The Bicycle Adventure Club - Come Ride With Us!

The Coast of Maine

September 10th to September 24th

Ride Director: Julie Leever
Ride Co-Director: Tom Leever
Report by: Rick Madden

If you haven’t yet joined the Leevers on The Coast of Maine, let me paint you a picture…a jagged, rocky coastline dotted with lighthouses, lobster shacks and folks that value a simple life. The arts abound. Each community boasts potters, sculptors, boatbuilders (an art form in Maine!) and plein air artists, all trying to capture the essence of Maine. With over 4,000 miles of coastline it takes time to explore Vacationland.

Starting in Portsmouth, NH we crossed into Maine within minutes and spent our first day west of Highway 1, the mostly two-lane road that we would parallel the entire journey while dodging into coves and onto peninsulas. We ended up the day in Orchard Beach, a kitschy vacation resort. The next day we passed through Portland, the states largest city and home to a very funky vibe.

In Bath we visited the Maine Maritime Museum, where some of the largest wooden sailing vessels in America were produced. We saw the step by step process required to build a four, five or six masted schooners. The tradition of building wooden boats continues in Maine, albeit in a much smaller scale.

On the way into Booth Bay some participants stopped at Red’s Eats, known for it’s famous lobster rolls. It sure didn’t look like much, but diners were spending up to two hours in line for their lunch! Later, when I questioned one of our patient rider/diners, she stated that she would wait all over again for one of those lobster rolls. Obviously, a satisfied customer. It was just one of many opportunities to taste the official Maine State Crustacean.

A few riders found the Maine State Prison Store, but those who did clamored about the quality products they found there. Everything is produced by inmates. The program has been hailed by federal consultants as “unique to the nation”. 

I found one of the premier stops on the tour was in the tiny town of Blue Hill. Our accommodations for two nights was at the Blue Hill Inn, a bed and breakfast built in the Federalist style in 1835. I’m not much for the B&B lifestyle, but I found this inn to be relaxed, comfortable and retrofitted with many up-to-date conveniences. Innkeeper Duncan was an excellent host. Somehow, he knew cyclists liked cookies (duh, who would have thought?) and made sure the jar was always full. His breakfasts? Extraordinary, with blueberry pancakes and scones.

Blue Hill is also near the Wooden Boat School where students learn to build wooden boats, kayaks and even items as simple as oars, all using traditional tools and methods. Most of the riders visited the school and talked with the students. Afterwards we indulged in one of Maines traditional foods at a local deli…the Whoopie Pie.

Our last stop was Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park. Here I found what I would arguably call the highlight of the trip; the carriage road system built by John D. Rockefeller from 1913-40. The 45 miles of car-free, gravel roads within the park were pure pleasure.  NPS has done a wonderful job restoring the roads which offer a unique travel experience. Most of the riders also climbed Cadillac Mountain, the highest point on the Eastern Seaboard at just over 1,500’.

This wasn’t the easiest trip in the BAC lineup. Listed as a 3B, there were few extended climbs. The pattern we found day after day was that we rarely climbed to an altitude over a few hundred feet. However, we seemed to climb that that few hundred feet many times over. And over. And over! The climbing added up daily, ranging between 1,500 and 4,500’ per day. If you like short, punchy climbs this could be the trip for you. I rarely talk about weather as no ride leader can control this aspect of the trip, but I have to say we were very fortunate with few overcast days and virtually no rain. Even the remnants of Hurricane Florence passed 60 to our south. Once again, the Leevers toiled in their studio of biking knowledge and produced another masterpiece!