echoes of the past

This is not the first summer we have spent in Maine, but it does mark the first time we have resided here for an extended period with kids old enough to appreciate it. It’s not just the access to natural wonders and the sense of community we’ve all enjoyed. Small towns, which Maine has aplenty, are the heartbeat of America, showcasing the country’s historical origins and keeping its traditions alive. The kids might not fully appreciate the history, but they sure have enjoyed dipping a toe into it.

small-town life

In a curious way, being a global nomad has brought S full circle. Growing up in a small town, she had longed to get out and explore the world, leading her to study abroad in both high school and college, backpack for a year before grad school, and eagerly jump into the itinerant Foreign Service lifestyle. Yet, living much of the last decade in capital cities around the world has also highlighted the appeal of small-town America in ways S might not have appreciated at the beginning of our odyssey. The slower pace of living, proximity to nature, and community feeling of small-town life make S want to put down roots somewhere and have a small town of our own we could truly call home.

saddle up

The Appalachian Trail isn’t the longest hiking trail in the world — it’s not even the longest trail in America — but it is the stuff of legends. First there was Earl Shaffer, the WWII vet who wanted to “walk the war out of my system” and in doing so became the first person to thru-hike the AT. He accomplished the feat in 1948, a decade after the trail had been completed. Then there was Emma Gatewood, a grandmother of 23 who in 1955, at the age of 67, told her family she “was going for a walk,” bought a one-way ticket from Ohio to Georgia, and disappeared into the woods for half a year, becoming the first woman and only the sixth person ever to thru-hike the trail. Bill Bryson’s humorous, self-deprecating account of his 1998 thru-hike helped popularize the pursuit. Only 3,000 people had accomplished the feat in the trail’s first sixty years. Since Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods was published and subsequently turned into a movie, that number has swelled to more than 21,000.

big thoughts and bigger feelings

Language betrays us all, young and old. As adults, we learn to keep a poker face and hide our feelings. Kids, on the other hand, wear their emotions on their sleeves — none more so than Junebug, who at four is a whirlwind of big thoughts and even bigger feelings.

spiritual seclusion

“Maine has a lot to offer any traveler,” writes the National Audubon Society, highlighting the state’s fragrant conifer forests and wilderness areas, scenic mountain peaks and picturesque lighthouses, “and some of the most beautiful rocky shoreline in North America.” Of course, it’s not the destinations themselves that concern the Audubon Society, but rather what they can offer from a birding perspective. Here too Maine does not disappoint. Hardcore birders spend plenty of time in less pristine places, from mudflats to water treatment plants. In Maine, the most promising birding locations have the added benefit of doubling as some of the state’s most beautiful natural attractions.

end of the trail

Quarantine in Bangor, followed by a week with friends on Mount Desert Island to explore the always stunning Acadia National Park. Back to Bangor for a week, and then our South Dakota road trip, followed by a week at Moosehead Lake. Another brief return to Bangor and then a visit to Rangeley, home to several lakes and a convenient jumping off point for the Appalachian Trail. After several months of confinement in Manila to close out S’s first overseas assignment, we have taken every opportunity to stretch our legs and travel during her home leave.

formidable four

Sometime around Munchkin’s fourth birthday a switch had flipped. He had retained some toddler tendencies, even regressing a bit when Junebug was born, but becoming a big brother also helped him grow up quite a bit that year. Junebug, who recently turned four, shows no sign of wanting to flip a similar switch. The baby in the family, she appears content to stretch out her babyhood as long as possible. This is great in some ways (she has long reigned as the best snuggler in the family) and awful in others (Munchkin’s threenager tantrums were frequent but had nothing on the level of intensity she is able to generate). On some days, this dichotomy is enough to make one’s head spin.

rough and ready

Usually when the camera fails D, it is because the bird he was chasing is too far away, or too flighty, or too furtive. Although D’s new camera and assorted gear has been a game changer for his birding passion, this happens quite a lot, actually. For every great photograph, there are a hundred mediocre ones and another hundred that are downright awful. For every new find, there are a dozen birds that get away. Most birds move quickly and tend to seek cover; being too close has never been a problem before, but there is a first time for everything.

Maine mountain trails

There was very little downtime between the end of our South Dakota road trip and the beginning of our next adventure. Much like the troublesome outbound leg, our return flight to Maine was also delayed. We arrived late in the evening, dumped our dirty laundry into the washing machine, and hurriedly repacked our bags. The next morning found us lashing the kayak and paddle-board to the car roof rack for our weeklong stay at Moosehead Lake with S’s parents.

Rocky Mountain adventure

We had three excellent reasons for flying into Denver, which is six hours away from most of the sights we wanted to visit in South Dakota, rather than directly into Rapid City itself. First, doing so allowed us to visit friends in Boulder, with whom we stayed the final two nights of our road trip. Second, it helped us get around the problem of finding a rental car, which was tough to do in Rapid City on short notice. And third, it afforded us the opportunity to explore Rocky Mountain National Park, which we had missed on our previous visits to Colorado.