8-4-06 (Friday): Today was our last day off for the week. We decided to take a little outing toward the mountains in the west.Our first stop was in Augusta (the capitol of Maine) at the oldest standing wooden fort in the U.S., Fort Western. It was built in 1754 on the site of an Abenaki Indian town called Kushnoc. Kushnoc was an important trading post for the Pilgrims. This site is now in the center of downtown Augusta. It wasn't open yet, so we didn't get to go inside.
Since the fort wasn't open, we started walking on a rail trail that started at the fort and ran along the Kennebec River (that's the city of Augusta on the other side of the river). There were almost no explanatory signs, so we weren't sure where we were going, but it wound up being a very interesting hike.
We came across the Kennebec Arsenel. It was quite an imposing building, made all of granite. There were some other buildings nearby that looked like an old house and maybe some offices. The arsenal was built in 1828 during a time when our relationship with Canada was rather tenuous.
We left Augusta and headed for the Pisgah Trail in the foothills of the Allegheny mountains. There's a fire tower at the end of the trail.
I was surprised at how close the frog in this puddle on the trail let me get to take his (her?) picture. I was even more surprised when I got home and realized I had gotten a picture of two frogs!
This vine looked like a wedding ring around this tree!
Climbing the tower was actually more of a challenge than the trail!
The view from the top was spectacular. We could see a couple of lakes and 4 ranges of mountains in the distance. Again, we'd have loved a sign or explanatory brochure, but there was none.
We stopped in Wayne, Maine (!) and had a late lunch / early dinner in the deli in the store. It's amazing to me that these tiny general stores are thriving all over this area. It's kind of a shame that Walmart and McDonalds have pretty much wiped out these little businesses in the rest of the country. We are enjoying seeking them out and giving them our business.Back to work tomorrow. It will be really busy because of Lobster Fest. Our campground is completely booked for the next week or so.
4 comments:
What an incredible history lesson you guys are getting!
As for those frogs - maybe they were used to getting handouts! :)
Boy, a person could get lost in those Maine mountains. Looking across the river, is that the heart of Agusta? Does Agusta have a capitol building? We're getting a history lesson, too.
I think it looks like a garter around a rather rotund leg!
There's an incredible amount of history in this area, and I'm enjoying it a lot more than I did in school! Most of the towns (including the one we're living in)date from the 1600's!
That is the heart of Augusts across the river. It's a very small, historic town. The capitol building is located in Augusta, but the commercial and business heart of Maine is Bangor.
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