More from Maine

Our next journey was a ferry ride from Rockland to Vinalhaven Island, several miles and a world away from the Maine coastline. It took about seventy-five minutes to reach the island on the boat and we saw all kinds of great scenery along the way. It got chilly on deck so Sean spent most of his time in the cabin.

We walked around Vinalhaven Island for a few hours and took a ferry back to the mainland. This is Nate at a little park on the island where we stopped for awhile. There were a bunch of things to see and do but it wasn't a tourist place. Vinalhaven is a real working town catering not to visitors but to the lobster industry. The harbor was filled with lobster boats. We sure ate a lot of lobster on the trip!

Back in Rockland, we visited another lighthouse called Owls Head that protects the southern approach to the town. It's part of a park that includes a rocky beach and picnic facilities. Here we are enjoying our lunch on a beautiful outcrop next to the ocean. The fog rolled in and it sure got cold!... hard to believe it's August.

Back on the Owls Head beach, Nate enjoyed some rock climbing as well as hunting through the tidal pools for more sea creatures. Nate had no problem getting to the top of these massive boulders but he forgot that he also needed to find a way down. He figured it out without too much difficulty.
Here's a rare photo where dad actually got in front of the camera instead of behind it. The building in the background is for the lighthouse keeper. Everything is automated today so now one of the Coast Guard officers stationed at nearby Rockland lives here. We don't know how they could stand the loud foghorn sounds that resonated throughout the harbor every few seconds!

Roosevelt Island

We took a walk on Theodore Roosevelt Island, a park located on the Potomac River in Washington, DC. Here we are on the swamp trail that goes from the southern tip of the island along the tidal wetlands that penetrate into the interior. Nate and Sean both did great with all the hiking. We brought an all-terrain stroller along for Sean and he used it some of the time but he kept up with Nate the rest of the time. We figured that Nate probably walked about four miles all together, so we think he'll be able to join Mom on a 5K fun run/walk later this summer.

There is a large pavilion on the north-central highlands with a patio, fountains and a giant statue of Theodore Roosevelt. We stopped here for a picnic lunch. Nate and Sean enjoyed feeding one of the local ducks that paddled around in a concrete reflecting pool.

The hiking was fun but the animals were the highlights for the kids. In addition to all the ducks, we say a snapping turtle, a skink (a type of lizard), colorful butterflies, unusual insects and all sorts of birds.

It's been unusually cool with low humidity lately. We just had to get outside and enjoy the day!