A Drive & A Movie, But Not a Drive-In Movie
Early in September, I did my first private driving tour of Acadia National Park and Park Loop Road as part of my workamping job. Once I completed one tour, they started asking me to do several more. So far, my tours have been comprised of anywhere from 2 - 5 people riding along with me in a mini van. I provide them with the history of the area, interesting facts about the park, and at least a few corny jokes. (What do you tell a mountain that is really particular? ---- "Stop being so PEAKy!") Get it, peaky = picky! You didn't really think I would spare you for the not-funny jokes did you? I was asked to do another tour, but this one was to include the village of Seal Harbor, including the sprawling estates that line Cooksey Drive. They had also requested a stop in front of Martha Stewart’s home along New County Road. I was provided with a hand-drawn map of this area with a few of the homes highlighted to point out. Russ and I had driven Cooksey Drive one other time, but I wanted to do another quick drive-thru before getting lost with guests on those windy, hilly roads.
Annette & Mike joined us for the drive as we were planning to head to movie with them later that day. With Russ as our driver, he took us down Route 3 headed out of Bar Harbor. We took the turn on Cooksey Drive and pointed out some of the homes I had researched in the area. Most all of the homes on this street are named, so I also took note of additional house names to look into a bit more. Homes in this area belonged to people with names such as Rockefellers, Morgans, Fords, and other wealthy elites. If you are interested in joining this prestigious line-up, both “Tree Tops” and “Hi Mount” are on the market for a mere $3.9 million and $1.9 million respectively. You better act quick, as “Ringing Point” the summer residence of the late David Rockefeller Sr, was listed under contract for $19 million after less than a week on the market. You will still find some Rockefellers living on this drive as your neighbors, along with Dick Wolf the executive producer of Law & Order in his home called “Southerly”. With a quick turn and a short stint on the curvy New County Road, we found ourselves in front of a pink granite gravel driveway that was the entry way to Martha’s Stewart’s home named “Skylands”. It was the previous home of Edsel & Eleanor Ford. Martha purchased the home about 20 years ago and as we continued driving by, we spotted either Martha herself or a look-a-like walking through the manicured woods on her property. With the look she gave us as a passing car, we felt like it was Martha herself! We concluded the trip with a quick drive through the quaint and quiet village of Seal Harbor before heading back to the larger town of Bar Harbor.
Mike & Annette and several others had suggested a trip to Reel Pizza to catch dinner and a movie. Reel Pizza provides a unique movie-going experience showing Hollywood films in a relaxed atmosphere with a glorified concession stand. When Russ, Mike, Annette, and I all ended up with an afternoon / evening off, we decided to hit the movies. Russ was interested to see “Detroit” which is a fact-based drama about the 1967 Detroit riots in which a group of police officers respond to a complaint with retribution rather than justice. Often times the movies are not where we to get educated, but it was good to hear a piece of U.S. History that isn’t talked about much. While my idea of a movie usually includes comedy or hopeless romance, it was a stark reminder of the injustice in the world. The gluten free pizza was crispy and tasty and our great company made the evening fun! Thanks for joining us, Mike & Annette. We miss having you as our neighbors.
All that fun and only this one lonely picture complements to Russ (@mr.seesimplelove) to show for it! Follow him on Instagram, I guarantee most of his pictures are more exciting than this one. What are you waiting for, go to his Instagram page NOW!
