Welcome to MAINE 

After visiting a cousin in Portland we continued along the coast to Wiscasset, the location of several lobster pounds.

     
Sprague Lobster House                                                Lobster rolls for lunch

 

Maine Solar System Model
 

We started in Houlton at the model for Pluto and drove north toward the model of the Sun in Presque Isle 40 miles away. Each planet and the sun are identified below with its scale miles from the sun and its scale diameter in inches.

     
Pluto at mile 40, 1.0 inch                        Neptune at mile 31.7, 21.3 inches

     
Uranus at mile 20.7, 22.0 inches                     Saturn at mile 9.7, 51.9 inches

     

Jupitor at mile 5.2, 61.4 inches                       Mars at mile 1.4, 2.9 inches

 

Earth at mile 1.0, 5.5 inches

     
     Venus at mile 0.6, 5.2 inches                     Mercury at mile 0.3, 1.1 inches

Arc of the Sun, center of the solar system at mile 0.0, 598.0 inches (yes, 49.8 feet)

Due to the prohibitive cost of constructing a full scale 50 foot diameter model of the Sun on the University campus, the present representation of the sun is a large arc inside the science building.

As we drove mile by mile, this model was successful in demonstrating to us the magnitude of our solar system and the insignificant size of the earth.

We hope that after you review these pictures and data you will come to the same conclusion.

 
Northeast to Quebec 

Just east of Caribou, Maine we cross into New Brunswick, Canada and the Atlantic Time Zone.

The next day we leave New Brunswick to enter Quebec and the Gaspe Peninsula, changing back to the Eastern Time Zone.
 

Our destination in Quebec is the Gaspe Peninsula, an area of sheer cliffs battered by the sea, home to seabirds and central mountains covered with forests. By following a shoreline loop road, we are always on or very near the coast.

 
Discovery by Jacque Cartier in 1534

  

From the coastal town of Perce we ventured by boat to Ile Bonaventure and Perce Rock National Park. This park is a migratory bird sanctuary for more than 200,000 seabirds.

 

Almost 1500 feet long and 300 feet high, Perce Rock is one of the most recognized natural attractions in Canada.

      
Perce Rock                                                             Canadian winter sports

 

The Northern Gannet

Beginning in April, tens of thousands of northern gannets return to Bonaventure Island to nest. Pairs return to the same nest year after year. A single egg is laid in May and six weeks later a tiny hatchling breaks out of the egg. Not until three months later will this chick leave the nest. In mid-August we see many young birds flapping their wings about their very large, fluffy bodies but not yet ready to fly.

        
Northern Gannet Rookery                                             Video of Gannet Rookery
Note that the picture above on the RIGHT is a video of the Nothern Gannet Rookery. Click it to play

 To view the colony we hike a 5 mile loop over the center of the island and along the rocky shore where gray seals are resting and feeding in the surrounding waters..

 

Forillon National Park

The Sea, Cliffs and Forests 

At the northeast tip of the Gaspe peninsula the central mountains meet the sea in Forillon National Park where we camp and hike for two days. Also near this tip the International Appalachian Trail, an extension of the Appalachian Trail in the US, terminates. We did however, experience our only day of serious rain while in this park.

      
Cape Rosier Lighthouse                                                                     Cape Bon Ami

 

Throughout this area we are regularly reminded to enjoy the scenery and the importance of salmon.

     
The Red Chairs for viewing                                                                 Salmon is KING
(Typical in Canadian National Parks)                                                                                             .

 

Gaspesie National Park

The Chic-Choc Mountains
The Mont Albert plateau is in the heart of this immense boreal forest with alpine tundra on the second highest mountain in Quebec, Mont Jacques-Cartier,  which is home to a caribou herd. We however restricted our hiking to the lower lakes and rivers of the park.

     
Along the International Appalachian Trail                                  Glacial cirque at Lake Americains

      
Chute Sainte-Anne                                                          No moose on our route

With no hook-up for our motorhome for our two-night stay in this park, each night we experienced total darkness - very different from our usual camp site.

 

Reford Gardens

The Reford Gardens are renowned internationally as an outstanding example of horticultural art in a variety of native and exotic gardens.

      
Maidenhair Ferns                                                                           Gentian

     
Sunflowers in the Vegetable Garden                                              Many colors of lilies

 

Acadian Village
The first Acadian, who were expelled by the British arrived in Caraquet, New Brunswick  in 1755. The Acadian Historical Village interprets the lives of the Acadians from 1770 through the industrial development and modernization of Acadia in 1949. Many interpreters in period costume shared the customs and traditions of these Acadians.

     
Home cooked lunch                                      Buy thread sold by the inch

     

Man-powered lathe                                                      Our 1950’s Iowa farmhouse kitchen stove

     
Woman-powered sewing machine                                 Ford Model A waiting for gas

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