Monday, December 31, 2018

SIEUR DE MONTS SPRING - A WONDER OF NATURE OR MAN MADE

ACADIA NATIONAL PARK

BAR HARBOR TIMES
JULY 21, 1960

To the Editor;
Visitors at Sieur de Monts Spring may at times wonder about the early history.  One standing on the large flat rock in the brook and watching the water bubble and gorgie from beneath it may think he is beholding a natural event, when in fact, he is looking at the result of human planning and effort.
In the summer of 1907 John Prescott, owner of the property developed the spring at the upper end of the Harding Farm, so called, which was originally known as Red Rock Spring, and later, Mt. Kebo Spring, undertook to do the same thing with what is now the Sieur de Monts Spring.
I learned this quite by accident.  One day in the summer above mentioned I was walking with a friend of my parents through the woods in that section.  As a boy I had fished in the brook that flowed out of the meadow - now known as the tarn - and I knew that area very well.
Near the brook at that time was a small boiling spring with a much larger one several yards away.
As we came into the path off the Seal Harbor Road we heard from the valley below us the sound of horses and a stone drag.  Coming into the clearing at the foot of the hill we found Mr Prescott with a team of horses dragging a large flat rock towards the smaller spring, and learned that he was planning another bottling plant similar to the one at Red Rock (Mt. Kebo).  He told us he was setting that flat rock over the smaller spring in the attempt to force the water back into the larger one which he planned to deepen and enlarge.
The bottling plant, as such, did not prove to be the success had hoped, and in course of time the property passed to other hands and now has been developed into the beauty spot we have today.  But that rock is the same one we saw put in place over 50 years ago.
What we see today is not a freak of nature but a deliberate attempt to improve on what nature has provided.
I can vouch for this as I am the only living person who was present when that stone was set in its present position.
Sincerely,
Rev. Charles S. Mitchell, DD

SIEUR DE MONTS SPRING HOUSE
ACADIA NATIONAL PARK


WHO WAS THE REV CHARLES S. MITCHELL

A piece I found in an article in the Bar Harbor Times dated August 2, 1922 states in part;
"Mr. Charles S. Mitchell served Long Island till cold weather, than he moved his family to Bar Harbor and spent the winter assisting in special services at Cranberry Isles, Matinitus, and other places.  It seemed best to locate Mr. Mitchell at Corea where he can be of help in the town of Gouldboro, as there is not a minister in the town."
In the December 6, 1922 Bar Harbor Times, upon the passing of Rev. A.P. MacDonald, who had been the head of the Sea Coast Mission. A piece in that same paper was written by the Rev. Charles S. Mitchell, whose title states the following;
"Rev. A.P. MacDonald;  A word of appreciation by Rev. Charles S. Mitchell, who was for some time associated with Mr. MacDonald as Assistant Missionary."
In a copy of the Bar Harbor Times dated July 26, 1922 an article begins with the following;
"BAR HARBOR MAN IS ORDAINED AT COREA
Charles S. Mitchell after service in Sea Coast Mission is now Baptist Minister.
A council of churches of Hancock County, was called by the church at Corea Wednesday, July 19th, to set apart by ordination to the Baptist ministry, Charles S. Mitchell who has been serving this church for the past two months, after nearly two years in the Sea Coast Mission work."
An article from the Bar Harbor Times in 1915 states that "Charles S. Mitchell expects to enter Gordon Theological School in Boston the middle of next  month."

MORRELL PARK RIDING SCHOOL
Bar Harbor

BAR HARBOR HORSE SHOW
ROBINHOOD PARK, Bar Harbor


HOMAN'S PROPERTY FOR SALE
W.H. SHERMAN & SON
Bar Harbor

THE MOUNT DESERT NURSERIES
Bar Harbor

THE CRITERION
Cottage Street, Bar Harbor


THE MARLBOROUGH HOTEL
Bar Harbor

LITTLE KEBO INDOOR GOLF COURSE
Main Street, Bar Harbor









Sunday, December 30, 2018

IN SEARCH OF RED ROCK SPRING

IN SEARCH OF RED ROCK SPRING

Was there really such a place as Red Rock Spring on Mount Desert Island?  That question can be answered easily, since we have old newspaper articles and ads that proclaim the purity of its crystal clear waters, but the exact location of Red Rock Spring remains a mystery.  We know from an old article the spring lay between the Cemetery on Harden Farm Road and the base of Kebo Mountain, there is not a whole lot of ground between those two locations so locating the exact site of the Red Rock Spring, one would think, would be a fairly easy task - but it has turned out to be anything but easy.  Red Rock Spring,  as was the case with Sieur de Monts Spring area, was owned by a Mr. Prescott, who also owned a farm along the Harden Farm Road.  It was on his farm that the Red Rock Spring was located, and according to newspaper articles, only a handful of people knew of the spring, until Mr Prescott came to a conclusion, there was money to be made from the spring, and he began the Red Rock Spring Bottling Company, which bottled both Spring Water as well as Ginger Ale at the location.

CONCRETE TROUGH

The spring got its name because the ledge around where the spring bubbled up from was a red color, thus the name Red Rock Spring.  I have been trying to track down the location of the bottling plant and its spring for years now and today may of come close to finding it, or did we find it?  Well, lets put it this way, we found something, which is always better than finding nothing at all.
What we found was a good number of large and small granite blocks scatter about an area near a brook.  On top of a number of these granite blocks was very thin pieces of rock, like one might find covering an inside wall, or perhaps a roof.  But the biggest find lay just ahead when we came upon this huge concrete trough of sorts, with two holes on top of it, and two holes near the base, with a medium size pipe stopping just short of connecting to the large concrete trough.  I use the word trough lousely because clear as you will see from the photos, it was not designed to hold much water.  So, did we fine what remains of the Red Rock Spring Bottling Company, who knows.  Did we find a glorified horse trough, an abandoned fountain, or some other long lost artifact, who knows, but clearly water at one time flowed into it, as can be seen from that medium sized pipe.  I do not have the GPS as i totally forgot to take the numbers down, but I will get those and update this when I have them, but really, this site is not too hard to locate.


RED ROCK SPRING - 

We followed the Harden Farm Road (some locals refer to it as the other end of Kebo Street) down to where it comes to the Park Loop Road, straight ahead is a field, we moved through the field, until we reached the trees and than moved to the right through the trees and to the edge of a brook.  From there we simply followed the brook until we came to many granite blocks and the horse trough thingy, I told my son it sure looks like it was a fountain at one time, but who knows.  As you will see in the photos, there also was the tire marks of an old road which led right to this site, though the tire marks can't be seen from the road.  My son thought it might of been a tub  but clearly its not deep enough to have been a tube...LOL.
So the latest details we have uncovered on this mysterous spring, it  was surrounded by tall thin white birches,  the bottom of the spring is of sand, and the water in the spring "bubbles upward"  - which is caused by a natural gas found in the water.


So in this photo I just noticed there is an indent in the ground where clearly another pipe ran out this side as well, though that pipe is no longer there.  Could this be an early prototype of the first jacuzzi?

THIS VIEW SHOWS PIPE

Granite blocks of different sizes are scattered throughout the area.





