I'm On A Boat...

I had to look it up: T-Pain, 2009.  Assuming I am correct on the demographics of those who view this blog, you get 1,000 bonus points if you got that one.

We are on the coast of Maine.  On Mount Desert Island.  Just outside Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor.  Yeah, we're going out on a boat today.  We discussed doing a whale watch trip, but the reviews of the boat that does that here were not encouraging... "only sees whales about 20% of the time"... "people puking all over the boat"... "the naturalist on the boat had a screechy voice and never shut up"... "they cancel the trip frequently."  We decided to do a "Scenic and Wildlife Cruise" instead.

Since our excursion into Bar Harbor on the first day was, ummm, startling with the crowds.  Parking is tough, with mostly 2-hour spaces.  We decided to take the free shuttle into Bar Harbor.  We walked to the front of the RV park and parked ourselves on the bench to wait for the bus.  It is on a schedule, and they seem to stay pretty close to that schedule.

Looking out the window of the bus, towards the harbor - ohhh, that is a thick fog...

We walked from the bus drop off, through town, and picked up our tickets for the boat cruise.  With almost an hour and a half, we decided on lunch at a restaurant that has outdoor seating on the pier...

We had some nice views while dining...

That is a shuttle launch from one of the cruise ships that is in port here (explaining why it seemed that there were even more people in town today).  Before our food arrived, we heard a loud thump and a splash... seems that one of the oblivious passengers getting off that launch fell on the dock and into the water.  No, it was not an elderly person.  Rather, a young person who is now having a very bad day, since we saw him pull his phone, camera, and wallet out of a bag filled with water.  Yeah, we will watch our footing on the boat today.

The food was good (Joan had crab cakes, I had a steak sandwich), and we enjoyed the scenery...

Yeah, that tide is pretty low.  After lunch, we had time to walk around a bit...

Looking towards the Atlantic, the fog is still pretty thick in that direction.  On the loudspeaker on the pier, we hear that the whale watch trip due to leave right after our trip has been canceled due to the fog.  We checked to make sure our trip was still on... yep.  The crowd started lining up...

The catamaran in the upper center of the image above is the boat we are taking; looks like a nice boat from here.  A couple other views on the way to the boat...

Yes, they also offer a whale and puffin trip in the morning - it was canceled, too.  At one of the restaurants, they have this in the window...

Blueberry pie is a local favorite.  We boarded the boat and headed to the upper (3rd) deck...

It is open up there, with 360º views.  Before we left, they made an announcement: "You may have noticed that there is fog in the area.  The fog may have some impact on our tour.  We will do our best to make sure you see a lot of scenery and wildlife, but if you think you will be disappointed because there may be some things we won't see due to the fog, you can get off now and get a full refund.  If you stay onboard for the trip, there will be no refunds."

This company is the major player here for boat tours, but they seem to be lacking in customer service and getting potential guests excited.  They could have said, "There is a chance of some fog today - that will add to the drama in your viewing and your photographs.  Our boat is equipped for all conditions, and we are excited to show you the area with this unique weather..."  Missed opportunity.

We shoved off.  In the sunshine.  One of the first things you see is the gorgeous Bar Harbor Inn...

The naturalist, Amanda, did a fine job of narrating what we were seeing.  Most of the early part of the trip was viewing the spectacular homes on the coast...

It was a bit "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," but nice just to be out on a boat.  We started seeing that fog was going to be a part of this trip...

My take: adds to the photographic interest.  Until it gets heavier...

There is a lighthouse there...

Then, the fog lifted a bit...

We moved on to another area, less fog, and a bald eagle...

We could see the naturalist (on the top deck where we were) communicating with the guys at the helm - they were working up an alternate, as the fog started moving back in again...

Mount Champlain on the left, Cadillac Mountain on the right...

In and out of the fog - there is an island out there, and some seals...

Another boat nearby...

Ah, there are the seals...

A bit further and...

Yep, harbor seals.  Their main predators here are sharks.  Moving on...

Moving to another part of the bay...

A juvenile bald eagle in the nest...

Osprey - on a tree and in the air...

Some pretty scenes..

And, some of the many floats on lobster traps...

All those little spots in the water: floats.  Just waiting to catch in a propeller.  Well, waiting to catch lobster.  We were told that there are something around 3 million lobster traps in the coastal waters off the Maine shoreline... seems like we saw close to that just on this tour today.

Having come in and out of Friday Harbor and Roche Harbor with commercial boats, I thought that area was "mined" with the crab pot floats... that is nothing compared to the floats in the water here.  I truly don't know how boats can maneuver between them to retrieve their own traps.  And, yes, a license is required for that here, and it is hard to get and expensive.

I was quite impressed with the boat today.  Besides the fact that it was a nice boat (I am partial to catamarans) with good visibility from each deck, this boat is powered by two jet drives: no props or rudders in the water... they were pretty much able to move wherever they wanted around these lobster floats.  Perfect for a commercial operator who is out here multiple trips every day during this season.

When we got back to the dock, we walked uptown, stopped for some ice cream, and caught the shuttle bus right back to the campground.  Nice to not have to deal with parking.  And, we learned the following...

2.3 million vehicle trips reduced, over 6 million car-free passengers carried.  While it won't work for everyone, I see the advantages to the area.  Beautiful here, I just had no idea how many people want to be here to enjoy it.