Flying to Acadia

aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

A couple of weeks ago we had an aerial photo job in Maine. The Bar Harbor/Ellsworth airport was a convenient place to base out of, so we took advantage of the situation :wink I'll try my best to make a travelogue out of this, albeit a flying-based one, and I'll concentrate on New England.

We planned two days our trip from Florida to Bar Harbor (KBHB), although we could have really pushed it to one day it would have meant getting to the airport around 0400 and landing tired in the late afternoon. Good move really because we discovered the afternoons often get foggy near sundown. We overnighted in Salisbury, MD (nice quiet place, decent hotels, great FBO rate at the local Hampton Inn - I recommend it).

On the second travel day we woke to a lot of rain and thunderstorms around New York City so our direct route wasn't going to happen. Instead, we diverted around to PA up to Albany, NY and across VT/NH - which made for some decent sightseeing. Really hazy skies made for some only mediocre photography for the scrap book; I'm sure some of the places we saw were probably flooded by Irene a week later:

Ball Mountain Dam & Lake - near Jamaica, Vermont
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Worrall Covered Bridge on the Williams River, near Bartonsville, Vermont. The Burlington Free Press wrote that the Worrall bridge "...survived despite being battered by debris."
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Brockways Mills area on the Williams River, near Chester, Vermont
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Potter Place Railroad Station (1874) upper portion of the frame - is the museum of the Andover Historical Society
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Farm on Rueben Rd - Sanbornton, NH
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Houses on the shoreline of Lake Winnisquam near Sanborton, NH
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Lanconia, New Hampshire was right on our way to the east coast so we decided to stop and take a ten minute break (plus I wanted to set up a video camera on the belly). Lanconia is a nice airport, nice people, moderately busy when we were there but not bad. Landing made for some better photo opportunities.

Lanconia Airport
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Elm and Park Streets across from Opechee Bay - Laconia, NH
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...and from the reverse direction
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Plant nursery and greenhouse on Intervale Rd - Glendale, NH
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Sawyer's Dairy Bar - Glendale, NH (near Laconia airport)
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Cabins on Daniel Webster Highway, the north side of Paugus Bay - Laconia, NH
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Our goal of course, was Maine. We made our way straight to the coast, planning to fly up the coastline to Bar Harbor and enjoy the air and scenery. I left the windows open the whole time. After leaving the heat and humidity of Florida where the temperature in the airplane is usually in the mid-80s~mid-90s the fresh air of New England was a big relief. Driving the coast is a lot of fun too, but this gives another perspective.

Richardson's Boatyard & Marina on Sebago Lake (and Basin) - Standish, Maine
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Cabot Mill at US1 and US201 - Brunswick, Maine
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Damariscotta Mills, Maine: The stream leading down through the center of the frame is actually part of a man made "fish ladder". In the 1700s a mill blocked the natural path for the Alewife fish to move between Damariscotta Lake and the Damariscotta River. To correct the problem the fish ladder was built. The building in the center of the frame appears to be the remnants of an old fishery, and the small red building on the left is a hydro-electric generating station. http://www.damariscottamills.org/
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Near Camden, Maine is Camden Hills State Park which offers as it's "signature location" this point on Mount Battie. Visitors can see Cadillac Mountain at Acadia NP from this point (on a clear day).
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Dock on Seven Hundred Acre Island at Cradle Cove on Gilkey Harbor - in Waldo County, east of Camden, Maine
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Traveling by air gives one the opportunity to see a lot of little details you can only otherwise see by boats, and some not even by boat. There are lots of little islands all along the coast that are off the tourist's normal radar. Places that nobody would visit (like the next picture) are neat to look at too. Although the water is a lot darker, in the shallow areas the clarity reminds me of the Bahamas.

"Green Ledge" - Penobscot Bay, Maine
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Deer Isle Bridge (1939) across Eggemoggin Reach between Sedgewick and Deer Isle, Maine
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Atlantic Boat Company on Herrick Bay at Flye Point - Brooklin, Maine. http://www.atlanticboat.com "Builders of Duffy and BHM Commercial Boats and Yachts"
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Earlier I mentioned fog, and there was a lot of it. Every morning we'd wake up to thick fog that would slowly disappear by mid-morning. The fog would settle just east of Mount Desert Island, often shrouding the eastern shore in fog during the day. By 5pm the fog would usually start to move back west across the island(s). From a flying perspective it wasn't always bad enough to ground us, but it wasn't completely predictable either. On our last day there I saw a lot of commercial airline passengers that had been delayed quite a bit from the morning fog.