THE BROOK

MORE GRANITE BLOCKS




THE LADIE'S SHOPPE
Main Street, Bar Harbor
COTTAGE STREET VETERINARY HOSPITAL
Cottage Street, Bar Harbor

HARMON PIANO CO.
Main Street, Bar Harbor

THE JORDAN POND HOUSE
Seal Harbor, Maine


Sunday, December 2, 2018

1896 DESCRIPTION OF TRAILS

DESCRIPTION OF TRAILS
Bar Harbor Record
July 1, 1896


Mr. Herbert Jaques, the well known architect, contributed the following interesting article on the paths of Mount Desert Island which will be of great interest in connection with the new map of the island which is soon to be published.  Mr. Jaques has traversed every path on the island.
To a comparative few people the paths of Mount Desert Island are well known and it is hoped that more may be induced to use them and enjoy their beauties.
There are practically four systems, hiking in a general way, though it is needed eventually to connect all together.  The smallest system is the so called Duck Brook Series;  these paths are called the Duck Brook, Bracken, Sweet Fern and Royal Fern Paths.  One can start on Eden Street just before coming to the bridge over Duck Brook and walk up the south side of the brook to the reservoir.  This path has two paths, one high up on the bank and one close to the water.  The lower one can not be used when the water in the brook is high.
From the reservoir the Sweet Fern Path runs to the southeast and comes out near Mr. Hows Teahouse near Woodbury Park.  The Royal Fern Path crosses the reservoir dam, and comes out on the Cockscrew Hill Road.  The Bracken Path runs south along the reservoir and comes out on the Eagle Lake Road where Mr. Hows new road comes in.  This is just above the Cromwells Harbor Road and there is a fine spring at the roadside where the path starts.  There is a branch from the Bracken Path which runs southwest and follows along the brook and comes out near the head of Eagle Lake.
The southeast system of paths, or better known as the Newport System, is worked out on a system of colors.  A new carriage road has been built from Otter Creek Road to the edge of Robin Hood Park to the Schooner Head Road near Bear Brook.  Starting in from the Otter Creek Road one first sees the Bicycle Path which runs directly towards the gorge between Newport and Picket mountains, and swings about in a fine growth of Hemlock and hardwood trees and comes again into the carriage road near the old bridge over Bear Brook, following for some distance the old Picket Mountain Path.  The Black and White Path leaves the bicycle path just under Picket Mountain and follows the brook in a winding course up and on to the top of the mountain.  From here there is a steep trail which leads to the top of Newport, affording a fine view to the north, west and south.  From the bicycle path near the start of the Picket Mountain path runs a Black and Blue steep trail up the side of Newport under a landslide coming out on the Black path.  This path is steep and rough but is especially beautiful and affords fine views.  From the old bridge over Bear Brook and when the bicycle path joins the carriage road, the old Black Path runs up over Newport and down on the southern end coming out at the Bowl.
Following the carriage road near Bear Brook one comes to the road leading to Mr. Dorr's quarries, and here starts the White Path which combines fine views with easy walking.  It runs the whole length of Newport Mountain running under the cliffs and coming out at Great Head.  The Red Path leaves the White soon after leaving the Horseshoe and follows down the course of Meadow Brook, coming out on the Schooner Head Road where Meadow Brook crosses the road.  Half a mile beyond the Blue Path runs to the left or east and comes out on the Schooner Head Road near Cranberry Hill.  Another half or three quarters of a mile and one branch of the Yellow Path runs east and comes out at Schooner Head Road, than still further on the White Path, the Red and White runs abruptly to the right and up the side of Newport and joins the Black Path near the crest.  This path is steep and rough and affords a good climb, but is generally used as a decent from the mountain to Schooner Head.  Half way up this path a Blue and White Path runs to the Bowl.  Following the White Path from where the Red and White leaves it, one walks along the banks of a lovely brook and another branch of the Yellow Path starts on the left and comes out at Schooner Head.  The lower end of this path is the same as the other Yellow Path and is apt to be wet in the meadow.  The White Path than runs along the side of Enoch (a spur of Newport) and with a branch to the left across Homans Field runs through a pretty grove until one comes to the Blue and White branch which leaves to the right and runs to the Bowl with a Brown branch near the top of the Beehive.  Than the White runs down across a brook and finally with a sharp turn to the left again crosses the brook and ascends the hill to the road near Great Head.
Where the White Path turns to the left or east of the Yellow and White starts and runs close under the Beehive and up through the valley between Gorham and the Beehive, past Cliffs Pond just beyond which the Brown Path starts on the right and runs to the Bowl with a branch up on the Beehive;  the Yellow and White than ascends a steep bank and soon on the left will be found a spring of clear cool water;  than on over the divide one descends to the Otter Creek Road at the head of School House Hill.  A short distance north on the Otter Creek Road near the house of Isaac Tripp, the Green and White Path runs up to the Bowl.  Near the top of this path the Black Path starts and runs back over Newport, where the brook leaves the Bowl.  Following the Green and White one comes to the Brown which goes down to the Yellow and White and than the Green and White goes on around the Bowl to where the Blue and White and Blue, White and Blue all meet the Green and White at the large rock.
The Green Mountain system starts on the Cromwell Harbor road at the rear entrance to the Kebo Valley Club.  The path makes a quick descent to the brook than rises and bears to the right with a branch starting here to the left which runs up over Kebo Mountain and will eventually be carried along the meadow on the side of Dry Mountain and come out on the Otter Creek Road beyond the driving park.  The main path runs along the valley for a considerable distance, than crosses the brook and finally reaches the Gorge and runs in the bed of the brook up between Green and Dry Mountains.  Near the head of the brook one reaches Pulpit rock which affords a good  resting place and charming vistas;  than on up the gorge and at the top the path branches to the east up Dry Mountain and west up Green to the Mountain House.  From here one can descend by the carriage road to the Eagle Lake road or keep on over the long south crest of Green coming out near the School House beyond Otter Creek.  From this path a spur leads down towards Pemetic Mountain coming out on the Bubble Pond road and making a connection with the Pemetic mountains, Bubble Mountain and Sargent's Mountain system.
ABANDONED TRAILS GUIDE - ACADIA NATIONAL PARK

From the Green Mountain Carriage Road just inside the toll gate, a new path runs south and west towards Eagle lake and joins a path which runs from Eagle lake up to and over Pemetic Mountain.  Following down the lake one strikes a path along the shore close to the water which comes out on the carry between Eagle lake and Jordon Pond.  The path from the lake towards Pemtic also has a branch running along the sides of Bubble Pond west side, and coming out on the road which runs into the pond from Northeast Harbor.  Arriving at the head of Eagle Lake one can take the Carry and go to Jordon's Pond and than down the east shore of the pond to the Jordan Pond House.  A carriage road runs along the west shore of Jordon's on through the valley between Sargent's and the Bubbles and bearing north and east comes out at Eagle lake and running to the west short of the lake, strikes the Eagle lake road at the Currin House.  From this path runs other paths connecting all the systems of this part of the island and as described.

