After being somewhat restricted from knee surgery, today Ken took me on a foliage trip to western Maine. I love this area, filled with such beautiful scenery, and right in our back yard. We headed to Hartland, Athens, Solon, and into North New Portland to one of my favorite fall places. Having been here when the boys were younger, today's visit brought back some wonderful memories.
The Wire Bridge, complete with a colorful back drop, was worth the trip. I did not, however, remember that the bridge moved, wave like motion, as you crossed it. A little bit of "yes mam" affect, and I was OK. I was even able to walk down along the river bed with very little problem. I am making progress!
From here, we ventured on, ending up in Rangeley, looking for a place to have lunch. We drove down Main Street, seeing what our options were, and turned around to make our choice. We saw a friend of ours crossing the street, also out on a foliage trip, looking for a place to eat. Small world. Chatted with them for a bit, then went to lunch. We found this lovely place, Parkside and Main, that offered a great Reuben and a tasty new draught beer for us to try. A good choice, all the way around.
Allagash Black ale and my guy. Again, a great choice!
Out back of this place was a public boat landing, and I imagine in the summer it is a busy place. The water and sun certainly are the setting for a fall day.
We left Rangeley in search of a scenic pull out that we also visited years ago. It was unmarked, but eagle eye Ken spotted it and pulled in. Another great thing about this time of year, in the middle of the week, is there are hardly any people around. It's peaceful, and allows you to take up all that is around you, especially the scenic vistas.
Looking back towards the town or Rangeley, across the lake, is breathtaking. At this spot, you have more than a 180 degree view. The colors were perfect, the sky was clear, the air refreshing. Love this spot!
On to Oquossett, and stopped at the Height of Land. Again, a view that goes on forever. You can even see the White Mountains of NH, but not sure which ones they are.
Another gorgeous view.
From here, we started our return trip. We didn't want to back track, so we headed to Byron and stumbled upon Coos Canyon, a place we had visited before, but forgot it was here. We also needed to turn at the canyon to get back towards Phillips.
Peaceful, beautiful, a great quick stop on the way.
The road we took was "off the beaten path," so to speak. It started out tarred, then dirt, then one lane dirt, then 2 tracks with grass in the middle. I was very glad it was not dark, or we would have taken the long way, back through Mexico, to get home. It did, eventually, get us to Weld, and then onto Phillips, Strong, New Vineyard, North Anson, Anson, Madison, and back into Athens and home. We also drove by the Backyard Farms in Madison. Wow! We were struck by what a large land mass is covered with the buildings for the tomato farm. It's huge.
We pulled in our yard, seven and 1/2 hours later, having traveled 250 miles today. There is a lot of dust on the car, but we were able to capture more of the beautiful scenery we have around us. I also got to spend all that time with my best friend. What more could I ask for today?
