The Easternmost Town in the US

Day 1 of this summer's road trip had us flying to Bangor, Maine and then renting a car for the next two weeks.  We essentially had one objective in Bangor before hitting the road in earnest, and that was finding the statue of Paul Bunyan.  Once that mission was accomplished, we set out for the "Eastern Most Town in the US" (registered trademark probably pending).  Hahaha.  Lubec is really hitting it hard with it's branding -- nearly everything we passed while driving through the town let us know that it was the "Eastern Most" version of whatever it was.

Up at the crack of dawn to make that flight.

This is the 3rd Paul Bunyan statue that we've trekked to and hopefully we will find even MORE on future road trips.  Hahaha.

I thought this shot with Isaac mid-hop was hilarious.  That hair though.  Lol.  Over the course of these road trip recaps, you can watch the evolution of his really-should-have-gotten-a-haircut-before-we-left look to his okay-the-hair-is-out-of-control look.   The fact that he was sporting an absolute rat's nest at the back of his head is just a little bonus enhancement of his vibe.  Hahahahaha.

Another Paul Bunyan felfie in the books!

After arriving in Lubec that evening, we made a quick stop at our motel to check-in and unload our stuff before taking off to find some dinner and then setting forth into the misty Maine magnificence to find the actual Easternmost Point in the US -- ironically named West Quoddy Head.  (Fun Fact:  East Quoddy Head is in Canada right across the Quoddy Channel.)

Did you know that Lubec is the Easternmost Town in the US?  😜

We stopped to take a gander at the coast along the route to the lighthouse through Quoddy Head State Park.  I just love Maine and its mist-shrouded perfection.

Seriously.  That hair.

I'm not quite sure WHY the saluting pose was a thing for Isaac this trip, but the girls were happy to join in the fun.  Hahahaha.

As is often the case when I attempt to follow our road trip itineraries with the kids, what was supposed to be a brief jaunt over to the lighthouse that evening (with a longer/more in depth exploration of it the next morning) ended up being the only time that everyone was on board with the outing and fully participative.  Womp womp.  While I was bummed that the girls decided to opt out of the next day, and didn't join us for our (very minimal) hike and tour of the (very small) visitor's center at the lighthouse, I took solace in the fact that I had gotten tons of pictures of all the kids the night before and at least the boys were amenable to the morning's activity.  (Another Fun Fact: the West Quoddy Head Lighthouse is actually in the Atlantic time zone, which meant that in the time it took us to walk from the parking lot to the Lighthouse, we jumped ahead an hour.  Hahaha.)

“ To almost every man and woman there is something about a lighted beacon which suggests hope and trust and appeals to the better instincts of all mankind.” -- Edward Rowe Snowe

Felfie time again!

Finger hearts courtesy of all the K Dramas I watched this summer per Sophie's recommendations.  Lol.

"Easternmost Point in the U. S. A."

West Quoddy Head

Lubec, Maine

You know how much I love to get a picture of someone taking a picture.  Hahaha.

(The picture)

Me taking a picture of myself with an ocean backdrop...

...Grace taking a picture of me taking a picture of myself...

...and Scott taking a picture of Grace taking a picture of me taking a picture of myself.  LOL.

We finished the "tour" fairly quickly and -- after stopping at a gift shop to pick out our requisite bumper sticker and magnet to represent the area, of course -- we got back on the road with Bar Harbor set as our destination in sight.  While it was a fairly short and sweet sojourn in the Easternmost Town in the US (registered trademark still probably pending), it was the perfect kickoff for the Maine portion of our journey and my only regret is that I didn't realize how incredibly close to the border we would be and therefore didn't bring along our passports/birth certificates to cross over to the Canadian side of the Quoddy Channel.  Total missed opportunity, amiright??  Live and learn, people.  Live and learn!  Hahaha.  

This trail led up to a lookout point from what I think was the highest bluff near the lighthouse.

The hike was "totally worth it," according to Isaac.  So at least there's that.  Haha.

Stay tuned for more Maine coming right up...