It's The Maine Event

We love our rides out to Maine.  I mean, who doesn't love Maine?
This is our third trip to Maine together.   Maine has everything to offer - from it's rocky coast, to it's mountain forests.  Wildlife swimming in and flying over the coastal waters, to the critters - some small, some huge - roaming the forest.   Yup, Maine is a great state to visit, and one of the few I'd ever consider moving to.
What makes it even better for us, is having a couple of really great biker, outdoor adventurist friends to visit and share our time with... John and Liz (no not my Liz).

This trip we tried to keep track of the places we ate and what we had, as well as the places we stayed.  We'll do a personal review and include links at the end of this post.

Our adventure to Maine started with a detour to Nanuet, NY for a charity ride benefiting women in need (United Women Of Rockland).  Hosted by Hudson Valley Harley-Davidson.

Leaving a day early gave us time to explore southeastern New York State.  By the end of the three hour ride, we were just 70 miles from New York City.  Really nice area, but an area where it started to get a little too congested for us.

Riding and exploring back roads are what we love about our adventures!  This day we rode past a huge stump with a park around it.  Looked interesting, so via our communicators, I advised Liz I was making a u-turn to investigate.  Walking up to the huge stump, I commented that tree must have been near 300 years old.   I wasn't far off as it was 316 years old at the time it was cut down. (read more)

In Front of The Balmville Tree

The Balmville Tree Park

We continued to explore the area, eventually running into the Hudson River.  Looks a lot different from the Hudson I'm more familiar with - 200 miles north in the Adirondack Mountains. My son and I have kayaked the source of the Hudson on Lower Duck Hole about 300 miles up river from our pictures below.  We loaded our kayaks onto a horse drawn wagon.  A great adventure, one I highly recommend.

The Hamilton Fish Newburgh-Beacon Bridge

Hudson River with the Catskills Mountains

Beacon Ferry on the Hudson River

Taffiny and Liz

Stopped for dinner at a friend's restaurant who we met at Ketofest in Connecticut last year.  Taffiny works alongside her husband, preparing fresh Italian dishes at Paradiso Pizza Parlour. Look for our review below.

SOS members Meet & Eat

We spent the night at a motel, then met with Liz's biker chicks from Stilettos On Steel for breakfast at the Stony Point Pancake Factory.  A quick breakfast, and we followed the pack to Hudson Valley Harley-Davidson. I've been to a few other rides and this was the best yet.  They had a live band and real food.  The ride they brought us on was nice.  They led us through some areas I wouldn't have known existed in that area. Very rural and woodsy. My guess is we skirted the Catskill region.  (Short Video).
And yes - we were the only dual sports!

Good turn out. Probably double what are in the picture.

We left the bike event, heading north on the Taconic Parkway, and managing to stay just above the rain.  After an hour or so we were on the back roads of Massachusetts, heading for a campsite we'd chosen.  We love seeing what all the little towns have to offer - we would not ride another highway until after Maine! We rode through Williamstown, Massachusetts which is home to a private Liberal Arts college. Boy, talk about your snowflakes!

North Adams, Massachusetts

Dinner was at Desperados, a great Mexican restaurant in North Adams.  North Adams has quite an interesting history going back to 1745.  It's apparent by the now vacant, very old store fronts and large buildings it was once a booming industrial center (for its's time).  It is nice they have kept these old bits of their past.  Hopefully they can fill the old storefronts once again.

North Adams, Massachusetts

North Adams, Massachusetts

Clarksburg State Park, MA

We camped out in the cold New England night pitching our tent at Clarksburg State Park.  Temps dropped to around 50, but we stayed comfortable in our tent and down sleeping bags.

Clarksburg State Park, MA

Wilimington, VT

We packed up early and headed out under still cool, partly cloudy skies. I was surprised that we were only a few miles from the Vermont border.  Following Vermont's route 9 East, we passed several vintage motorcycles. We pulled over for breakfast and to watch what seemed to be an endless flow of vintage bikes ride by.  Liz (very excitedly) realized they were participating in the Motorcycle Cannonball - a cross country ride for bikes older than 1929.

Liz whips out her phone to tell everyone about it!

Participants of the Motorcycle Cannonball

Participant of the Motorcycle Cannonball

Participant of the Motorcycle Cannonball
and first rider ever to ride coast to coast on a square tire.😉

Participant of the Motorcycle Cannonball

Vermont's Route 9 happens to also be the Molly Stark trail.