1911 TRAIL GUIDE MAP - ACADIA NATIONAL PARK








Saturday, December 1, 2018

THE MOUNT DESERT NURSERIES

When you think of George B. Dorr, places like Old Farm, compass Harbor, the Dorr Quarry and Storm Beach cottage come to mind, not to mention dorr's once very popular bike path and the work he did constructing trails and adding lands to the National Park, but one does not readily think of Mr. Dorr and nurseries, but he owned a very thriving business here named the Mount Desert nurseries.  In the summer months his nursery business employed as many as 125 workers with trees, shrubs and plants being shipped across the United states.  And though not an abandoned trail, it is nether the less, a business whose remains have been abandoned to time, as it were.  But even with the passage of time, traces and remnants of the Mount Desert Nurseries can still be found today, if you know where to look - in fact, some are hiding in plain sight.
What I once thought might of been a foundation of a small house in the woods not far from the remains of Old Farm, I now believe might of been the flooding tank referred to in the article from an old newspaper below, located between the Old Farm foundation and the Old Farm road.  There is a tiny two car parking area along the old Farm Road, and a hiking trail crosses the road there, the Schooner Head Trail, which crosses the road and passes by a small pond, on old maps called Dorr Pond, and for good reason.  that pond was once owned by George b. Dorr, part of his estate, and part of the area around the Mount Desert  Nurseries, which included land from Compass Harbor all the way over to the Schooner Head road.
SCHOONER HEAD TRAIL CROSSES OLD FARM ROAD

In one old newspaper article, Dorr Pond is mentioned as being a popular ice skating area in winter time.  Today the area is a nice location for spotting Wild turkeys, woodpeckers and wild ducks.  The Schooner Head Trail does not get a lot of foot traffic and dates back to the days when it was named the Red Path, leading from Compass Harbor and along the Schooner Head road to Schooner Head Overlook and the area of Anemone Cave, today abandoned by the Park Service.
Rudolph Brunnow, the man behind the building of the Precipice Trail, the Beehive, and other popular trails in Acadia National Park, had plans to extend the Red Path from Schooner Head Overlook and have it join up with the Ocean Drive path by Sand Beach, but that plan was never carried out and no one seems to know why it wasn't.
MOUNT DESERT NURSERIES - GEORGE B. DORR

So back to the Schooner Head Path, where it crosses the Old Farm road, one section takes you to the Compass Harbor Loop path around Old Farm remains, the other section on the other side of Old Farm Road takes you in the direction of the Schooner Head road.  Now as you start out on this trail, not long after you have passed by  Dorr Pond on the right, you will begin to see signs of old pipes, and sections of pipes with faucets  where hoses could be connected, these old pipes, easy to spot when your looking for them along the side of the trail, date back to the days of the Mount Desert  Nurseries and were part of the extensive watering system in place back than.
The old newspaper article below I came across this evening as I was doing research and thought I would share it with you, as I find it a fascinating piece of history.

DORR POND - OLD FARM ROAD - MOUNT DESERT  NURSERIES



MOUNT DESERT NURSERIES
BAR HARBOR RECORD
May 8, 1901

ACRES OF PLANTS
Of the various Bar Harbor industries which are worthy of extended mention that carried on by the Mt. Desert nurseries is by no means the least.  These are situated at the lower end of Main Street about one half a mile from the business section of the village.
George B. Dorr of Boston, has for many years been an annual visitor here and has always taken a deep interest in the resort earnestly advocating all steps that would make to the advantage of the place and its residents.  A gentleman of refined tastes, culture and wealth, he has always been a liberal supporter of all worthy projects and it was owing largely to this progressive spirit and desire to aid the town that the Mount Desert Nurseries came into being.  Mr Dorr has for years been a lover of nature and horticulture has been an especial passion with him, so that for a score of years the grounds at Old Farm the beautiful and spacious Bar Harbor home of Mrs Charles H. Dorr, has been one of the most attractive of the show places in the village.
In 1896 Mr Dorr commenced horticulture on a large scale and now the nurseries cover nearly 30 acres which are cultivated with the utmost care and success.  It is a charming drive through the nurseries as winding roads are laid out on every hand passing by bed after bed of flowers and beautiful shrubbery and trees.  In the season the thousands of flowering plants with their masses of color, shaded by their green foliage make a scene of living beauty difficult to surpass.
It is very difficult for one who has not visited the nurseries to comprehend the immense scale of which the business is conducted.  Plants are shipped all over the country, recent orders including shipments to Washington, California and Oregon.  These shipments are for the most part plants that are native to this section, although many specialties are engaged in.  No small business of the business is the shipment of trees, ash, birch, and maple.  Over 60 large cases of these have been shipped this spring  "A specialty is made of all hardy plants and shrubs and in addition a large quantity of bedding plants are sold."
At the present time there are over 20,000 geraniums of all stages of growth and seemingly of all possible hues and varieties at the nurseries, 5,000 heliotropes and a proportionate amount of all the principle bedding plants suitable to this climate.
The Mount Desert nurseries are as large as any in Eastern New England, and among the most northerly in the United States.  When one considers the climate in this section of Maine and the long, cold winters,  it seems remarkable that an enterprise of this sort can be so successfully carried on.  The weather in the winter is of course very severe for the plants and owing to the short season there are some kinds of trees, shrubs and plants that do not get ripened sufficiently to stand the winter.  This curtails operations in some lines, as for instance hybrid roses, which are not grown at the Mt. Desert Nurseries but are largely imported.
The climate, however, is not without its advantage in the floral line.  Stock that will grow all right at Bar Harbor will stand almost any climate.  Than the Mount Desert Nurseries offer a great advantage as they can furnish plants that have been grown and tested in this climate and thus the purchases are not investing in a lottery.
The nurseries are certainly a great help to Bar Harbor in many ways and in the course of the year occasion the expenditure of a large amount of money in this section and also furnish a  livelihood for many families.  During the busy season anywhere from 60 to 125 hands are employed at the nurseries and even during the winter steady work is afforded to nine men.  The employees even on an average sum $45 a month so it will be seen that the pay roll of the institution is no small item during the summer months.
Among the most pleasing sights furnished visitors at Bar Harbor during the season are the window decorations at the store of the Mt. Desert nurseries in the village.  Here may always be seen a very choice and attractive array of plants and flowers while the store itself presents the appearance of a veritable floral bower.
In one of the windows of the store there has for seasons been a display of pond lilies, including not only the usual white and yellow, but also the purple and pink Zanzibar varieties.  The latter are not planted or colored by hand as many spectators believe, but are raised annually from seed.
Lilies of all kinds are a great specialty, and 13 varieties have at one time been on exhibition at the store, a record that it would be difficult to equal anywhere.
There are many hotbeds about the nurseries, while the green houses are large and spacious.  The largest is 125 by 26 feet while there is another 72 by 11 and a third 107 by 13.
The latter is called the tank house and is so arranged that is can be flooded with water in the summer for the growth of pond lilies.  In the winter it is drained and arranged for a hot house.  At the present time it is entirely filled with geraniums.  The greenhouses are kept at an even temperature, a hot water heating system being in use in cold weather.
The other buildings consist of a well arranged office and a cold storage building.  The former is 24 by 34 feet and the latter is 64 by 40.
In the cold storage building are placed the choice tub trees and the hydrangeas and many varieties of bulbs.  The temperature is kept at from 31 to 36 degrees.
In the upper story of the cold storage building are kept the tools and supplies, and here are situated a row of lockers for the employee's.  Everything is done on a system and a good one at the Mount Desert Nurseries and the utmost care is taken in the details.  For instance every tool that is taken out by the day men is recorded and waste and loss in this direction is thus checked.
Mr. William Miller, the superintendent, is a man of wide experience and large knowledge of horticulture, obtained both by practice and study.  He was born in Scotland where his father is still engaged in the nursery business.  He came to this country 15 years ago and was employed at the estate of Robert Treat Paine at Waltham, Mass.  He came to Bar Harbor as a private Gardiner for Mr Dorr in 1888, and to him is due a great deal of the credit for the immense business that has been developed.
But not all the horticulture at the Dorr place is done in the nurseries.  The estate comprises some 300 acres and 50 to 75 acres are kept in fine condition for the private grounds.
The nurseries have a branch at Northeast Harbor which is in charge of George J. Miller.  At Northeast Harbor there are about three acres of nursery land and an excellent business is enjoyed by the branch.

