Continuing on the journey of my Maine vacation last October… for part one go here!

JUST in time for sunset, my friend Jill and I rolled into Bar Harbor and made a quick dash straight to the top of Cadillac Mountain where we were able to watch a beautiful sunset on our first full day of our trip.  On my last trip to Acadia I kept trying to find a good spot to watch the sunset and had thought that Cadillac was only good for sunrises… I was wrong!  If you go and are looking for a spot to watch the sunset there, hit up the little mini lot right before the summit lot on the left.  As you will see, it’s a popular spot!

After the sun fell beneath the horizon we went back to town and got checked in at the Bar Harbor Inn & Spa (where I’ve stayed before) and settled in for the night. We wandered over to Geddy’s for dinner and both enjoyed our meals.  Many of the restaurants were closed for the season so we were elated to find something that was open AND had spots at the bar so we were able to avoid the long wait.

The next day we spent our time bopping around Acadia National Park and seeing a taste of all she has to offer.  We started out and stopped at one of my favorite little nooks on Mount Desert Island, Somesville Bridge.  The light was pretty and I couldn’t resist taking a couple shots of my friend while we were there.  Isn’t she beautiful?  Love you to bits Jilly!

We continued on until we ended up at the next lighthouse on our list – Bass Head Harbor Lighthouse.  It was one of my favorites the last time I was here but sadly there were a TON of people on the rocks and I wasn’t able to get out far enough for a good image from that angle.

After we left the lighthouse we headed back to Acadia National Park.  I was so excited to be able to capture some of the carriage road bridges by being in the passenger seat!

We didn’t have enough time to do any proper hikes or walks but we did stop and visit a bunch of different spots along the way including enjoying lunch at Jordan Pond House (popovers and prosecco!).  After our delicious lunch we headed down towards the pond for some pictures before heading out to explore the park more.  The top image below is with my iPhone, the bottom image is with my SLR.   While camera phones are not bad things to have on hand… I still prefer my SLR.

Our next stop was Sand Beach which had far better weather this time around (the last time I was here it was pouring).  The skies were blue and the water was nearly aqua.  If you didn’t know any better, you would almost swear this was a beach further south.  I’m glad I got to stop back for a visit in better weather!  If and when I ever return, I hope to go back here for some night pictures.

Eventually we got hungry and tired so we decided to head back to our hotel and go to dinner.  We lucked out with seats at Galyn’s and enjoyed a delicious dinner followed by the most amazing cheesecake I’ve ever had.  After dinner we picked up a bottle of Prosecco (by now you’re figuring out my wine preference I imagine!) and sat on the chairs along the shore path outside of the hotel and watched the amazing stars.  I ended up playing a bit with long exposures and ended up with some fun takes.  I wish I had gone into the park but it was also nice to just enjoy being right outside of our hotel room!  This ended up being the only night we had clear skies.

It’s blurry, it’s yellow from the sodium lights on the path, it’s so not perfect but it’s my favorite picture from the trip because it captured just how much fun I had on our girls trip.

The next morning I finally did it – I woke up early enough to get on top of Cadillac Mountain for sunrise!!  Unfortunately clouds moved in just before the sun popped over the horizon so we never did quite see the show that we were hoping for but it was an experience just the same.  Albeit a VERY COLD ONE.  If you are ever in the area this is an event not to be missed but bring blankets and be prepared to be cold.  Also head up at least an hour before sunrise!

Once the sun was up we took our sleepy and cold selves back to our hotel for a nap before leaving Bar Harbor for Rockland.  Once we got to our room the sun was just rising over the ocean there and I captured one final image of the sunrise.