I traveled to Maine last summer (2022) about 2 weeks after wrapping up my postbac fellowship at the National Cancer Institute. It’s funny, because when I’d thought about what to do to celebrate wrapping up the *BEST* work experience (OK, I promise I’ll write a blog post about my postbac experience soon), I had a hard time deciding between Maine and Washington (state), as they are two of my dream states to visit. Naturally (you will see a pattern here), I found a cool half marathon race in Maine…so the decision was easy. Plus I was only 24, so I would’ve had added costs for renting a car, had to pay for a flight, etc., etc., etc., so the decision to go to Maine over Washington was actually easy for a lot of reasons.

Maine, and especially Acadia National Park, quickly became one of my favorite places. Their state slogan is “The Way Life Should Be”, and I have to agree. The cooler temperatures, the mountains, the lakes, the lobster rolls, the commitment to preserving nature…yeah. That’s the way life should be. I’ve provided a lot more details in the itinerary this time compared to my Michigan Trip post…lol so I’ll share lasting thoughts from the trip, followed by the itinerary this time 😊

Some (not so brief…when am I ever brief?) lasting thoughts:

1. I love traveling solo. It fills me with a sense of confidence I’ve never really felt in my life, but it’s a feeling I want to hold onto forever. I don’t give myself enough credit for all the cool stuff I do…I should be more confident and more proud of the person that I am and the person that I am becoming 😊
2. I also love traveling solo because I feel like I get to meet people I probably wouldn’t have talked to otherwise. I love having such happy conversations with people I’ll likely never see again…I still think about them, and I like to think that they still think of that random young woman they met traveling solo through Maine
3. I love my buddiessssss ❤ ❤ ❤ I honestly had an amazing time in Maine, but by day 10 (honestly maybe day 8) I was kind of sad because I missed my friends. I love being alone, but I also love (and need) my people. From this, I learned that 10 days is my maximum for being alone 😂 (this is part of why I genuinely don’t know if I’m an extrovert or an introvert…I’m a true ambivert)
4. It’s fun to do things out of your comfort zone 😈 I’d signed up for a kayak tour of Casco Bay (see more info in the itinerary) after having only kayaked 2-3 times in my life, and not anytime recently. I was nervous I would be the deadweight of the group holding everyone back, but that ended up not being the case, and I had soooo much fun doing it
5. Also, I didn’t learn this until later, but having visited 9 national parks now…Acadia NP is still my favorite. I’m a “why not both? 🤪” girly to my core…and I love how Acadia has both beautiful mountain views and water
6. Finally, and per usual, I’m my favorite person to know and learn about. Every trip (and every year) I learn new, exciting things about myself that I never expected. I can’t wait to see where all life takes me 😊 (and I do want someone to share my life with 🙈…maybe they’ll be my new favorite person to know and learn about, though the bar is set high with myself)

The Itinerary

Day 1: Drive to Providence, RI

• Went to the beach in North Kingstown and hit up some shops while I waited to be able to get into my Airbnb (funny story…while parallel parking I had to go back and forth and back and forth and then I noticed the car in front of me was shaking because I kept bumping it 🤣🤣🤣)
• Visited the Roger Williams Park Conservatory (also while waiting for my Airbnb to be available)
• Got a delicious dinner at a Mexican restaurant
• Walked around Providence and took photos of Ponham Rocks Lighthouse at sunset

Day 2: Drive to Eliot, ME

• I did a throwback to Summer 2018 (that I spent at UMASS-Dartmouth) and went to my FAVORITE cafe ever, Marisol’s Cafe in Dartmouth, MA!!
• I’d had a cute idea of doing my 4 mi. training run near the beach and then swimming in the ocean to cool off…it was so windy and cloudy that day + the water was so cold they recommended bodysuits AND boots…so I just did the run and sat in the sand in Hampton, NH
• Drove up the coast of NH and saw the biggest houses I have ever seen in all of my life and thought, “this is quintessential New England”
• Then I stopped in Portsmouth, NH…WOW. I love Portsmouth. It’s sooo cute with so many cute shops and parks and it is SO walkable! And they honor the work that black people did to build that city (unpaid or severely underpaid) which is pretty cool too (obviously it would be cooler if everyone was paid a fair wage no matter their race, sex, religion, etc…but…this is America). I also had my first lobster roll ever here and fell in love