Riding out of Vermont and into New Hampshire, I started to feel a little ill.  Not sure what set it off, but as usual it never gets better only worse.  So two choices, stop and sleep it off... or push on and enjoy the ride. Yup, let the wheels roll! 

Turns out my navigation skills this trip, along with my health, are off.  We totally missed our first planned stop.  I found this unique website Atlas Obscure.  It has some great ideas for stopping on our trips, exactly the kind of things we like to investigate.  The first was the Bellows Falls Petroglyphs (also this link).  Who knew we had any in the North East?  Still not sure these are real, though (read the link).  With the harsh climate of Vermont, New Hampshire area how long could one of these last out in the open and on the side of a river?  Seems not long.  But, it will have to wait for our next trip to be investigated since we rode past them and didn't realize it until we were many miles away from them.  

I handed the navigating reins over to Liz for the rest of the day.  She did manage to navigate us to our second Atlas Obscure location.  Sculptured Rocks - river formations dating back to the last ice age were beautiful and interesting.

Sculptured Rock Natural, Area New Hampshire

You can see the shoot on the right. 
How long would it take to erode that much rock?

Flakes of a shiny rock/ mineral littered the ground.

Sculptured Rocks Natural Area, New Hampshire

So much to see. Just need to take the time and open your eyes.

Sculptured Rocks Natural Area, New Hampshire

Sculptured Rocks Natural, Area New Hampshire

Sculptured Rocks Natural Area, New Hampshire

Following this stop, I was really starting to feel whipped!  It was probably getting to the point of it being unsafe to ride.  Liz had wanted to camp, but apparently she could tell I needed to stop soon.  She found a really nice place not far away - have I said how much I love this girl!!!

The good nights sleep paid off, as the next morning I felt like I could conquer a mountain! Good thing, as our friend we were heading to in Maine sent us an interesting route - down Hurricane Mt. Road!
"HURRICANE MT. ROAD, South Chatham - from Rt. 113 S. Chatham, NH to Kearsarge, NH.
About 15 minutes from Whitehorse. The closest NH comes to the Alps. The 2-3 switchbacks on the west side are steep; the whoop-de-do’s on the east will send you airborne if not careful. Watch speed! Go east to west, turn around, & ride it back."
We of course rode it west to east, and only the one way.  The road is paved, however is only seasonal and only open to standard motor vehicles.  No RVs or tractor-trailers.  There's no way they'd make it up this road!  We've ridden up taller mountains, but this route has the longest, tightest, steepest grades we've yet to encounter.  Don't miss a gear or upshift prematurely.  There's no stopping on some of the inclines, I can't imagine how you'd get moving again if you did.  Thank you John, for suggesting such an amazing route!

Looking back over the White Mountains saw some funky clouds

There's my girl! 💕

After a quick breakfast, we hit the road to see yet another unique item.

Can You Hear Me NOW!

When in the neighborhood, how can you miss the worlds largest crank phone!

Worlds largest phone in Bryant Pond, Maine

Worlds largest phone in Bryant Pond, Maine

Later that evening we arrived at Steve's house.  I heard from a fellow adventure rider he was at his place in Key West.

Stephen Kings House Bangor, Maine

 Liz wouldn't let me ring the doorbell. 

Stephen Kings House Bangor, Maine

I don't know why, but I always get excited crossing the Penobscot Narrows Bridge to get to the east coast of Maine. It really seems like an engineering marvel.  I'd love to see it broken down in a model, and see how the weight is distributed between the wires and the two towers. 

Day two in Maine and we found our first lobster shack for lunch.  It really wasn't much more than a shack but, the lobster was good.  Soft shell was in season.  Soft shell lobster is available only once a year just after the adult lobsters molt and grow their new shells. Their meat is sweeter just after molting.  We've had both soft and hard shell before but never at the same time for comparison. 

Front Row: Hard Shell, Soft Shell
Back Row: Liz

I was suspicious of any taste difference, but the soft shell was definitely sweeter.  Of course, I knew which one was which - next time, blind taste test.



 
My snowmobiling friends and boaters know we have an issue with ethanol in our fuel and any two stroke engines.  This station in Maine found a way to get past all that.  They have "Enriched" ethanol fuel.  It's all in the presentation!