SCHOONER HEAD TRAIL GUIDE - MOUNT DESERT  NURSERIES


George B. Dorr Estate
Acadia National Park 



THE MOUNT DESERT NURSERIES
Bar Harbor
SCHOOL STREET SHOPS
Bar Harbor Maine

MAIN STREET SCHOOL HOSPITAL
91 Main Street, Bar Harbor

MCKAY AND WILLEY
School Street, Bar Harbor

SUNNY MEADOWS TEA HOUSE
Seawall, Maine

THE SHAW BUSINESS COLLEGE
Bangor Maine


THE JORDAN POND HOUSE
Seal Harbor Maine









Friday, November 23, 2018

NEWEST E-BOOK IS NOW READY FOR DOWNLOAD



So I put in a few hours this evening and put the finished touches on our newest E-BOOK - Abandoned Trails Of Acadia National Park, available now for free download. This has everything that is in the Library version of the book, as well as a bonus section that the Library version does not have. It will download as a PDF file.

ABANDONED TRAILS OF ACADIA NATIONAL PARK - THE BOOK




If you live in an area where the book is not available at your local library, most libraries today have a free inter-library loan program where they can borrow the book from a library that does have a copy of the book.


Abandoned Trails Of Acadia National Park - a list of some of the libraries where you can take out a copy of the book.



Jesup Memorial Library - Bar Harbor




Southwest Harbor Library - Southwest Harbor




Bass Harbor Memorial Library - Bernard,




Bangor Public Library - Bangor, Maine




Ellsworth Public Library - Ellsworth, Maine




Northeast Harbor Library - Northeast Harbor




Waterville Public Library, Waterville Maine




Newport Public Library, Newport Maine




Portor Memorial Library, Machias Maine




Maine State Library, Augusta, Maine




Portland Public Library - Portland, Maine




South Portland Public Library, Sou8th Portland




Lithgow Public Library - Augusta, Maine




Brewer Public Library - Brewer, Maine




New York Public Library - Fifth Ave.




Boston Public Library - Boylston St.




Gorham Public Library, Gorham NH




At some point all the library's list above will be getting a copy of my second book as well, Footprints In Time - Stories From Mount Desert Island's Past - this book is already available in some of the libraries listed.









Just an update, I want to thank the many libraries who gave us positive feedback on our book and who are listing it in their collections.


Thursday, November 1, 2018

CADILLAC MOUNTAIN'S REAL SUMMIT



CADILLAC MOUNTAIN - ACADIA NATIONAL PARK


If you are like most visitors to the summit of Cadillac Mountain, you no doubt took photos, selfies, and marveled in the fact that you can stood on the summit of Cadillac Mountain, but did you really?  In name only you can depart the majestic mountain with victory in hand, but the true summit or highest point on Cadillac Mountain is not found where all the crowds  gather and flashes go off like a Hollywood gala, to find the true summit, or highest point on the mountain one has to go behind the gift shop, to the point where a radio antenna  is   located, look for a U.S.  Geological survey medal is  connected to the ledge - that marks the highest spot  on Cadillac Mountain.

A DRIVE ALONG CADILLAC MOUNTAIN SUMMIT ROAD
Acadia National Park


CADILLAC MOUNTAIN
Acadia National Park





Tuesday, October 30, 2018

TRAIL TALK

Spent a few hours down along Duck Brook following two days of rain, the brook had roared to live with rapids and white water everywhere I turned.  Just before the falls, at the old Duck Brook swimming hole, the light was just right so I could see the bottom of the pool and could see stepping stones where the abandoned Duck Brook Trail crossed the pond at one time right there, today the steps vanish into deep water.  The roar of the brook was so loud in places my gopro had trouble hearing my commands...






when you see these up in the trees in Acadia National Park know Santa placed them there so he knows who has been naughty or nice...





So more on that trail we discovered on Friday, returned on Saturday, weather was really nice, thought for certain the trail was the old Young's Mountain Trail, it was well worn, almost as worn as an official trail, but after some distance it began deteriorating right before our eyes, and entered a wetland area, so we did like we always do, crisscrossed the woods on dry land looking for signs of the path, when we discovered yellow pieces tied in trees, and a worn path, followed it which followed a dry stream bed.  The hike only became worse the further we went, but as long as the yellow tape could be seen I decided to push ahead, video taping the entire hike, little did I know just how much more hostile the  going would get.  The yellow tape led us up long steep sections along the mountain side, I do not like heights and wanted to quit, my son urged me on, so we continued.  We finally exited the woods, coming out on bare open granite and the yellow markers ended so we kept moving straight ahead through brush and trees, and stepped out onto a well worn path...I recolonized the path at once and replied, we aren't on Youngs Mountain...we are on Mcfarland Mountain.  I shot video of the summit and told my son, no way I am going to upload that mess we recorded getting here.  We started our way down the mountain side, I needed to get some video of the remains of the old ski slope, and heard the sound of something rushing towards us, my son went into a defensive position and I realized it must be a large dog, it was, it raced past me, did a quick circle around my son and raced back up the mountain side, meanwhile my son seemed to be in pain grabbing one arm, I asked if the dog had bit him, he said no, but was getting a bad cramp in his arm from reacting so quickly.  About this time a woman's voice called out from higher up the mountain..."Sorry if my dog disturbed your hike...where did you guys come from?"  Fair question, I replied we had gone up the mountain side from Breakneck Ponds, "you came from Breakneck lake," she asked, I replied, yes, we hiked up from Breakneck Ponds.  She wished us a nice day and we headed off in separate  directions, , as I approached the ski slope remains we spotted a white car by the air quality station, I told my son, she must of been a ranger, because you need a key to the locked gate to get into that area.  I shot my video and turned to see the white car gone.  Out by the main road what appeared to be four college students came out of the area of the ANP headquarters on Eagle Lake road and headed toward us...as it turned out at least one had followed our website.  So despite much of the day being a total waste, I like the video I shot of the summit and was glad to have gotten video of the ski slope area, but I never had any intention of going up Mcfarland Mountain...some times it just works out like that.



Was out and about today and located two cameras strapped to trees, one by eagle lake aimed at an unmarked trail and one on the old abandoned Breakneck road.  I hope today was not the last good day of the season, got some nice photos and located another abandoned trail, though I did nit stumble upon it until just before dusk, its well worn and can't wait to get back to it and document it.



So I recently had to download a copy of one of my colored maps on the printer...ouch, too much color, too dark, not printer friendly.....so I been slowly redoing my maps, the first two are completed;







This is a video of the first Green Mountain Carriage Road, information for its location provided in old articles which state for some distance it followed the old survey road, then went off in a different direction;  those articles also spoke of the wire gate that was used to close the Green Mountain Carriage Road to traffic when no one was nearby to collect the fee for taking the road, that old wire gate is seen in the video.





According to an old newspaper article dated September 22, 1897, it states that when Mr. Walden Bates worked on a trail, he would scout the trail out and blaze the path the trail was to take, an assistant, a Mr. Chambers, would cut out the path that Mr. Bates blazed, the article stated.  In September of 1897 Mr. Bates, accompanied by Mr. Chambers, was working on trails on Sargent Mountain and staying at Currin House by Eagle lake.  Mr. Bates stated that Monday evening that several connecting trails had been blazed which would render mountain climbing on the island more delightful once the new trails were open.
Unfortunately Mr. Bates assistant's first name is never revealed in the story.  I thought I would add this post because I had come across a piece on the National Park Service site that stated no one really knows how Mr. Bates went about his trail work...now we know,





I don't usually do requests but one of our loyal followers wanted to see a video of what a Phantom Trail looked like, which is a trail someone build and was never an official hiking trail,  because they were never an official trail they can be a little more difficult to follow and on this day sun flare was a real pain.




