After an uneventful flight from Chicago we landed well ahead of schedule in Bangor, ME, where we picked up our transportation for the next two weeks. After a stop to pick up some groceries, we headed to Lubec, ME, for the border crossing. It was very uneventful, smooth, and the border guard was our first taste of Canadian politeness. Time was slipping away and little did we know that only one restaurant remained open on the island and by the time we got to our little cottage even that was closed. There was Nikki’s Convenience store a stone’s throw away so we trotted off and found only frozen pizzas as an option with no way to cook them. They suggested we trot quickly to the Village Market which had some pre-made sandwiches and homemade taco soup. We got back just in time for sunset and had our repast at the picnic table just outside our door.

As always, click to enlarge photos.

Morning greeted us with clear, blue skies and plenty of sunshine. The tide was at low (more about the tides in later posts) and the detritus left behind gave the gulls a hearty shrimp breakfast. The first agenda item, and the reason for stopping off at the island was to visit the Roosevelt Campobello International Park. It was absolutely fascinating and we had the place almost all to ourselves. Two wonderful, knowledgable guides took us through and had answers for any and all questions. Two first ladies declared the park open, their respective spouses laid the cornerstone, and the Queen Mum declared the visitor center building open for business.

The park was lovely and well maintained with loads of flower beds. Only the Roosevelt cottage was open but others were available for window peeping.

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We then headed off to see the two lighthouses on the island. The first, Mullholland Lighthouse is on the south tip of the island and if you go down the stairs, it’s just a short side stroke away from Lubec, ME. It appears the border wall has yet to reach Lubec. . .

The second was the more famous of the two, Head Harbour Lightstation. It is only reachable during low tide, and for good reason. The tide can rise 5 feet in only an hour. We were there at close to high tide.

We topped off our first full day sitting in the sun in attempted whale watching. I did happen to catch a few dolphins doing their thing heading out to sea with the tide.

Sorry for the short post, but I was backed up due to miserable wifi. The theme tomorrow is “Ferries”.