Vacation!!

 

We planned our vacation before we knew Ethan would be able to get vaccinated, so we were going to Mount Desert Island in Maine since we'd be able to do a lot outside. Turns out it rained a lot so we weren't outside quite so much. The first day was gray and cloudy but we didn't get rained on too bad. On our way north, we decided to break up the long drive with a stop at the Desert of Maine! It's one of our favorites (at least for me and Ethan!) There have been two different owners since the last time we were there and a number of things were different. They've added some walking trails, and they didn't drive us around the property and tell us about it. It was all self guided. The signage was nice, but I liked the guided tour better. I don't love trudging through sand. There was a spring house that was buried by sand over the years that they started excavating and are going to reconstruct. If you're wondering how it became a desert, the last person who tried farming it decided to have sheep. They eat the grass right down to the roots and so there is nothing to hold the topsoil in place. When we finished exploring the desert, we headed into Freeport to pick up souvenir-- whoopie pies from Wicked Whoopies! From there we finished our drive, found our lodging and got some dinner at a BBQ place followed shortly by our first ice cream stop- Udder Heaven. 

We also went in a very cool shop in Bar Harbor where they had all sorts of handmade wood things. Gramps would have loved it. The prices were very steep!