Just got my latest video uploaded, THE BRACKEN GHOST TRAIL, it was a pretty nice day so we did two videos in one day, this ghost trail on and by request, a video of a Phantom Trail, which I hope to get uploaded this evening.




In the coming days I will be uploading several new videos, all shot with my Gopro 7 black, one is uploading now, the old Fern Trail, once it is ready I will add a link below to it.





Really big finds today on Cadillac Mountain, did a gopro of the old carriage road, found another section of the green mountain rail trail, along with railings and other parts from the train, and located the final spike just short of where the summit house once stood.  I will be doing posts on todays finds this evening with photos.  Some of the pieces looked like railings 





I just updated my Buckboard Road post with new information, this evening I decided to give it one more try and see if I could locate the exact start of the old Buckboard Road, which was actually the Green Mountain Carriage Road, built after the Green Mountain survey road was built.  I got lucky and decided to check out an area where the ground was more lighted and bingo, there it was.  I also revisited the old wire gate and learned that I was wrong about the wire having rusted free from its bolt, there was a second section of wire that has rusted free, but the main wire gate is still rock solid in place.  





Finally located one of the two stairways that were built from Duck Brook up to the Duck Brook Road and did a post on it.  I do have to add that the condition of the stairway is in rough shape and the side of the banking it runs down is steep in places.  At the base of the steps, the final three or four steps are larger and much easier to spot, on the other side of the brook is the remains of another old path which at one time might of led to a second stairway, it moves through the woods a short ways from the water, in the direction of Duck Brook Bridge and at one point it appears a couple large boulders fell across the path.



In an area of the woods I like to call Fawn Woods, due to the fawns I have seen there, is an old dirt road, which leads in a half circle to the remains of what was once a small building.  It appears these remains were once the location of a tea house, something that was very popular back in the day,  In Hulls cove there was the Tea Cupm Inn, and a tea house was once located by Great Head over by Sand Beach, and there was plans to place one on Newport Mountain (Champlain Mountain), but it was never built.  Then there was the once popular Russian Tea House, but why place a tea House in the woods by the intersection of West Street Extension and Cleftstone Roads?  It actually would be a perfect spot, one of the abandoned trails up Great Hill ran right by there, as did the Royal fern Trail which began at How Park, and a stones throw away was the only major road through that area, a now abandoned entrance into Acadia National Park.  The Tea House remains are easy to locate, once you enter the park along West Street Extention, park by the blocked off Duck Brook Road, across the road and slightly to the right the old dirt road begins just in the woods with a hill to the left, follow the base of the hill until you come to the remains of a stone foundation.



some one wanted to know what I take along with me for gear when documented a site, and really I don't take a whole lot.  I always carry a cell phone, a GPS device, my gopro 7 black in case I need to shoot video, and my Canon T7i with a Canon 70-300mm lens for wildlife, and a 24mm prime lens for basic photos.  I also carry a few sheets of paper and pen for note taking, bug spray and that's about it.




So I was doing research on Abby's Retreat and came across a very old map of Bar Harbor, Abby's Retreat was on it, success...it was not until later that night that I studied the map and thought, wow, it even shows the old Bar Harbor Water Company Flume over Duck Brook, then I realized something didn't look right, it was way too close to the Eagle Lake Road, and on the wrong end.  I followed  what I at first thought was Duck Brook and realized it was not Duck Brook but Eddie Brook that this section of flume crossed, arriving at Eagle Lake and near the base of Schoolhouse Hill.  Details are everything and the person who drew the map knew the area well, one end of West Street had not been built yet, and neither was West St. Ext which would of followed the brook some distance.  This section of flume could very well be coming from the area of the Great Hill Water Reservoir.





Wow, what a day it was today, spent much of the day slow walking the four abandoned roads off of the schooner Head Road, then spent some time over by Oak Hill walking those abandoned trails.  A good number of cars hovering around the edges of the park, Schooner Head Overlook Parking area was really busy with people venturing down by Anemone Cave.  By days end most had left, but one group decided to make the area around the cave their private campsite and had a fire going.  Unless they are reading this as I type, they have no idea Rangers are headed their way, that should get some one a date in Federal Court.



Just put up a new video, An Explorers Guide to Acadia National Park which you can see on Youtube at the link below.

AN EXPLORERS GUIDE TO ACADIA NATIONAL PARK




So I been busy with the new Gopro 7 Black, filmed four locations with it including the Gurnee Trail and Anne Archbold site along with today doing the secret Park Ranger Trail, still have not watched any of the videos from the Gopro, just assuming they came out good, should have something up soon.  Rehiked the Gurnee Path, the Bracken Trail and the secret Park Ranger Trail and visited a few other locations.  I have two or three abandoned trails I have not documented yet that I would like to tackle in coming months.  Also just picked up a new pair of $140.00 New Balance walking shoes, most comfortable walking shoe I ever owned and I highly recommend New Balance - your feet will thank you.



How Park was owned by Charles How and was made up of over 100 acres of land, which was decided up into house lots.  By today's standards we might consider it something like a subdivision for the wealthy.  One section of the park was sold for the construction of the Turrets a piece in an old newspaper states, and other lots were sold where some of Bar Harbors nicer homes were built.  Cleftstone road formed one border of How Park, and directly across from it sat the tiny triangle How Memorial Park with its mysterious sculptor of a woman and young children, a local artist did the art work in honor of Mr. How, but I have yet to find the story behind the artwork.




So we explored the nearby woods in the area of the old Bar Harbor Water company today, off of Eagle Lake road,  entered the old dirt road and several yards in hung a left up through the trees to an open area above, there  is another old dirt road up there, which we ended up following today.  We did do some off road exploring and  explored the woods on the other side of that second dirt road, and came across yet another area where a dozen trees or more had paint on them, with long rubber bands attached to the trees with metal tags at the end of each band.  The first site we discovered like this was off of the Schooner Head Road, and this second site is just like the first one, but with more trees marked.  Just like with the first site, a metal marker is in the ground stating this is the property of Acadia National Park and please do not disturb.

The first site off the Schooner Head Road I gave the directions to, as it was along an old abandoned road, this second site is off in the woods so I am not giving the exact location of it.











Wow, what a beautiful day it was today, ventured into the woods and went to the Anne Archbold remains to test out my new gopro and discovered two women there taking photos.  I think I am going to like this new camera a lot, though I haven't had a chance to look over the footage we shot yet.  The other site just up the rpad from Anne Archbold site has a nice honets nest in the fireplace, so beware.




n the process of upgrading my equipment, just ordered a gopro hero black 7, hoping to cover some trails with it, there was a few things I did not like about the Gopro 8 so went with the 7.  Can't wait to get out and put it to use.




Hiked the old survey Road and the old Green Mountain Carriage Road today, it was sad to see the old wire gate, often mentioned in old articles and which once closed the old road to passing carriages when no one was there to collect a fee, has finally come untone from the iron bolt and loop which held it in place.  Its just another piece of history rusting and fading into time.  There are metal rings bolted onto stone on both sides of the old road, but today I noticed something I had not seen in past visits, right in the center of the old road, sticking up several inches is a metal rod, most likely leaves and weeds kept it hidden from view, which is why this time of the year is ideal for exploring.
Undone section of wire gate, below it is the rusted bolt that once held it in place.

