Tom's National Park Adventure

Today I was back on my own. My kids and grandkids traveled back to their homes this morning and I decided to get away from the crowds.

Yesterday while we were at the Sand Beach we kept on hearing sirens from emergency response vehicles. Lots of sirens and even the unmistakable sound of an evacuation helicopter. When we went to head back home, we sat in a traffic jam on the one way Park Loop road. We were told that the road was closed due to someone falling at one of the more popular areas of the park. Last night my daughter Shannon shared the following:

https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/sports/outdoors/woman-rescued-after-fall-acadia-national-park-maine/97-846d3d66-7156-4a92-a59c-e0d46ef84c26?utm_campaign=snd-autopilot&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook_NEWS_CENTER_Maine

This is a news report explaining how a lady fell at Monument Cove and had to be rescued.

I drove for an hour over to the Schoodic Peninsula. This part of the park was added when the US Navy decommissioned its Naval Base in 2002. They gave the land back to the National Park.

The Naval Base was originally located near the Otter Cliffs area of the national Park. John D Rockefeller JR wanted to build a series of Carriage roads in the Park and the Naval Base was in the way. Mr Rockefeller convinced the Navy to move the base over to the Schoodic Peninsula. He purchased the land in 1930 and paid for the main headquarters building and officers quarters to be built on the site. He hired the same New York architect to design and build the building in the same style he designed the carriage houses in the other portion of the park.

The Naval base ended up being a key listening post during WWII. At its peak it had over 400 service men and 150 civilians working there. Time and technology proved to be the reason the base was turned back over to the state. Satellite technology had replaced the outdated radar that had been part of our nations defense for so many years!

The park also opened up all the old Naval Bases roads as hiking and biking paths.

The park decided to utilize these new resources as the Schoodic Institute. The Schoodic Education and Research Center is the largest of the 18 National Park Service Research Learning Centers in the United States.

The visitor center is now housed in the old headquarters building.

The peninsula is less populated and draws far fewer visitors than the other portions of the park. The coastline is left to the lobster boats and seagulls!

It started to rain so I headed back to the campground.

Tomorrow will be a travel day. I will be heading back to the same campground we stayed at just outside of Albany, NY