Day 3: Drive to Portland, ME

• Oooo! One of my favorite days ☺️
• York Cliff Walk → this is where I really fell in love with Maine. And saw how much the tides shift between low and high tide! The ecology of the tidal zone is soooo cool!
• Stop at Nubble Lighthouse (a favorite…even in the rain)
• Hike at Rachel Carson Wildlife Refuge – one of my favorite parts of this whole trip. Rachel Carson is a big reason why I’m so interested in toxicology and environmental health. And visiting this park made me see how much we have in common! We are both from Maryland, we both often admire and remark about how everything is connected, and we’re both badass women scientists
• Visit Cape Elizabeth/Portland Head Light (probably most beautiful lighthouse I’ve ever seen) and then get a lobster roll (Two Lights…best lobster rool of the whole trip)
• Visit Bug Light
• I had planned to walk around Portland, but I was tired…and my Airbnb host had two golden retrievers, so I stayed in and planned out my next day lol

Day 4: Explore Portland, ME

• I kicked off the morning taking the ferry to Peaks Island and then did a kayaking tour of Casco Bay…it was me, a dad, and his three sons, and it was one of my favorite parts of the whole trip!!! Highly recommend
• Explored Peaks Island
• Explored Portland – lots of cute shops and restaurants
• Had a drink at the Bar of Chocolate Cafe (their cocktails might be better than mine, and, trust me, that is high praise)
• IDK – message me if you really want to know the restaurants I went to 😂
• (I was supposed to run this day but I didn’t)

Day 5: Drive to Bar Harbor, ME 🤪

• Stop in Freeport, ME to visit the LL Bean Flagship Store – soooo worth the stop!!
• Stop in Brunswick, ME (mainly to honor my home lol)
• Visit Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse (it was rainy so I didn’t do the full walk)
• Get a lobster roll at McLoon’s Lobster Shack (voted #1 Maine lobster roll…I did prefer Two Lights, but this was good too)
• Visit the Acadia National Park Visitor Center!!!! There’s a cute photo (I’ll share it below) showing how happy I am to be there

Day 6: Explore Acadia NP

• My Airbnb host was awesome (I maybe had a little crush on him haha) and recommended a lot of great hikes for me
• Hiked Bald Peak/Parkman Mountain – this is where I initially fell in love with Acadia…I love the beach (or lakes) and the mountains, and this hike showed me how much of both that Acadia has
• Hiked the Jordan Pond Loop: Someone on this hike said that it looked like a Bob Ross painting…I agreed. You can also see the “Bubbles”…which are definitely a family friendly name for what the mountains actually look like (lol)

Day 7: Run my half marathon and explore Acadia NP

• I wanted to PR but this race was hilly…it was so beautiful though
• Hiked out to Bar Harbor Island – soooo cool and highly recommend if the timing of low tide/high tide works out for you
• Hiked The Bubbles/Conner’s Nubble/Eagle Lake (views at Eagle Lake were some of my favorite)
• Hiked the Bubble Mountains and to a view of Eagle Lake (…maybe hurt my ankle by hiking after running 13.1 miles, but we powered through for the remaining days…without pushing too hard)

Day 8: Explore Acadia NP and starting camping

• Hiked Beehive/The Bowl/Gorham Mountain/Cadillac Cliffs/Sand Beach → Beehive is probably one of my all time favorite hikes! There was a part where I got scared and wanted to turn around but knew I couldn’t…I’m glad I couldn’t haha
• I cooled off by going into the ocean…twice. I caught on video someone saying “oh my god that girl is going in!” The water was 55℉…very refreshing
• Chilled out at my campsite

Day 9: Explore the West side of Acadia NP (“the quiet side”)

• Bass Harbor Lighthouse
• Ship Harbor Trail & Wonderland
• Flying Mountain/Valley Cove
• Beech Mountain Loop/Long Pond – another favorite hike in the park
• Acadia Mountain – amazing views!!

Day 10: Last morning in Acadia NP

• This wasn’t supposed to be my last morning…I was supposed to go on a Puffin/Lighthouse Tour but the weather wasn’t safe for the boat to go out so it got canceled! Since I was camping and my ankle had been hurting I decided to head home early…I was sad to leave, but honestly it was probably for the best since I was moving to NY less than a week later and I was not yet done packing…plus I missed my friends. I realized 10 days alone is the perfect amount for me. More is too much.
• I still hiked though…near Otter Cove/along the coast
• Drove to New Haven, CT that day, then drove the rest of the way to MD the next day!