Metal ring on other side of road- GPS N44 22.403  W068 13.973




For those who have asked, sorry this took so long, but yes, the Great Hill Water Tower is still there and I just put together a better map which should help you out.


GREAT HILL ABANDONED WATER TOWER
ACADIA NATIONAL PARK










Due to the virus outbreak, Bar Harbor is asking tourists NOT to come here this year, and Acadia National Park has now been closed to everyone...it is my understanding you are not even allowed to walk into the Park.  This Closure even applies to Ocean Drive, the stretch of the Park Loop Road which usually remains open, the entire park and museums run by the Park Service are all closed.  If there is a change and the park reopens, I will post it.





So I just updated my camera, moving from a Canon T61 to a Canon T7i, these Rebel cameras are just amazing.  I want to give the fine folks at Tri State Camera, Video and Computers a big thank you, I had found the body only on Ebay for a really good price, but then did a Google search and their store came up, they were having a sale and I was able to pick up the camera for under $470.00,  nearly $50 lower than anyone on Ebay, and that was for camera body only (I already own a bunch of lenses).  So I was really surprised when it arrived three days later not only with the camera, they had also tossed in a free Canon battery and battery charger and camera strap, so I am very pleased with the folks at Tri State Camera, Video and Computers.







If you looked for a comment box on our blogs, they have been turned off due to three persons who decided they had nothing better to do with their time then raise hell with them.  As always, I can be reached at the email address below;

fendermail56@yahoo.com




YOU CAN'T GET THERE FROM HERE


In the majority of cases, when we come across trail head signs, they either mark the beginning or end of a trail, and when we come across a trail with no sign, the majority of time it signals either an abandoned trail or a trail where someone has "borrowed" the trail head sign.  So the other day, with spring in the air, I ventured down along Harbor Lane and spotted a set of trail head signs behind one of the mansions.  The signs appeared to be fairly old, and the one marked Sargent Mountain Trail, well, was pointing off toward the ocean.  I like to draw a map or two now and then and had thought I was fairly good with directions, but I am pretty certain you can't get to Sargent Mountain Trail or any of the other trails on the trail post, from Harbor Lane.  


Acadia National Park Trail Head Signs






The 2019 Edition of Abandoned Trails of Acadia National Park is now ready for free download

ABANDONED TRAILS OF ACADIA NATIONAL PARK - 2019 EDITION


Free download is also available for my ebook Footprints In Time;

FOOTPRINTS IN TIME - STORIES FROM MOUNT DESERT ISLAND'S PAST






Books that list me or one of my websites as a source include;










UPDATE;  Anyone following my blog knows for some time we been trying to track down the Lost Kebo Mountain Stairway, that lost stairway has now been located and documented and you can read up on it at the link below.  As it turned out, the lost stairway was hiding in plain sight, sort of.  A pile of dead tree branches along the Kebo Mountain Trail was a dead give a way to the start of the trail, though we would of never thought of looking for the trail from the mountain top had it not been for Jennifer Maher Galas, who was the one who located the trail.

THE LOST KEBO MOUNTAIN STAIRWAY LOCATED




Just posted on what I am  calling one of the worst auto accidents in Acadia National Park that I am aware of, leaving one fighting for their life ad three dead.  I did visit the scene and took a few photos of where the car made its first contact with a large tree.

CAR CRASH ON PARK LOOP ROAD LEAVES THREE DEAD





Here is a link to a video we just did of the old Anne Archbold estate located in the woods off of Cleftstone Road.  

VIDEO  OF  ARCHBOLD  ESTATE




Got out by Bubble Pond the other day, checked out the far end of the pond and near the base of Cadillac Mountain discovered a nice fire ring not far from the water - see photo below.




There are a few mysteries still to solve in Acadia National park, one of them being Adam's Grave, which old maps show was in the general area of Great Snake Flats not far from the Featherbed.  I would not be surprised if it was a large rock shaped like a headstone.
Another mystery site is something I have not found on old maps yet, but it is referenced in trail descriptions a couple times in old newspapers, and was called the Great Hole Path.  From what little is written it appears it was once located in the general area of Witch Hole Pond.  Not sure what the Great Hole was, but it certainly would be a great find.





DUCK BROOK EXPOSED

A few years ago me and my youngest son got a treat of a lifetime, in large part to to the extremely dry year we had.  Up to that point, it would of been unthinkable to even attempt to walk right up the middle of Duck Brook, pass up through the Duck Brook Falls and continue all the way up to the Duck Brook Bridge off of the Duck Brook road, yet due to the dry year we had, we got to do just that.  Just behind Duck Brook Falls there was once a good size dam, shown in old photos, we could find no signs of it as we passed through the now dry falls.  We did find evidence of stepping stones in different areas as we advanced up the center of the brook, old newspaper articles states that several hundred stepping stones had been placed along one side of the brook, we were all too happy to discover the ones we did, one example of those stones in photo below.
STEPPING STONES ALONG DUCK BROOK
You will not see these ghost prints from the past during normal weather as they are below the surface of the water most of the time, and I suspect the dam that was build where Duck Brook empties into the sea might have something to do with the higher water levels of the brook.  But even back in the day, Duck Brook was an unpredictable brook and hikers often were turned back by the higher water levels, according to one old newspaper articles.  It stated that a second Duck Brook Trail, or path, had to be built way up along the top of the high steep bank which borders both sides of the brook.  That second path may of been where the old cast iron water pipe was laid, or it might of been between the water pipe and the brook, its exact location is not spelled out in the old article.
As we continued to walk the brook, we came across areas of the old trail that were further back from the water, with the ground built up in places and rocks placed under thoese sections of old trail to built it up, as seen in the photo below.
RETAINING ROCKS ALONG DUCK BROOK PATH
From the angle I took the photo you can't see the path, my aim was to capture the rocks used back than to support the trail.  I had read that two stone stairways had been built to get hikers from the Duck Brook Trail up over the high steep banking so they could connect with the old Witch Hole path., so we kept an eye out for any remaining evidence of those two stairways, and am pretty certain we located one such spot along the banking.  The photo below I had at first identified as being one of those stairways, but  soon heard from a fellow explorer that this most likely was the area where the Bar Harbor Water Company's wooden flume crossed over Duck Brook, and after doing more research, I tend to agree.
SITE WHERE WOODEN FLUME CROSSED DUCK BROOK
Acadia National Park

The ground down by where the water would be is scattered with perfectly square granite stones, and these stones continue all the way up the steep banking, in a couple places two or more stones are still side by side.  And it was the same for the second location and I could only imagine what it must of looked like back in the day.  Due to the steepness of the banking and its height and the very fast waters of the brook most of the time, not many get to experience the brook as we did that day and should another dry season come along, you may want to walk the brook as well, it is an experience you won't soon forget.
DUCK BROOK BRIDGE
Acadia National Park






If anyone is wondering where we been, the year began so good, than I stubbed my toe, the same toe that has caused me major problems for the past several years.  If your not familiar with my problems with my foot, one day while walking in town I stubbed my toe on the curbing, than came down on the foot awkwardly, which caused me to have a sprained toe.  As weeks went by the pain increased to the point where I could not apply any pressure on that foot.  A trip to the doctors revealed my toe injury had brought on gout.  Most people have enough uric acid in their body to come down with gout, but most will not, and many cases of gout are brought about by an injury to the toe or foot.  We been trying ice, raising the foot in the air, staying off the foot, nothing has worked this time around, so they just started me on meds which will lower the uric acid levels, which should stop the swelling and pain.  WE WILL BE BACK...I am confident the meds will work.

