dennisallard Loc: Southern Maine

I think it would be a great idea to go south from Surry and see the Blue Hill Peninsula - all the way to Stonington if you can. It's the only part of the Maine coast that I have yet to see. I have an old college friend living in Stonington and he posts some beautiful shots on Facebook. Enjoy.

repleo Loc: Boston

Good overview of all of the villages on Mount Desert Island here with some great photo suggestions. Enjoy your trip and post pics when you get back.

http://www.barharbormagic.com/villages.html

MtnMan Loc: ID

Thanks for all the input. It will help planning our fall trip there. We hope to be there when the leaves turn.

Any input on the best time for the leaves?

Any input on where to stay with a relatively small (Class C) motorhome?

(I ordered the book. It has great reviews.)

repleo Loc: Boston

There is a KOA campsite on Old County Road right after you cross the bridge onto Mount Desert Island. I would definitely make reservations. The last time I was up in Maine for the Fall it seemed like every second vehicle was a camper or RV. Peak foliage dates vary from year to year depending on the the Summer weather. Once the season starts, there are plenty of maps on the web or local TV showing the bands of peak color.

SusanFromVermont Loc: Southwest corner of Vermont

Everyone is assuming you want to visit Acadia National Park, but the town of Bar Harbor is about 45 minutes away. Cadillac Mountain is a bit further, then there is the drive to the top... The day I tried to see the sunrise from the top, everything was foggy! Have to go back and try again. However, no matter where you go in this part of Maine, it will take driving to get there. Maps of Mount Desert Island are available at the throughway rest areas, the best ones are in the regional information pamphlets. My suggestion for a first trip to Acadia National Park is to take a ride around the loop road. It is quite a long drive unless you cut it off half-way - there is a turn-off, easy to miss. The scenery is quite varied, and there are plenty of parking lots located at the most-visited scenic spots. As for difficulty, most spots are a mixture of easy to difficult, depending on your adventurous spirit! For instance, Otter Cliffs can be seen from close to the road, or you can go down on the rocky shore. Some people go to the area closer to the cliffs and actually walk out on them. There are other areas as well, you will be able to read up on them.

When I went to Acadia National Park, I traveled there up through Portland and Freeport, then east along the shore road. It would take a long time to visit all the places along the way that are interesting and picturesque, so I picked out a few to see. In York, Maine is the Nubble Lighthouse which sits on its own little island. The parking area is close to the shore from which you can view it. Portland's Old Port is quite touristy (parking is expensive), but it is also a working port. I took a walk out on one of the piers and took photos of the wharves, with all the restaurants, warehouses, and fishing boats with the city itself in the background. Freeport Maine has a nice little harbor, too. Early in the morning the fishing boats come in to load up bait. I talked to some of them, and watched how they use a winch to load the barrels of bait onto the boats. There are all different kinds of boats, mostly fishing boats, with most of them moored in the rows of slips. Another side trip on the way is Pemaquid Point, which sticks out into the ocean and has a lighthouse. Parking is close by and you can even go up in the lighthouse. The rocks of this shoreline are colorful with layers of different kinds of rock. You can walk out on the rocks and along the shore, but it is rough going. This area also has several harbors that are off the beaten path. I also stopped at Rockport where there is another pretty harbor. This one has many more pleasure boats than some of the others, but it is still very obviously a working harbor as well. Beautiful sunrises and sunsets. Just north of there is Camden, a photogenic old town.

In the Surry region there is the Blue Hill Peninsula, with a good view from the Hill and a "reversing" waterfall. Further south you go through some small towns, and can end up at Naskeag Point for some shore photography. There are working harbors and picturesque villages to see. I did not stop there, but have heard good things about it.

If you are interested in making a lot of stops along the way, there is a book I can recommend: the photographer's guide to the Maine Coast, by David Middleton and Bruce H. Morrison. It starts with Freeport and continues east to Lubec with its West Quoddy Lighthouse. David loves the harbors and lighthouses, so there are a lot of them mentioned, but he also speaks about the small towns and scenic areas. Every year he also leads photography workshops to different places, one of them a fall trip to Acadia National Park.