At Our Friends and Gracious Hosts House John and Liz

At Our Friends and Gracious Hosts House John and Liz

At Our Friends and Gracious Hosts House John and Liz

At Our Friends and Gracious Hosts House John and Liz

Make note:  If your cell phone carrier is AT&T you may have very spotty cell service and limited 4G.  I did not have any 4G most of our time in Maine.  Liz has Verizon.  Her coverage was fine most of the trip including Maine.

On Wednesday, we spent the day in the ocean in sea kayaks. John is a certified Maine guide.  He's been out many times and seems to now the area and water well.  He broke out the nautical charts the night before to show us where we'd be exploring.  If you are in the area look him up at Port Clyde Kayaks and Stand Up Paddle.  Ask for Big John for your guide.

You know you can trust your guide when the nautical maps come out.

The route we took.  About 6 miles. 

Since I cant decide which photos to display from our kayak trip I decided to display them all in the attached slide show.

Thursday we where treated yet again, to a personal guided tour by John.  Only this time on land by bike. (Liz was very excited she got to hang out with another KLR owner!)

Blueberry Fields

Found some dirt.

Me, John, Liz

While Liz was busy investigating the rocky shore beneath the lighthouse I met a local artist.  Lisa Kyle was in the process of painting the lighthouse.  From what I saw she seemed to be pretty good.  Check out some of her pieces at https://lisakyle.com/






Our next stop would be at Schoodic Point.  A great place to sit and watch the ocean.

 Black Dyke or Dike is always interesting to see.  It's where vein of magma seeped up and cooled. I think it'd be considered a very old rock.

Some wave action I recorded on my SLR and Liz recorded on her phone.  

Our parking spot had a KLR exit.

A special thanks to John and Liz of Maine.  They opened their house to us and took us to a great restaurant.  We're so glad John could be our personal tour guide - hopefully (John's) Liz can join us next time!


Friday we left John and Liz (not my Liz) and headed south for the capital of outlet stores, Freeport Maine.  We had already hit two of the four LL Beans in Maine.  But this was the queen of them all.  Along with many MANY other outlet stores.  It was well worth the stop as we both left Freeport with some (steeply discounted!) new  threads.

Liz had been wanting to visit Salem Massachusetts for a few years now so we worked it into this trip. We reserved a camping site at Winter Island camp ground.  Just a few minutes drive from downtown Salem.  Made camp and went off to explore.

I awoke to two young raccoons using our tent as their slide.  They left their little paw prints.

Our Haunted Footsteps Ghost Tour Guide

Most touristy things like museums where already closed for the day expect for the Haunted Footsteps Ghost Tour.

The only ghost to make an appearance that night.

Old Town Hall

The Old Town Hall is the earliest surviving municipal structure in Salem 1816-17.

Hippies

The Witch House

The Witch House has ties to the 1692 witch trials.

The "ghost" tour wasn't bad by any means.  It was entertaining and had some historical value.  I am a huge skeptic regarding ghosts.  I try not to be too logical with these things but it's difficult for me.  For example, in one instance our guide refers to a particular spirit which appears and upon further investigation this spirit was wearing the same dress she was buried in.  My brain spins it around and asks, how do her clothes come back with her?  Shouldn't she be naked?  He also encouraged our group to take pictures as we may catch a ghost in a picture.  I've been an amateur photographer for 38 years.  Took some photography classes in high school and college.  Have taken both film and digital SLR pictures all over north america, including in a few supposed haunted locations.  I have yet to find anything on my picture I can't logically explain.  If your eye can't see it, without some special additions, your camera won't see it either.  So it would have had to been really spectacular for me to really appreciate this "ghost" tour.  I'd like to go back during the day and take one of their history tours.  They also have specialty tours as we both really like the history of the area.

Saturday we packed our iron horses, grabbed a handful of throttle and burned the tar.  Headed for the interstate and made great time.  One note on our ride home, if you ever drive on I95 to I90, do not worry too much about speeding.  65 is really 80, 55 is 75, work zones nonexistent.

In all we tore through 1800 miles of our North East / New England country side. We enjoyed every single minute of our last trip of the season!




Our review of the places we stayed and places we ate.  This is not meant to criticize any place we visited.  We hope some of our friends and fellow explorers can use this as their guide when traveling.  Liz and I both enjoy cooking so we are often a little judgmental on the food we eat out.  Take it for what it's worth.

Pancake Factory

The Pancake Factory (Stony Point, NY): I am a pancake connoisseur.  Even when not ordering pancakes as my main course I'll order one to try.  The name of this restaurant is deceiving and disappointing.  It's not the place of homemade cakes.  Their pancakes tasted out of a box or even mass produced and shipped batter.  Also a little over cooked.  Filling was apple spice which sounded good but was obviously out of a can. I did order a side of Canadian bacon which was not much more than sliced ham.