This is pretty much what the afternoon fog looked like as it settled east of Acadia and the mainland. Here's "Cranberry Harbor":
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...and on to Mount Desert Island, part of Acadia National Park with traces of windswept fog forming around the shoreline:
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The seabreezes closer to Bar Harbor always seemed to keep traces of fog over the Porcupine islands too - this view is from atop Cadillac Mountain
Bald Porcupine Island - Acadia National Park, Maine
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Some views of Bar Harbor, both from the air and the ground. Lots of hotels, shops, art stuff, tourist stuff, food stuff.

First, to continue the aviation theme: the FBO building at the airport. Nice folks, regular airport just like home.
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The main part of the town of Bar Harbor
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The Bayview Hotel - Bar Harbor, Maine
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Whale Watching Tour Boats - Bar Harbor, Maine
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...same area at Sunset. I've never eaten there, but the restaurant on the water is always crowded:
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...and from the pier/parking area - people always start to congregate there to watch the sunsets. This was also at low-tide so people were walking across the gravel "bar" to "Bar Island"
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Bar Harbor, Maine
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Opposite direction of Bar Harbor - the brown building in the upper-center is the Criterion movie theater.
For those that haven't visited Bar Harbor in awhile, the construction site on the right side of the frame is going to be a hotel. I can't remember the name, but there used to be a restaurant there with a deck that looked out over the water.
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...and a ground-view
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

More ground-views of Bar Harbor. For those that haven't been, there are a lot of stores that sell special things like scrimshaw, arts, photography, and other things. A general theme is the same repeated stuff directed at tourists: stuffed plush lobsters, blueberry stuff (you name it, they have it), balsim-fir filled pillows, stickers, t-shirts, and so on. Nothing wrong with that - I buy my fair share that's for sure!

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Something I'd never noticed before was the number of people with dogs. They were everywhere! Several places had water bowls set up for our furry friends:
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Hotels: In our line of work we don't usually have a lot of warning about where and when we're going, so making reservations is always a last-minute thing. Visiting Bar Harbor at the height of tourist season with a couple of days notice doesn't leave many options. Fortunately there was no problem getting rooms at the Hampton Inn in Ellsworth. It's about a 7 minute drive from the airport, and 15-20 minutes to Bar Harbor. The hotel is nearly brand-new and although pricey, it was very nice.

Andy · September 3, 2011

Super set of aerial work!

aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Acadia (and area):

As part of our sightseeing tour going into the airport, we of course did a loop around Acadia - and what a view. From both perspectives.

Little Hunters Beach
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Little Hunters Beach is made of thousands of round stones and pebbles, many of which are the famous pink granite found around Acadia. The waves roll the stones in and out making an interesting sound - and leaving the round stones you see here:
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Ingraham Point - Mount Desert Island, Maine
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Park Loop Road and cliffs near Little Hunters Beach - Acadia National Park, Maine
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Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse
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Pierce Head, Seal Harbor - Mount Desert Island, Maine
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Jordan Pond
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Otter Point
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Seawall - Southwest Harbor
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

The "Sand Beach" at Acadia. It was pretty warm and parking was distant - we skipped it. The lake waters were warm though

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Asticou Inn - Northeast Harbor, Maine
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House at Rhodes Cliff - Mount Desert Island, Maine
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Thunder Hole at Acadia NP - didn't get really close to it in the air, but you get an idea of the layout.
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...and from the ground in the late afternoon sun
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Lecturing at the top of Cadillac Mountain
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

The destination-food for many here is lobster - and I love it. The waters all around MDI/Acadia are littered with lobster-trap buoys but you can't really appreciate how many there are until you fly around the coast and see them. There aren't many in this picture, but it's an example - all the white dots are lobster traps:
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The restaurants around Bar Harbor and Ellsworth get their lobsters (hopefully) from local lobstermen right from local waters. Driving and flying around there are docks with lobster boats and traps:
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...and of course in the water you can see them in action. Even from the rocks around Acadia.
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The regular restaurants have lobster dinners and rolls, but you're likely to find roadside diner-like places called "lobster pounds" too. These are usually no-frills order-and-eat joints. One popular place is the Trenton Bridge Lobster Pound - just over the bridge on Rt3 (they advertise in Yankee Magazine and will ship live lobster year-round). You go into the building and order the size lobster you want (ie: 1.5lb, 2lb, whatever). They try to find one about that size, weigh it, and you pay for it by the pound. The lobster gets put in a numbered bag and you get an order form with the number at the top. While you're waiting to pay you check off what side orders you want on the order form, then pay for it. Eventually they call your number and you get a broiler pan with your lobster in it.

