Sunday's in the Fall might just be my favorite while being on the road. We spend the week just like we did in a sticks and bricks- Rick works and I help the girls with their school. We do some exploring in the evenings, but nothing too crazy because we still have to cook dinner. When Saturday rolls around we are ready to get our adventure on, but so is everyone else who came to explore the area. We end up spending the day fighting crowds and traffic. But Sunday? Sunday is special. Most people are heading back home to start their work/school week so the crowds and traffic significantly decrease. In the Summer, we plan somewhere we want to explore and typically have to wake the girls up and head out early to beat traffic, even on Sundays. But in the Fall? We can have a nice, slow morning that usually sets the pace for our day. Like today- it was the perfect Fall Sunday.
Low tide was at 8:56am and the girls have been wanting to catch a morning tide pool. Everyone woke up around 7:30 and while the girls and I got ready, Rick headed out to find coffee and donuts. Once he arrived with the goods, we all piled in, and were beach bound!
This morning was COLD. Despite us telling the girls that maybe we should dress warm, they were determined to start their day with a cold plunge. I agreed to let them wear their swimsuits so long as they brought a hoodie with them. Once we arrived, the wind was whipping, and our chairs didn't want to stay upright, but the view was beautiful. The girls found their tide pool and immediately got to work building a little dam so that their fun would last longer. Rick and I sat back, burrowed into our hoodies, sipped our coffee, and enjoyed our slow morning. It wasn't long before the girls made friends with a couple of kids who happened to be staying at a beach house nearby. Some may disagree, but I find something extremely therapeutic about a beach chair, the sound of ocean waves, and children screeching in the background. It's the sound of childhood memories and it's my favorite sound ever. Once the girls could no longer control their shivers, we headed back home for hot showers. We did a quick tidy up around the RV while the girls got cleaned up. We walked the dogs, grabbed the cameras, and we were off to adventure #2 for the day.
The drive to Portland took us 56 minutes and was relatively easy (thanks to that Fall Sunday traffic). We arrived at Portland Head Light and parking was a breeze (again, Sundays are my favorite). We began our short walk to the lighthouse when the girls spotted food trucks. When planning our day we never even considered what we would do for lunch, so we walked over to check out the menu and immediately turned around and walked away. I'm normally a sucker for a food truck, but not at $36 per sandwich. Granted, they were lobster rolls, but I know for a fact that we could drive two miles and get them for significantly cheaper. We continued to the end of the trail and spotted her- Portland Head Light in all of her beauty. You guys, the more time I spend in Maine the more that I absolutely fall in love with this state. It has a little of everything- mountains, rocky beaches, sandy beaches, lighthouses galore, wooded areas, moose (we still haven't seen one). It has all of the things that we love all rolled into one state. We've even been told they get actual snow here, not ice and slush like back in Michigan. The beauty is just unreal.
We walked around for a bit, took all of the touristy photos, and then made our way to the gift shop. One fun fact about our travels- we go to every single gift shop. Rick buys a sticker, I buy a Christmas ornament, and we all pick out a magnet. While waiting in line to check out, Rick whispered to me that he thought there was a group from our hometown in the gift shop with us. Our hometown in the middle-of-nowhere Michigan has a small, privately owned, motor coach company. Come to find out, Rick was correct! There was an entire busload of people from our hometown wandering around Portland Head Light at the same time we were! This journey reminds us daily how small our world actually is! We made our purchases, said our goodbyes, and wrapped up our last adventure for the day.
Fall has definitely hit Maine this week. Although Sunny, we've traded shorts for pants and have busted out our hooded sweatshirts. It's strange, isn't it? We've said since the start of this adventure that we would chase 70s and we haven't done that a single time. In fact, it's September and we're getting ready to head to Colorado. Stay tuned!
コメント