Surry, ME to Bar Harbor, ME 22 miles

It was fittingly a rainy day for the last day of the tour. When I was coming through the tiny town of Surry I had to stop and dig my phone out of its waterproof home to take a picture of the sign below. For some reason the sign reminded me of my friend Stu. I wondered where his sense of humor would take this sign. Is it only Surry selectmen that can’t take alewives? In case you didn’t know, Alewives are a kind of fish.

I stopped at a waterfront park in Ellsworth and had lunch under a picnic pavilion with a view of the river.

In the last few miles before Bar Harbor, there was a roadside stand in front of someone’s house with gorgeous bouquets of Dahlia’s for sale. I picked out one for my wife and managed to figure out a way to carry it on my bike.

When I crossed the bridge onto Mount Desert Island, where Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park are, I felt like I should be done but I still had 11 miles of riding on a busy road in the rain. I finally made it to the edge of town but I wanted to end at the harbor.

So I rode across town to the harbor. I asked a young woman if she could take my picture and of course we had a lovely conversation. I hope she can find a better work/life balance and a more rewarding job.

My wife had been driving 10 hours by herself and she was almost to Bar Harbor. By the time I rode across town to the bed and breakfast we were staying in, she had arrived. It was wonderful to see her. Spending this much time apart (the most since we were married) was hard but it made me appreciate her more than ever. She was so thoughtful and generous to let me go on this 3 1/2 month tour. Thanks Honey.

That was it, the Odyssey was over. I had ridden over 5,176 miles in 84 days of riding, averaging to over 61 miles per day. It was a magnificent experience. I am very grateful that I was healthy enough to do it and am fortunate enough to be able to arrange my life to be able to dedicate the time needed for this adventure.

Thank you for coming along.

PS: I do hope to add to this blog in the future. So make sure you stop back sometime.