New England and Canada Cruise: Bar Harbor, Maine and Saint John, New Brunswick

Our tender enters the harbor of Bar Harbor

Bar Harbor

Our next port was Bar Harbor (locals pronounce it - Bah Hahbah!). Once again, the trusty Princess tender carried us into port. This time we sat on the open upper level taking in the views and the fresh sea air.

Streets of Bar Harbor

Once in Bar Harbor, we strolled the quaint but lovely streets of this small town, absorbing the local flavor felt thru the businesses, the simple home styles, and the friendly people. Of course, the town has got a giant tourist magnet surrounding it, but somehow a bit different from other touristy towns we’ve encountered. Maybe because of the simple, easy-going, humorous-natured personalities embedded in the lifestyles we observed.

Anne finds an appropriate t-shirt for Frank

The town is very small, and easily walkable in a few hours. We sauntered along, stopping in the local shops (not a franchise store in sight) and checking out the interesting finds in the shop windows. Lots of jewelry stores selling semi-precious stones (like tourmaline) mined right here in Maine.

Saint Saviour's Episcopal Church

We made a short stop at the St. Saviour’s Episcopal Church to roam the graveyard and view the famous stained glass, many of them created by Tiffany. We also explored some back streets taking in the simple New England architecture amid the dazzling autumn foliage.

Touring around Bar Harbor on Oli's Trolley

Anne had made a date over the internet with the highly recommended “Oli’s Trolley” during the planning stages of this trip. So after a cursory look-see walk around the town, we located the trolley station and boarded for some real sightseeing.

Our pleasant, knowledgeable, tour guide Don, was an older gent who talked incessantly over the trolley’s P/A system inserting his folksy backwoods humor, spinning non-stop yarns, drawing from his hefty store of local history, geography, and personal experience as he drove along. Yea, he was able to drive and speak very coherently about any local topics all while safely navigating our 40-foot trolley thru the maze of obstacles along the narrow highways.

Tree-lined street in Bar Harbor

Don told us how little Bar Harbor became a sought after destination when two painters came here, and everyone who saw their paintings wanted to come up here. Including the extremely wealthy who built more “summer cottages” up here believing Bar Harbor was the “new Newport.” Don drove out of town and took us to Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park which was first created by some of the wealthy visitors.

Cadillac Mountain with our cruise ship in the harbor below

You may be impressed that we now know that Cadillac is the highest coastal mountain north of Rio de Janeiro (thank you Don for that piece of trivia!). BTW, Cadillac Mt. is a mere 1,530 feet tall – not very tall at all as mountains go, but it is ostensibly the first spot in the U.S. to see the sun rise. The top of the mountain was very stony with gorgeous views of the Atlantic Ocean and the harbor below us where we could see our Princess cruise ship.

Crashing waves at Thunder Hole

Don drove us past Sandy Beach where the water is so green, you might think you were in the Caribbean. We continued on to “Thunder Hole,” a rocky outcropping where the waves come crashing onto the shoreline rocks and create a sudden clap that sounds like a wallop of thunder.

On Jordan Pond

Our last stop was Acadia Park’s Jordan Pond nestled near some small mountains and surrounded by very colorful deciduous trees in the process of changing color. A very pretty scene that beckons the average hiker to come, take a walk around the serene pond and absorb its natural beauty.

Frank tackles his lobstah!

We were back in Bar Harbor by 2:00 PM, and hungry for some indigenous foods. Well, what better choice than Maine lob-stah and wild blueberry pie!

We settled in at the West Street Café, anxious for a late lunch and some local cuisine. Yep! Maine lobster, lobster roll, clam chowder, coleslaw, and steak fries all washed down with 2 locally brewed draft beers! And of course, specially-made wild blueberry pie for the big finish. Yummy, yummy. It doesn’t get much better!

Lobstah fisherman unloading his daily catch

Saint John, New Brunswick

Sidewalk vendor shows us his wares in Saint John

The following day, our cruise ship arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. The city is situated on the Bay of Fundy – the only city on the Bay of Fundy, and one which experiences the world’s highest tides (up to 50 feet!). Saint John has a strong American connection: it was founded primarily by American Loyalists, colonists who remained loyal to the British crown and fled north to Canada during the American Revolution.

Famous Barbour's General Store

Saint John was very quiet on this Sunday morning, but we enjoyed a nice walk around the port area and up thru the town. We stopped by Barbour’s General Store and had fun with the wooden statues out in front of the store.

Anne blends in with the wooden statue

Anne blended in so realistically with the wooden figures that some woman passing by practically screamed when Anne moved!

Saint John City Market

We also visited the City Market (Canada’s oldest farmer’s market) where we wandered among the small market stalls buying some tasty hard candy made from maple syrup and a local bottle of blueberry wine. Frank, the winemaker, has made blueberry wine in the past, and we are both anxious to compare this wine to his.

Playful wooden statues
in front of Barbour's General Store

We learned that Saint John in New Brunswick, Canada has the word “Saint” always spelled out to differentiate it from the city of St. John in nearby Newfoundland, Canada.

More pics of Bar Harbor: