Great day today. Amazing hikes. One in particular called Preicpice (something like that). It's basically up the side of a cliff...not really a trail anywhere. From the first description I'd heard of it I knew I wanted to do it.
The first part of it was up a bunch of stone steps, which then turned in to basically climbing a pile of rocks. Not bad, but not what I was looking for. The descriptions I had heard and read talked about iron ladder rungs strategically placed in the rock to make it climbable...and actual ladders attached to the cliff face. Well, not long after the pile of rocks I see my first ladder rung. It's up well above my knee and the next one's quite a bit higher. To get up I had to take a huge step, wedge my foot up there, grab the rock next to me/behind me to pull myself up and grab the next one. Now that's what I'm talking about. It only got better from there. It was soooo much fun! It reminded me a lot of the Grandfather Mountain hike we did with Outward Bound, but on that one we were carrying 50 lb packs with us so it made it really hard to climb. This one wouldn't have been possible with big packs. Not because of the climb, but because there were places where you had to duck under rocks held up by other rocks around it. I could barely fit through with my day pack. I had to go belly to the ground and crawl through. Ironically, out of this whole climb that was the only part that really scared me. Apparently I'm way more claustrophobic than I am afraid of heights. Anyway the hike just kept getting better with more and more ladders on longer, steeper pitches. I found myself thinking about my mom often because 1.) I'm really glad she wasn't there to watch me do it and be worried and 2.) because I saw two snakes along the way. Noone hates snakes more than my mom! I'm normally ok with snakes but this hike involved blinding sticking my fingers in to lots of cracks in the rocks, so seeing snakes coming out of rock cracks wasn't comforting. I would NOT be ok with sticking my fingers in to a crack and grabbing a snake!
The view from the top of the cliff was amazing. It was almost a full 360 degree view of ocean with all sorts fo islands and things out there. It was a perfectly clear day as well, couldn't have asked for better. I had lunch at the top before making my way back down.
The second hike is called Beehive. This one would've been fun but I missed the turnoff for it and ended up going up the easy way and down the hard way. These ladders and things are much less fun to do going down, especially when you're tired. Once I found the turnoff I'd missed I considered doing it all again the other way but decided I was too tired and went for an early dinner instead.
It's a good thing I did because I made it to the movie theater/pizza place (after stopping by the beach to cool off my overheated hiking boot feet) just in time for the next movie to start. This place was incredible and I'm so so glad I went there. I really don't know why no one has thought of this before. It's so funny...you walk in and get your movie ticket, and then you go to the concession stand. The concession stand menu has the appearance of a regular movie theater menu...lots of bright colors and things....so much so I thought maybe I'd misunderstood and they didn't really have pizza. But all the menu items were different gourmet pizzas. (You could get popcorn and candy as well...but who would want to). You place your order and then go in and watch your movie. When your pizza is ready your number lights up on a little bingo board along the side wall of the theater and you go pick it up. Each row of seats has a counter style table in front of it, so there's fewer seats than a normal theater but everyone has room for their pizza. Truly brilliant I tell you! I want to stay here another night just to go to another movie!
I just happen to be hear during the Maine International Film Festival, so I ended up seeing a documentary about a woodpecker that was believed to be extinct but then was seen again. (Turns out it probably is still extinct and the person who saw it messed up, but it turned in to a whole loch ness monster like controversy). Moderately interesting movie, but made so much better with pizza! I asked one of the ppl working there and they said they get the regular theater movies there but they do focus more on international and independent films. Again...why are these places not everywhere?!
I've just made it back to camp now and I'm exhausted, so off to bed I go. Oh but I did figure out another reason why my camp site is so cheap. I'm definitely on the wrong side of the island to be a tourist. Over here there's a few restaurants, a few stores, etc. Over on the other side where the movie theater was there were TONS of people and a whole lit up street full of touristy shops and things. It's probably better I'm not over there though...in my maybe 6 block walk from the car to the restaurant I ended up buying myself another t-shirt. I really don't need it but I saw it in the window and it totally cracked me up so I just had to get it. I gotta stop doin that! I am technically on vacation, but money-wise not really. Plus I have waaaaay too many t-shirts as it is! Anyway, it's sleepy time. Another big day of hiking and biking awaits.
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Okay, I'm getting tired just by READING all that you do during the day. Don't take that to mean that it's boring; it's definitely not. And also don't take it to mean your blogs are too long; I love reading all the interesting things you find to do and always wish you'd written more. I can definitely stand to learn a thing or two from you!
ReplyDeleteI don't know how I'd feel about snakes; I haven't really encountered many in real life; most of the ones I've seen have been safely behind glass at the zoo. I don't think they'd particularly frighten me, though. But the idea of grabbing one of them instead of a rock is a bit disquieting.
I hope you got some pictures of the view from the top of the cliff. That must have been something to see. The highest I've ever climbed was the Sleeping Bear Dunes, and that was a long time ago. Its view was great, too, though.
That theater does sound pretty amazing...maybe you could franchise them! Some of the theaters around here do have food other than popcorn & candy, and there is one that does serve meals -- at least, it did. I've never been there for that, though.
I understand the whole t-shirt thing. I always seem to want to buy shirts that tickle my fancy and/or are from places I've visited. Problem is, I never get rid of them unless they're really destroyed. I won't tell you how old some of them are...
I can't wait to read about tomorrow's adventures. (Well, technically, I guess it's today's adventures; I guess I should go to bed, too!) It's so cool that you're sharing all of this with us! :)
And apropos of nothing, am I the only one who keeps getting thrown by the number in parentheses next to the month because I keep thinking it's the date -- which would be one day off -- and not the number of blog entries as it actually is? LOL. I'm weird, I know.
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