Not, perhaps,the weather we were hoping for. Arrived on Thursday and we may see sun by this coming Wednesday. I did hike out to the ocean the afternoon we arrived, and then took the boys for an extended hike the next day, while the weather was overcast but reasonable. Did I bring my phone and take pictures of this spectacularly picturesque coastline? Of course not!

Saturday I took the free shuttle bus into Bar Harbor to get supplies (you always forget something) and to sneak in some lobster, which Russ dislikes. I found a lobster grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup (actually more like a spicy tomato bisque) combo with which I was extremely happy. Spent some time nosing around the Bar Harbor shopping district before heading back. The shuttles are very convenient—the Blackwoods Campground bus runs every hour between the campground, the Acadia Nature Center, and town. You can request the driver to let you off at other points like trailheads, too. There are several different routes that stop at points all around Mount Desert Island and Acadia.

Beyond the weather, there are other problems: our expensive new lithium ion battery seems to be draining awfully fast, and we can’t get the water lines cleared of air. After two days we woke to find ourselves without electricity. The (also new) solar panels are of little help in the rain. I’m more than a bit peeved that, after spending a great deal of money for equipment, we are in worse shape than before. Extensive testing is going on to discover the cause of our problem.

Meanwhile, I downloaded the Merlin app and am happily identifying the many birds who are chirping, twittering, whistling and cackling around our campsite. Russ is happily complaining about the many trash trucks who constantly pass our campsite. A note: site 32 in A Loop of Blackwoods Campground is excellent for privacy, but not so great for noise, as it sits near the entrance to the entire A Loop (hence the trash truck traffic).