Backwoods Blog

ACADIA

Backwoods Blog;

in the woods and on the road…

Otter Cliffs Acadia National Park

A couple of years ago Linda and I purchased new mountain bikes (my previous bike was over 30 years old) and we traveled to Acadia National Park to traverse the carriage trail system. With over 45 miles of bike trails and 17 stone faced bridges along the way it’s one of our favorite places to explore in the state of Maine. I’ve been coming to the island with my bike since the 1990s and I’ve enthusiastically called the carriage trail system “an amusement park for mountain bikers.” There’s nothing like it! Of course there’s plenty of other things to do in Bar Harbor and the park, I just happen to be a bike-guy. Here’s a short reflection inspired from one of those trips.

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If with closed ears and eyes I consult consciousness for a moment, immediately are all walls and barriers dissipated, earth rolls from under me, and I float, by the impetus derived from the earth and the system, a subjective, heavily laden thought, in the midst of an unknown and infinite sea, or else heave and swell like a vast ocean of thought, without rock or headland, where all riddles solved, all straight lines making there their two ends to meet, eternity and space gambolling familiarly through my depths. I am from the beginning, knowing no end, no aim. No sun illumines me, for I dissolve all lesser lights in my own intenser and steadier light. I am a restful kernel in the magazine of the universe. 

 – Henry David Thoreau     Journal entry, 1838

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One of the great advantages of living in a state like Maine is its natural beauty and spaciousness. I visited Acadia National Park recently and in a place such as that, there is no way to avoid the impact of nature upon your soul. It is a place where ocean slams into rock and sky hangs like artwork in an over-sized gallery. I’m convinced that if a person found a comfortable chaise lounge and sat down with a cold drink in such an environment long enough, they would walk away a very different person. Thoreau recommends closing your eyes and “consulting consciousness for a moment.” Each of us have the interior capacity to see below the surface and connect with a larger reality. The quote from Thoreau’s journal speaks about this quality of being. Our typical obstacles and barriers collapse and our brain jammed full of thinking starts to flow more freely. It’s the kind of summer break we could all use. Nature is not separate from who we are. As we walk down the trail with our high-tech hiking pole or just a good sturdy stick, we can experience the balance of being ourselves and enjoy the intricacies of this world. Live your summer.

In the woods,

Dave

June 28, 2023

Jordan Pond

selfie at Jordan Pond

Linda taking a photo on Eagle lake heading north from Jordan Pond

….on the trail

One of the stone bridges on the carriage trail system