Paradiso Pizza Parlour

Paradiso Pizza Parlour (Marlboro, NY):  What seems like a small pizza parlor has a very deep menu option. The husband and wife owners were both on the job when we walked in.
My place of residence is heavily Italian influenced and my heritage is Sicilian - so I know this food.  I cook a lot of Italian based meals, even pizza from scratch.   However, one thing I always have difficulties with are calzones - so I tend to order them when out.  This calzone was one of the best I've ever had.  I've always said if your dough (crust) is really good you can almost get away with putting crap in side.  Not the case at Paradiso's.   The crust is excellent and the content is just amazing.  Liz ordered wings which were also very good.

Claksburg State Park (Clarksburg, MA): We did not do any more than pitch the tent, use the bathrooms, and sleep.  The park staff was friendly, and the grounds were well maintained.  Camp spots were spacious, even some wooded areas between each site.  The bathrooms were up to date and very clean.

Dot's Restaurant (Wilmington, VT):  Dot's food seemed to be all homemade, or at least locally made.  Good, fresh, and generous portions.  My sausage gravy and biscuits was really good with chunks of meat in a smooth gravy.
Keto score: 8. The omelettes did not come with potatoes, Liz appreciated not having to pay for sides she couldn't eat.

Forest Glenn Inn (North Conway, NH): Newly remodeled.  Clean spacious rooms.  Staff was very pleasant.

Muddy Moose Restaurant & Pub (North Conway, NH):  Nice menu with a good selection.  Food was good.  A good selection of popular and local beers.
Keto score: 7.  Liz got a blue cheese bacon burger, and the staff happily left off the bun and subbed a salad for the fries.

Crossroads Diner (Bethel, ME):  What may appear to be a thick heavy pancake is actually very light.  Our food was very good and cooked fresh.
Ease of ketoing: This place also didn't include potatoes with their breakfasts - score!






Perry's Lobster Shack (Surry, ME) Literally just a shack serving good Maine food.  About as fresh as you can get it.  A little out of the way but a very nice drive along the coast of Maine. Plenty of seating in dry weather. Nothing under much cover if raining.
Keto score: 10! Steamed seafood and melted butter...it doesn't get much more keto than that!

Morton's Moo Homemade Ice Cream (Ellsworth, Maine): Skip their whoopie pies, as they are not home made.  There are plenty of areas serving homemade whoopee pies.  Try their homemade ice cream.  Good place for a fresh cup of coffee also.
Keto score: Meh. They have coffee.

Moody's Diner (Waldoboro, Maine):  Only had sandwiches which where good.  They seem to focus on home cooking.  Arrive early.  We arrived around 8pm and many items were sold out.  Whoopie pie was fresh.  Many fresh baked goods.
Keto score: 7. Staff was good about leaving croutons off my salad. Greens were fresh, turkey was tasty.

Vazquez Mexican Takeout (Milbridge, Maine): Family owned and ran serving fresh homemade authentic Mexican food. Worth the ride.  Sample a variety.
Keto score: They have fresh chicharrones!

18 Central Oyster Bar & Grill (Rockport, Maine):  We don't often spend this much on dinners while traveling.  However this was the time to do it, and we truly got what we paid for.  You know your dinner was prepared to high chef standards when every savory bite is a delight to your taste buds.  The chef even sent out complimentary desserts for us to sample, which again were awesome!
Keto score: 9. They had pork belly on the menu! They didn't use sugar in the rub, or in the prep of the sides. Excellent food, prepared with unprocessed ingredients.

Winter Island Park Campground (Salem, MA):  Good place to camp when visiting Salem, since there is a shuttle trolley running into Salem from the campgrounds throughout the day until 5pm.  A little too far to walk, but you could bicycle or drive.  Family oriented campground with good security.  They do pack you into the sites so there is not much room between you and your neighbors, but it is very quiet. Bathroom facilities are clean but could use some modernization.

Village Tavern (Salem, MA) Food was okay, nothing special.
Keto score: 2. They upcharged $3 if you want a tiny side salad instead of fries!  I wound up getting a cobb salad with an add-on protein. I got a weird look from the waitress for requesting pulled pork on my cobb salad, lol. Hey, the menu said meats could be added to *any* salad.