A real nice day arrived up here in Maine. High 40's, no wind, plenty of sun, and mostly dry roads. I decided to pull out the real Roadie for todays commute and on the way in saw these fellas languishing at the roadside. They told me to enjoy today while I could before being relegated to the junk heap as we all eventually are...

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So as I rolled by Frenchman Bay, I decided to listen to the voices, blow off work, and go for a RIDE instead of a commute. It's nice to make your own schedule. First objective was to see if the road was clear to the top of Cadillac Mountain.

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The Park Loop Road was closed and gated which I already knew. That only meant NO CARS and I could ride the wrong way on the one way loop which can only be done a couple of weeks each year. Essentially, my own private road through a National Park. Sweet. Only a little leftover snow and ice in spots to remind me of the long, cold Winter.

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I ran up on my friend Kyle (the first cyclist I'd seen and ridden with since November, there's not alot of Winter riders here. Wonder why?) and the road grader who was removing most of the stubborn ice. Halfway up Cadillac we got into the sun and the roads were good with lots of snowmelt making for some nice waterfalls along the way.

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Up to the summit and looking down on the 'ol hometown of Bar Harbor. Then down the mountain, through the woods, and on to the coast along our private road. Some real nice sea kayaking along the coast and around the Islands.

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After riding along the coast for a while we took one last look out to sea as the road headed inland. Did I mention that these roads were all closed and there were NO CARS. So sweet after being hemmed in with snowbanks and no real bike lanes all Winter.

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Back through some of the mountains with a nice rock climbing wall on the left and past some Island farms on the ride back home. Days like this are so much sweeter after of a long, cold, snowy Winter. I could actually ride without gloves and no shell. Today was 50 miles of joy!

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Beautiful!

I feel like I was almost there! I will always remember those first couple of early spring rides when the snow just started melting when I lived in Northern VT. Pictures like this really make me miss living in northern New England. I moved to California about 15 years ago and have since become very accustomed to the Bay Area weather. It's funny that I now complain when it's in the upper 50s, low 60s when I am riding to work! :rolleyes:

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Acadia is one of my favorite places on the planet. I live in Ohio, but have been to Maine many times. It's just beautiful.

Looks like some beautiful riding.

D@nm.

Wow.

Amazing.

Almost makes the long mud season worth it.

Beautiful. Got to plan a trip 'up there'.

Absolutely awesome. You've got my two favorite types of riding in the whole world there. Hills and Ocean! And a place to kayak on top of it all. I'm not too jealous of your winters, but I'm very jealous now that your snow is disappearing.

Beautiful. That's pretty cool about the roads being closed. With no cars or tourists did you come across any wildlife?

Great pictures. The first one made me think of Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel.

Beautiful. That's pretty cool about the roads being closed. With no cars or tourists did you come across any wildlife?

I was thinking the same thing...?

I too love Ba Ha Ba/Acadia. First vacation with my now wife was up there. Gray Coat B&B was wonderful, riding to the top of Cadillac is always fun.

....later this year! In the mean time the riding is good here in Verona, Italy.

I'm planning to make the century ride later this year!

Link to the Cadillac century ride is here. It's a great ride during a nice time of year. Usually some very nice fall foliage. Merckxman, PM me when it gets closer and I'd be happy to show you around the Island if you wish. Same to any other RBR'ers coming up this way...

http://web.mac.com/zorbathegeek/Cadillac/Home.html

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Beautiful. That's pretty cool about the roads being closed. With no cars or tourists did you come across any wildlife?

Lots of deer and beaver on the Island... no natural predators and no hunting have increased the population significantly the last few years.

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will do.

Link to the Cadillac century ride is here. It's a great ride during a nice time of year. Usually some very nice fall foliage. Merckxman, PM me when it gets closer and I'd be happy to show you around the Island if you wish. Same to any other RBR'ers coming up this way...

http://web.mac.com/zorbathegeek/Cadillac/Home.html

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Always great stuff from you, This is no exception.

I will be up there for my annual June Trip, and can't wait !


Thanks for the beautiful post