Hope this helps. The whole region has some beautiful areas. I got one of my favorite shots along the road near Eddington, of a branch of the Union River taken from a bridge - the river has a little zig-zag here and the fall colors were brilliant.

Susan

lrm Loc: Sarasota, FL

Bob, I think you are confused. Bar Harbor is on Mount Desert Island. Stonington is on Deer Isle and is only an hour or less from Surrey. I summer in Ellsworth and go to both very often. Bar Harbor very busy (traffic), but Stonington is not (I have done a photo book of Stonington as well as calendars}

Ted Evans Loc: Jasper, AL

There is a publication (paperback) entitled
Photographing the Maine Coast that
answers your question well. I loaned mine
to a friend who is planning a trip there this
summer. Try Amazon first.
Ted Evans

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

The drive from Ellsworth to Bar Harbor always feels like it takes forever, I've done it several times, perhaps it's because it's the end of the trip but it seems long, to go to Cadillac to get a sunrise would be a lng trip in my mind from Ellsworth and Surry looks to be even further away, just my point of view, in fact we are considering staying in Bar Harbor itself to cut down on the driving and be able to enjoy a beer or two while in town

MtnMan Loc: ID

Thanks!

We'd prefer to stay in the Park campgrounds. I see there are three with a total of over 500 sites. Is one best?

I'm hoping availability during the week will be OK but will seek to make reservations as we meander across Canada. Our timing will be flexible because we are coming a long way with many stops along the way.

Szalajj Loc: Salem, NH

Just a note of caution about those "Peak Color" charts. Many of them are supported by the tourism businesses that depend on them for pointing traffic to their areas!

I've found that the charts tend to rate foliage as peak, when it's really quite past peak from a photographer's standpoint!

Often the only leaves left on the treas in those areas are the oak leaves.

And as New Englander's know, it's mainly the maples that radiate the most vivid fall colors in this area!

So, plan your trip to be ahead of what they claim as peak color for the best shots. Heading that far north to capture great color with some contrasting green is going to be much earlier than you think!

I used to show horses in Deerfield, NH the weekend at the end of September closest to October 1, and I considered the colors in that area just west if Manchester, NH to be just about right for capturing on film back in those days! This gives you a target to back up your trip to Maine from.

Being that far north in Maine, you want to look at around two weeks earlier then play the reports and charts accordingly as your trip time frame gets closer! Heavy rains and winds as the leaves are turning will often contribute to a quick loss of leaves and therefore color.

As someone stated earlier weather often plays a key role in how brilliant or drab the fall color displays will be!

I don't know if any of the foliage charts have any historical records available, but it's worth the research. But throw out the records for the past 2 years, because most of New England experienced drought conditions for the past 2 summers, so that data will skew your calculations!

But, if we end up with another summer drought, then you want to pay close attention to those 2 years, because when the leaves turn, they won't stay on the trees for more than a few days due to the stress that the trees have repeatedly gone thruogh!

Fuff48

If you are there when they have the Acadia Star Party on Cadillac, it would provide you with a great opportunity to do some astrophotography, weather permitting. There are also Star Parties at a couple of other locations that weekend. Not sure of the exact date but the park will be able to provide the date and other events that weekend.

rbeverag

Don't miss Pemaquid on your way up (or back). Its almost impossible to take a bad picture anywhere in that area.

ruwohe

I can't emphasize enough Schoodic Point/Winter Harbor which is often overlooked--magnificent with much fewer people!

PGHphoto Loc: Pittsburgh, PA

Thanks all for your suggestions, knew you would come through !

I was a little concerned that the Googling I did came up with the tourist trap kind of things and I usually avoid those. With the in-laws, will do some of it but planning a couple of days where my wife does some trail running as I go off for a quiet photography expedition in the same area. This strategy worked very well in Sedona. Ordered some of the recommended books and am getting excited about the trip. Anyone else that has suggestions, would love to hear more !

Appreciate the knowledge and willingness to share by you folks.
-- k --

PGHphoto Loc: Pittsburgh, PA

A star party would be perfect - been to a few in western PA. Didn't know they had them in Maine ! Will look into it. May also be a good place for the in-laws to wander around and look through people's telescopes as long as the temperature stays reasonable for them.
Thanks !
-- k --