July 20, 2024, First Day of Bike Ride! Trenton to Orono, Maine.


   Today was the end of our stay near Acadia National Park.  We sorted our stuff into what we would take with us on the bikes and the rest packed up to go back with our family members.  By the time they and we were both ready to leave, it was after 10 am and off we went! 
   As we headed towards Bangor, about 2/3 of our ride was on quieter roads and about 1/3 on busy US 1A.  We thought we would be taking quieter roads parallel to US 1, but where our software program had routed us to cut over to that area went down a gravel road to a small park where people were swimming, and continuing on from there were signs that said, “Private Property” and “Your GPS is wrong!”  So we had to take the US 1A way instead with its heavy recreational traffic—thank goodness for wide shoulders!
   Stopped by a guy selling fruit and vegetables out of his vehicle at a corner, and bought and ate 1 pint of raspberries while having an enjoyable chat with him. And then either because we were fun to chat with or he thought we were hungry—or both—he gave us another pint to eat. 

  We had tried contacting a number of Warm Shower hosts in the Bangor area but failed until the 4th try.  They were out of town, but still let us come!  They gave us directions and the access code for their home so we could stay. Got tasty take-out from a near-by restaurant called “The Family Dog” for our evening meal.
So grateful to be finally started on our bike ride!

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