TWO  TRAILS  REMEMBERED


I think some would be surprised to see all the places I have explored on this island,  poking in and around the woods and mountain sides for all of the twenty something years I have lived her, but I been actually exploring here for nearly forty years, staying here at local campgrounds for one to two weeks each year.  Sadly, many of those years of exploring was not documented or photographed, since I was not into that at the time, it was more of a "let's look over old maps and see what we can find."  In those years I have discovered many places, and many I have written on, but not all.  Some sites I have not written on simply because I feel they have a low interest value, while other sites I know the Park Service would not be pleased to see put up on line, so I don't post on every find.
Two places I explored and did not document was the old Green and White Path from the Otter Creek Road up to the Bowl, and the Red and White Trail, from Enoch Mountain to where it connects with the upper portion of the Champlain South Ridge Trail.
The Green and White Path follows a brook up to the Bowl and as I recall, it was steep in some places but well worn and easy to follow, though I was with my oldest son at the time and this was nearly twenty years ago or there about, so I have no idea what condition that trail is in today.  I actually stumbled upon the Red and White Trail while exploring Enoch Mountain.  Most explorers that attempt to climb Enoch Mountain do so by hiking up to the Bowl, walking along the edge of the Bowl a ways and than making your way upward, which I have done myself about half a dozen times over the years, though that route is not my favorite way to hike up Enoch Mountain.    That section of trail, by the way, is part of the old Blue and White Trail, which I have also followed from Enoch to where it connects to the Red and White Trail, and I do recall it was not easy following sections of the Blue and White.  My  favorite route up Enoch Mountain is by beginning along the Park Loop Road and following a brook inward about halfway between the Precipice and the fee station.  We would go into the woods and right up to the base of the mountain, than follow it to the left until you reach a far comer area, where a boulder field of sorts runs upwards at a steep angle.  I suspect that boulder field, narrow but well defined, may of once been part of a old trail.  At the corner I would turn left and continue to follow the base of the mountain a ways to where a faint path leads upward.  At one place early on you reach a spot where it takes a little effort to get up over a section of granite, from there it is a straight shoot upward to the peak of Enoch Mountain.  Going up that route, which I have done about a dozen times over the years, once at the peak of Enoch you really have two choices, head down to the Bowl, or head down to a steep dip between Enoch and Champlain.  It is at the base of that  steep slide  where rock piles pick up the old Red and White Trail.  By the way, I refer to that steep area as the slide and should you ever pass that area you will learn why I call it the slide.  As I recall, you really need at least two people, one to scout ahead because the rock piles, in places, are not within sight of one another and we did have a few times when we thought we would not be able to find the next rock pile, but we kept at it and once it joined the Champlain Trail, we followed that trail down to Sand Beach.  At that steep dip between Enoch and Champlain, there is but one way down, it is very steep with many small loose rocks, below the rock piles of the Red and White pick up again, you want to bear right, not left.  The rock piles to the left lead downward through the woods and just end.
Another trail leads from the summit of Enoch off in the direction of the Precipice, we have followed that some distance a few times, though the further you follow  it the harder it gets and before long the path and rock piles go away.  There are no official trails on Enoch Mountain and there are more than a few places where one could fall and become injured.
GREEN & WHITE - RED & WHITE TRAILS
ENOCH MOUNTAIN
Acadia National Park




The cover of my new book which I hope will be available in Libraries by end of August





I recently posted on my blog, "Stories from the past"  a story about the war over a memorial for fallen soldiers, it was pretty headed debates with members of the American Legion threatening to resign over it.  In that story, the debates, and anger, centered around a large rock on the Kebo Valley Golf Course property, below we believe this is that rock, as it was the only rock ten feet tall on that property.




As promised, I had posted and said we would soon be announcing another find, the hold up was we wanted to do more research to make certain we had indeed made the find we thought it was.  That find is the remains of the Red Rock Spring Bottling Plant as well as Red Rock Spring, the water which played a key role in the entire operation.  I just put a blog up on this find, but i do have to warn anyone considering venturing into the area of the Spring, the water is very deep in places, we measured a depth of between 3 feet to over 5 feet deep, and the large granite blocks surrounding the spring are some what loose.  In the spring itself you can see the walls of the spring lined with bricks.
Just posted an update to this with another great find.

RED ROCK SPRING LOCATED



Love hearing from those who have contacted us and given us a heads up on locations to check out, we are hoping this will be a very productive year.  We may not be able to check out each and every site but promise to get to as many as we can.






Tom St. Germain, author of "Trails of History: The Story of Mount Desert Island's Paths from Norumbega to Acadia,"
presents a great talk on the trails of Acadia       CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO




COLLEGE OF THE ATLANTIC
WOW...How did that happen...just looked over my notes and realized I never delivered a copy of Abandoned Trails Of Acadia National Park to the College of the Atlantic Library, we will be dropping by today with a copy...sorry it didn't get over there sooner.




While digging through old newspapers trying to track down anything on the mini-Precipice Dorr had built on a cliff along Spring Street, across from the swimming area, I happened on a story, that at first I passed right by, but decided to return back to it and was glad I did, because in the coming 5 to 6 weeks we will be posting a new find, one that has eluded me for some years, but new details should finally bear fruit - stay tuned.


THE CAVES OF ACADIA NATIONAL PARK

So I recently got some good news, there is a good chance a publication will be doing a story on some of the caves in the National Park here, from information and photos our site provided.  We were also contacted by an established writer doing a story  on the death that took place on Newport Mountain in the 1850's, we were able to supply details on that tragic death and that book should be coming out also this coming year, so stay tune and we will post updates when the time comes.


THE GURNEE TRAIL

I recently came upon a letter for the proposed building of the Gurnee Trail which I found interesting and have added that letter to my blog on that trail.     THE GURNEE TRAIL



STEPHEN PERRIN

Sadly Stephen Perrin passed away Feb. 19, 2019 and his passing is a great loss.

THE LOST RUDOLPH BRUNNOW TRAIL UPDATE

From the first time my youngest son located this lost trail, my gut instincts have told me this was a trail used by work crew, but others I talked to about this trail were not convinced such a work crew trail ever exisited.  Why I thought this once was a work crew trail is because it does show up on older maps, but it is unmarked and outlined in a lighter markings, suggesting it never was a true hiking trail.  Here is what I found in the book, Trails of History;
 "As the Orange and Black Path descended below the cliff over which Brunnow hoped to scale, he built a second connecting path across the freshwater meadow (todays Bliss Field) .  A rock staircase, currently abandoned, leads up to the Orange and Black Path.  This short trail provided quicker access to the business at hand, the building of the Precipice Trail."
What is described there is exactly what we located, an abandoned trail with a stone stairway, leading up towards the Orange and black Trail, and making an easy access to the Precipice Trail, which was in the process of being constructed at the time this work crew trail was made.  It cuts more than 3/4 of the hiking time off of the Orange and Black Trail, allowing work crew to access the upper section of the Precipice Trail much quicker and it explains why on old maps this trail remains un-named and outlined lighter than the other trails on the map.


Seems the word has gotten out on our Abandoned Trails book, my daughter contacted me and told me there was a waiting list for the book in the Augusta area.


Its like Christmas all over again, I just happened upon a gold mine of very old history on Eden, Maine and will be slowly uploading most of the findings on my new blog, Early History of Eden, Maine.  There is a ton of information so this will take a while, two blogs I have so far posted are only part way done,

EARLY HISTORY OF EDEN, MAINE




EAGLE LAKE

Eagle Lake was not always known by its current name, over the years it has under gone a few name changes.  On John Peters plan of the French Grant the lake is designated as Young's Pond.  Years later the lake became known as Great Pond, but in the middle of the 19th century the name of the lake was once again changed, after Ferderick Edwin Church, one of the early rusticators, spotted an eagle soaring over the lake, from that day forward the lake would be called Eagle lake.


STORM BEACH COTTAGE

So recently I have heard from a few people wanting to know why I removed certain information on my Storm Beach Cottage blog - I was asked to alter that blog due to the fact that Storm Beach Cottage - the only remaining structure once owned by George B. Dorr, is rented out by the National Park Service to a private resident, and that being the case, I can understand the Park Services concerns with people disturbing the privacy of the people renting the cottage, much is the same case with the Bass Harbor Lighthouse, that also is rented out to private residents, which is why there are large signs telling visitors they have to be out of the area of the lighthouse by sunset.  I have photos of the cottage up on the Blog, as does another website, which also has the GPS information, but out of respect for privacy concerns, we decided to remove a few pieces of information - if you do use the blog post to check out the cottage, remember, respect the renters privacy.

STORM BEACH COTTAGE BLOG



GOOD ROADS DAY

I thought this article from May of 1915 was such a gem,  and something one would never see in the modern times we live in, and it speaks to the strength of the community back than.  Bar Harbor called upon its citizens to turn out for a Goods Roads day, stating they wanted every available adult to show up at town hill to help the road crew rebuild a length of road there.  School children from grade 8 through high school were also encouraged to show up and lend a hand, with any child taking up the offer being given that day off from school.  In exchange for your work, there will be good conversations with your neighbors and a free picnic lunch.  I had heard of Barn Raising parties, and even house raising parties, but this is the first road raising party I have ever heard of and I am sure the turn out by the community must of been great.



COTTAGE STREET SHOOTING RANGE

So tonight I( was going through old newspapers and discovered yet another amazing thing about Bar Harbor, it once had a shooting range in one of the downtown buildings on Cottage Street, I just love uncovering things like this.  The building that Eden Rising is located in was once the Odd Fellows Hall, and they had a shooting range built in the basement of the building where locals could bring their guns and get in some target practice.....who would of guessed, came as a complete surprise to me.   If I had to guess, I bet the shooting range was taken down and the area used for storage these days.
                                   RIFLE RANGE ALONG COTTAGE STREET


OCEAN  DRIVE

Being one who enjoys reading old newspapers, one bit of mystery I have often encounted in a good number of old stories if this road often referred to as Ocean Drive.  I know today many refer to the section along the park Loop Road that follows the ocean as Ocean Drive, but back in the late 1800's and early 1900's, there was no Park Loop Road.  As it turned out, the answer to just what this Ocean Drive was I found explained in an old newspaper article, where it referred to "Ocean Drive, a local road many locals also refer to as the Schooner Head Road,"  so there you go, another mystery solved.  Back in those days the Schooner Head Road, as shown on  some older maps, ended near Sand Beach, at a small house by the beach owned for some years by a Mr. Woodbury.

SHIP SUNK OFF GREAT HEAD

I was just reading an old newspaper article and had to share this bit of a gem;
Just read where during the Fox filming of "Queen Of The Sea" a ship was purposely sunk in the waters off of Great Head in Sept. of 1917.  The newspaper article states "The sinking of the ship was one of the most spectacular incidents of the new picture."  The article went on to state that  "so spectacular was this scene that the crowd on the rocks applauded."




So I just came across this 1926 article where a Navy Submarine paid a visit to Bar Harbor, I posted it in my blog STORIES FROM THE PAST,  and this must of been a huge event back in the day - some sixty or more citizens of Bar Harbor got to go out on the submarine and make a dive.  This story reminds me of the early years when I first moved here, it seemed that at least once a year Navy Vessels  paid visits here, my oldest son got to go on a few of the vessels, than the vessels stopped coming...sad the tradition had to come to an end.



A ROAD BEING BUILT TO WHERE?

So I was reading through old newspapers this evening when one headline caused me to nearly fall out of my chair;
NEW ROAD TO BE BUILT UP CHAMPLAIN MOUNTAIN
ACADIA NATIONAL PARK
I can only imagine how people reacted to that headline...WTH...wait, deep breath, the newspaper got the headline wrong, the story below the headline stated a New road was to be built up Cadillac Mountain.




Spent part of the day walking along a section of the Cromwell Harbor brook, looks a bit hiostile and in a few areas it was - what a way to spend a few hours






KANE TRAIL - THE GATES OF EDEN
ACADIA NATIONAL PARK

This photo was taken in the Fall at the intersection of the Kane Path and the Dorr Mountain Ladder Trail.  On old maps Dorr labeled this area as "The Gates Of eden." yet Dorr gave no indication as to which direction one was to tread to enter into Eden..  One could make a strong case that moving from this intersection toward the Tarn and Sieur de Monts Spring area, this was the direction dorr was referring to, yet others could make as strong an argument that Dorr was in fact referring to the Kane Path as it moves on toward the Cannon Brook Trail and the Gorge.  others would make a good case that Dorr had in mind the stunning views one encounters along the Dorr Mountain Ladder Trail.
I myself think Dorr stated it best, here in this spot is the Gates of Eden, and no matter what direction one journeys off in, one is entering into Eden




MERRY CHRISTMAS to one and all, hope your holiday was a great one, and don't drink too much eggnog...





Below is just one of a number of very nice letters we were sent from different libraries that now have a copy of Abandoned Trails Of Acadia National Park - anyone wanting to view a copy, check with your lcal library, if they don't have a copy on hand they can request it through the inter-library loan program from a library that does have it, the service is free.








Sadly I just learned of a drowning that took place at Witch Hole Pond in July of 1896.  Little Jimmy Elkhorn, known by friends as Pond Lily Jimmy, drown in a bed of lilies after his boat over turned on the pond.
JIMMY ELKHORN DROWNS AT WITCH HOLE POND




Click on Link to download a free copy;

ABANDONED TRAILS OF ACADIA NATIONAL PARK - THE BOOK



Still slowly fixing up our site, placing helpful links on blog posts, redoing a few maps, and wishing we had one more good week of weather, we still have a few more projects we want to tackle but that might have to wait until next spring.



THE STORY OF SIEUR DE MONT SPRING


STORM BEACH COTTAGE - ACADIA NATIONAL PARK

This afternoon we got over to the Compass Harbor area, and ventured down the Oldfarm Road where we got photos and GPS of Storm Beach Cottage, the old George B. Dorr guest house.  Dorr lived out his final years in this cottage after giving his beloved Oldfarm estate to the National Park, which within ten years  after getting it would tear it down.  It was an amazing day and until recently I had no idea the structure still stood - and is being used by the Park Service as housing.




Last week we covered Sunset Hill, which has always had a few trails on it, though it is hard to tell if any of them were ever official trails.  While hiking to the summit we uncovered an illegal camp site and took photos and got GPS info on it, clearly it was an active camp site with gear inside the tent.  Also got a sunset photo from just below the summit.

Illegal Tent site - Sunset Hill, Acadia National Park

SUNSET ON SUNSET HILL - Acadia National Park