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Family Biking, Kayaking, Canoeing
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It's not all about climbing. We bike the shores of Eagle Lake, where a carriage path (one of the gravel roads that crisscross the eastern half of the island) circles for six miles under towering firs and over century-old stone bridges. We've gone on half-day sea kayaking jaunts in the Atlantic, where we've gone eyeball-to-eyeball with harbor seals and searched for sea glass on deserted Frenchman Bay islands. And we always book a day with Diver Ed, who goes scuba diving with a camera attached to his head, only to return to the boat with goodies such as sea cucumbers, starfish, crabs, and lobsters.
When You Go
Seawall, Rte. 102A, Southwest Harbor. Rates: $14-$20 per night. 207-288-3338; nps.gov/acad
Beal's Lobster Pier/The Captain's Galley, 182 Clark Point Rd., Southwest Harbor. Prices: from $2.00. 207-244-3202; bealslobsterpier.net
Jordan Pond House, Park Loop Road, Seal Harbor. Open mid-May to October. Entrées: from $15.50. 207-276-3316; jordanpond.com
Dive-In Theater, College of the Atlantic, 105 Eden St. (Rte. 3). Prices: $30 adult, $5-$20 children. 207-288-3483; divered.com
Acadia Bike, 48 Cottage St., Bar Harbor. Rates: from $18 per day. 800-526-8615; acadiabike.com
Coastal Kayaking Tours, 48 Cottage St., Bar Harbor. Rates: $37-$69 per person. 800-526-8615, 207-288-9605; acadiabike.com/kayakingpage.html
Biking: Massachusetts
We're big fans of the 22-mile Cape Cod Rail Trail, especially when you take it in bits and pieces. But to be frank, the actual ride, even after the route's recent refurbishment, can be a real yawner for kids. It's a former railroad line, straight with very little grade.
We like the ups and downs of biking -- which is why we prefer the five-mile Province Lands Bike Trail at the tip of the Cape. This undulating route dips in and out of sand dunes, weaving through scrub-pine forests and along beaches on one of the most glorious bike paths you'll ever ride.
The loop starts at Herring Cove Beach and heads inland through the Beech Forest, where the trees are often home to colorful warblers. Before sweeping downhill to the Province Lands Visitor Center, we always stop and look at the mounds of sand as they roll to the ocean.
Afterward, we take a dip at Race Point Beach, where the spit of land curves back toward Massachusetts, making it the only spot in New England to watch the sun set over the Atlantic: a perfect ending to a perfect day.
When You Go
Province Lands Bike Trail, Provincetown. Access from Cape Cod National Seashore. 508-487-1256, 508-349-3785 (HQ); nps.gov/caco/index.htm
Province Lands Visitor Center, Race Point Rd., Provincetown. 508-487-1256; nps.gov/archive/caco/places/provincelandsvc.html
Canoeing: New Hampshire
At the junction of Routes 16 and 26 in Errol, Northern Waters Outfitters rents canoes. Grab one and put in north of town on Route 16 to find out why Umbagog was named a National Wildlife Refuge.
A short paddle on the Androscoggin River brings you to a deserted island, where atop one dead pine tree is a large nest. Every year since 1989, a family of bald eagles has called this nest home, giving birth in springtime to their young. The eagles arrive in early spring and stay until the Androscoggin freezes over in early January.
We've been to Umbagog three times, usually in August when the white heads of the parents guard the nest as their little ones learn to fly. Loons, Canada geese, and herons lounge in the waters of this quiet lake on the Maine border, yet it's the pair of nesting bald eagles that keeps us coming back.
When You Go
Northern Waters Outfitters, Rte. 16, Errol. 603-447-2177, 603-482-3817 (summer); beoutside.com, serioussports.com/sacobound/index.html
Reader Comments
Comment from Carl Pecchia on April 14, 2008
During the spring and summer you can fly kites at Bretton Park in New Port RI
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