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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Did I mention there are boats in Maine? A lot of boats? Aside from the lobster boats there are a lots of others...

The Schooner Mary Day http://www.schoonermaryday.com ) on Blue Hill Bay near Brooklin, Maine - west of Mount Desert Island
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Sailboat at Bass Harbor - Mount Desert Island, Maine
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Regatta - Somes Sound, Monut Desert Island, Maine
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Midnight - Somes Sound, Mount Desert Island, Maine
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Buttercup - Somes Sound, Mount Desert Island, Maine
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Near Cranberry Isles, Maine
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The Mailboat "Sea Queen" runs 4 daily trips between Northeast Harbor Pier and Cranberry Isles ($24 round-trip)
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aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

One of the nicest surprises of the trip was from the car rental place. I reserved a compact and they asked if I'd take a convertible. Um...yeah, twist my arm. Same price. Unlimited miles. Good luck working that freebie into future plans!
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Eventually we had to leave. Waited for the fog (and rain) to end, then headed south down the coast for home. Not much to write about it, except the coast is a nice way to travel for the scenery.

Harpswell sound - Harpswell, Maine
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Sea Spray Drive - Hoyt Neck, New Barn Cove, and Horseshoe Cove - north of Kennebunkport, Maine
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Goat Island Lighthouse, built 1859 - Kennebunkport, Maine
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Walkers Point - Kennebunkport, Maine
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Cliff House Resort & Spa at Bald Head Cliff - Ogunquit, Maine
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Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Seavey Island - Kittery, Maine - established in 1800 - there are three full (full size) submarines in these two pictures

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...and further down the coast we skated across MA/Ct/NY/NJ and I didn't do much shooting along the way. Eventually we'll do the Hudson for landmarks around NYC - but not on this trip.

Parking Field 5 - Robert Moses State Park - Long Island, NY
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Beach Haven West - Manahawkin, NJ
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For the record, everything here was shot with a Nikon D200 and Nikon D300, with Nikkor 16-35, Sigma 150/2.8, and Nikkor 300/f4 lenses - and a Samsung Captivate cellphone.

aerialphoto · September 3, 2011

Andy wrote: »

Super set of aerial work!

Thanks Andy!

divmedic4 · September 4, 2011

Amazing set of photos. Makes me want to go visit for sure.

denisegoldberg · September 4, 2011

This is wonderful!

Acadia is a favorite spot of mine, and I try to make the trek up the Maine coast at least twice a year (should be more, but...). I really enjoyed seeing it from the air!

--- Denise

aerialphoto · September 4, 2011

divmedic4 wrote: »

Amazing set of photos. Makes me want to go visit for sure.

Thanks!

denisegoldberg wrote: »

This is wonderful!

Acadia is a favorite spot of mine, and I try to make the trek up the Maine coast at least twice a year (should be more, but...). I really enjoyed seeing it from the air!

Thanks!

Wish I was a lot closer myself. I'm trying to get in another trip this year maybe, we'll see. Terrific place

rpcrowe · September 4, 2011

Absolutely Stunning Images
I would bet that some of the local tourist organizations would love some of these great images...

knapph · September 7, 2011

Thanks for the photos. It is great seeing our home state from a different vantage point.

aerialphoto · September 7, 2011

Thanks for the photos. It is great seeing our home state from a different vantage point.

Awesome place to visit

Cuong · September 10, 2011

Spectacular images from a perspective that many of us normally don't see.

Cuong

ian408 · October 1, 2011

I have always enjoyed the "Above" series of books for their unique perspective on places they visit.

Seeing Maine from this perspective is awesome and it's nice to see you had some good weather too.

dave6253 · October 1, 2011

Stunning images!

NeilL · October 1, 2011

Quite a tour!

Neil

Flying to Acadia

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