stay tuned. I’ll wright more about the other adventures during Dad’s recent visit to Vacationland.
Posted in Family, General, Maine, People, Portland, Travel
Tagged Maine, peaks island, Portland, Vacationland
My fitness has returned. Finally!
Wednesday night was our mid-level ride and it’s been getting a bit fast. It was my third Wednesday night ride all season and I was a bit nervous. It’s a bit hillier than our other rides and although I didn’t kill it, or myself, on the hills, I didn’t get dropped. There was a wait spot at the top of the climb I typically struggle on so I was able to still continue on with the group.
Today was our fastest ride of the week and I managed to hold on the entire way and felt pretty good.
This year that fitness has arrived a little late but just in time for the weather to be nice and getting some decent riding in. And most of that riding will take place with some of the best women on bikes – my Portland Velo Club club mates.
Posted in Cycling, Exercise, Friends, Maine, Observations, Portland, Portland Velo Club
After so many miles last weekend at The Trek Across Maine, I was ready for another long ride. Today was the better of the two weekend days for it.
Yesterday it rained most of the morning but I still managed to get out for our Saturday Morning Ride with 4 other women. Surprisingly at 55-degrees it wasn’t really cold, except for that time when we were caught in a downpour.
I wasn’t the only one with a longer ride in mind. After a friend had emailed me we put out a blast email to any of the PVC Women that might want to join in the fun. We had 14 of us, which also included some spouses and significant. We would have had more but there were a few that weren’t able to make the 7am start.
I finally feel like my fitness is returning. The nice part about so much time off the bike is that I’m not feeling that burnout that I typically feel this time of year.
Posted in Cycling, Exercise, Friends, Group Rides, Maine, Portland, Portland Velo Club, Women's Rides
Well, I’m back from the Trek and this week has been crazy!
First I’ll start with the Trek. It was AWESOME!
As I posted earlier, I was undecided about signing up again. But I have. How can I not? It’s just so damn fun!
Me and my friend Jen, her first Trek.
The weather was pretty good this year, too. Hot Friday, cloudy Saturday, and sunny, breezy Sunday.
With a small team this year, I ended up riding a fair bit by myself. We just ride at our own pace and no necessarily with our teammates so I just did my own ride. Typically we’d all catch up at the rest stops.
I had a friend that lent me a helmet camera for the Trek.
Helmet cam. I am a geek.
Unfortunately I didn’t have a chance to test it out before leaving. Without a computer to download the footage it was so hard to know where the camera was pointing so I had to hope for the best. I’m happy to say that I got some really great footage of the pavement between Bethel and Belfast. I wonder if the Maine Department of Transportation can use any of it?
Since I returned it’s been a crazy week. Crazy at work and also busy after work with social commitments. One of those commitments was attending a fundraiser for the Bicycle Coalition of Maine at Flatbread Pizza. I had heard they had a decent gluten free crust and after checking out the ingredients, finding that they were satisfactory, I ordered a pizza. That was a highlight of me week – real pizza that I haven’t had in a very long time!
Now the week is winding down and the weather a little dreary. No matter. I’m just enjoying a little downtime with my husband before things get crazy again. They always do.
At the finish in Belfast, Maine.
Posted in Bicycle Coalition of Maine, Cycling, Food, Friends, General, Maine
Tagged Bicycle Coalition of Maine, Flatbread Pizza, Trek Across Maine
This is my fifth year at the Trek Across Maine. In recognition of that I received a hat.
A few years ago I decided to do this for at least five years then figure out where I am and if I wanted to do it again. I’m still undecided.
Today is our first leg – Sunday River in Bethel to UMF in Farmington.
The weather today is supposed to be nice. As I lay in the hotel bed I can see clear skies and sun illuminating the morning. Tomorrow could be a little wet and I’m hoping “showers” avoids us for the most part.
I’m Trekker number 14 this year of approximately 2000 cyclists. The low number is the result of registering early, when it opens in May for the following year. Two years ago I had number 10 for the same reason.
There are so many great things about the Trek and one that’s my favorite is seeing all the people that I usually only see at this event. It really has become near and dear to my heart, as it has for many of the other rides. Each one of us has a story for riding. For me, it’s just fun and i’m happy to be able to be here another year.
As I write this, I wonder if I had already decided to be here again next year.
This is by far the best part about our Saturday morning rides (SMR) – coffee with some incredible women.
Posted in Cycling, Friends, General, Group Rides, Maine, Portland, Portland Velo Club, Women's Rides
We finally turned the corner on the weather. The sun has finally come out and it’s been a great few days!
I managed to commute by bike three days in a row this week – Wednesday through Friday.
Sometimes it seems like so much work to prep a bag, decide what’s best to pack in a messenger bag without getting too wrinkled, and get to work early enough to change, freshen, etc and look presentable for work. I don’t work in an office where it’s casual and being a woman doesn’t make it any easier. Still, I prevailed quite nicely.
My husband even bought a cute commuter bike and also commuted to work by bike this week.
It has felt so good to be back on the bike. I feel like I’ve been off it forever. Many of my fellow cyclists feel the same. It’s been a very dreary spring and hopefully this sunny weather continues for a long stretch.
Maine Velophile 