Today I had planned on waking up at 6AM but the alarm did not go off and I woke around 6:40AM on my own. I jumped out of bed, got dressed carried my food and camera out the door as fast as I could and headed towards Howland to meet Brian, Tim and Tyler, two of my co-workers, to kayak down Passadumkeag River. I called Brian on the way to explain I may be late- it normally takes 30 minutes from Bangor to Howland but I made it in ~15 minutes, thankfully most of the drive was on the interstate.

After arriving at Brian’s house we loaded his truck with our kayaks and headed to where our trip would end and left Brian’s truck there, we than proceeded to Burlington where our journey would begin. The water was Class I rapids where we started off and was shallow, it’s safe to say that my kayak is now physically broken in. This is my first time in rapids, I almost tipped over within 2 minutes of the embankment but quickly learned how to maneuver. The river started to calm down and widen out was we paddled; the current was able to carry us down river allowing us to recuperate from the rapids.

The weather was better than what we expected, it was hazy and in the high 70’s which blocked the sun from glaring down on us. I was surrounded by birds chirping, bugs buzzing in the meadows and trees, Canadian Geese honking and the sounds of water moving at a steady pace. The scenery was beautiful, at some points the water was so calm it appeared as a black mirror reflecting the overhanging Oak trees, baby maples, Lilies and ledge all along the bank of the river. I had some excellent chances to take beautiful photos but I found in my haste this morning that my camera batteries were spent. I was however able to take a few low-quality photos with my cell phone. As the morning grew late we started to work up a sweat, Brian and Tyler decided they want to swim next to their kayaks for awhile which was entertaining to watch. At one point the river widened and throughout the banks were Weeping Willow trees acting as doors to an open meadow that spanned for at least a good half mile out.

Right at the end I enticed Brian and Tim to a race to the finish, sparring with them, calling them old men and stating that they could not keep up. Brian didn’t take that comment too well and took me up on the race, in the end he won.

I had an excellent time, it took us about 5 hours of actual time in the water. I am very impressed with the quality of my Old Town kayak, it bent and contoured right over the rocks with out any hesitation of damage.

I purchased a kayak from Old Town Canoe today, it’s a Loon 100. It’s roughly 10 feet long and has plenty of space for me. The material of the kayak is very strong and flexible, if I hit a rock in the water the material will bend but not break. There’s a waterproof cargo bin behind the seat which will house one of my survival knives, flashlight, clean shirt and a book (maybe an extra Bible) just in case anything happens. I purchased the kayak which was discounted due to some very minor scratches, a life jacket that you cannot tell you’re wearing it and a matching paddle.

Later in the afternoon Nate and I went kayaking on Pushaw Lake, the wind was pretty steady causing decent sized waves. I’m glad that I researched on which kayak would be best for me, I decided to purchase one that had a keel- the keel came in very handy today. We were out on the water for a few hours; we explored one end of the lake that turned into a swamp that a few beavers called home. At some point I’m going to head to Old Town Maps to find out if they have any type of kayaking guides for local rivers. In the next few weeks me and a few other co-workers plan to kayak down a river that is unknown to me at this point, I’m sure we’ll have a good time.

Here are some photos that were taken on August 11th : Loon in the water, Me in the water, Me in the water 2.

This past weekend was very nice; Saturday we had weather in the 90’s and Sunday was more of a warm autumn day- 80’s with a crisp sporadic breeze from the North. If I could choose one season to live in it would be autumn. Fortunately, most Maine’s fall weather consists of crisp breezy days with enough sunshine to keep the daylight hours warm.

For most of the day on Saturday I stayed inside trying to stay as cool as possible. I caught up on some Xbox 360 game time, after I worked on a client’s website. Later in the evening Nate and I went to Pushaw Lake to go swimming. The water was very warm and calm. As we swam the sun began to sit behind the horizon, its rays being absorbed by the atmosphere and reflecting in the mixture of clouds and humidity in the most brilliantly beautiful sunset that I’ve seen in a long time, unfortunately I did not bring my camera with me. To remedy this issue I plan to take my camera everywhere I go from now on. Speaking of cameras, I decided to keep my Canon S3 IS., I just need to purchase or find a tripod that has a removable bracket so I can easily attach / detach the camera.

I went to Church on Sunday and headed up to Kokadjo to spend some time with dad. After eating we decided to kayak on one of the nearby ponds. When we arrived we spotted a young bull moose about 20 feet from the shoreline eating Lilly roots. I ran back to the truck to get my camera and was able to snap a few photos; unfortunately I did not have enough time to adjust the settings so the moose wouldn’t be as dark. The moose soon darted off into the woods and I followed quickly behind to snap a candid photo of it looking curiously at me. When dad and I returned to the truck we found that in our haste the doors were locked with the keys inside. We walked about a half mile up the road to another pond where he knew a lady that had some tools to open a door. The walk was nice as the cool air was filled with the scent of raspberries and pine; the skyline had a backdrop of mountains and the clear sky that went from dark to light blue.

After getting the truck unlocked we headed out onto the pond. I wanted to take my camera out but was unsure of how stable I would be on the kayak, I found that I was stable and next time I’ll bring my camera out. As soon as we were on the water we spotted 4 other moose spread throughout the shoreline. I quietly drifted towards one of the moose and was roughly 25 feet from it until it started to walk towards me. I spotted a few loons and attempted to get close to them but they dove under and swam away. Loons are beautiful visually and audibly, I didn’t realize they could stay under water for so long.

I had a really good time kayaking; I’m highly considering purchasing my own kayak from Old Town Canoe. I never realized that Old Town was so popular throughout the US and worldwide. Now that I think of it, I’ve seen Old Town canoes and kayaks in Virginia, on TV, etc. The name Old Town is actually a name of a town in Maine that’s actually 15 miles from where I live. L.L. Bean is another popular, high quality company that was started and based in Maine.

I wanted to take a panoramic photo of Mount Katahdin and was able to take a perfectly aligned photo. Mt. Katahdin is 5,270 feet high and is the last mountain of the Appellation trail. On the way back to the camp we picked about a quart of raspberries, I had to fill my camera case. I plan on baking a raspberry pie very soon. I left shortly after returning to the camp as it was getting late and I wanted to leave in time to take photos of the sunset over Moosehead Lake in Greenville.

The following photos were taken in Greenville: Candian Geese flying by, Almost there, So close, Tall shot, sunset and Sunset 2.

Yesterday after Church I drove 180 miles north to Kokadjo, it’s roughly 20 miles past Greenville, Maine. The weather was hovering around 86 with a hazy sky (not from smog). When I arrived we ate cheeseburgers that I had prepared earlier. We had planned on hiking but Dad did not bring the right shoes so instead we went 4-wheeling. The air is freshly filled with the scent of water, pine trees and pure air, it’s rejuvenating. We stopped at Penobscot pond which is 18 miles from Roach pond, where Dad’s camp is located. Penobscot pond had some very large tadpoles, it appears that these tadpoles will turn into large frogs if a Snapper does not decide to have a snack.

Later in the day I went swimming with my cousin Hunter. The water was 60 degrees, which was cold until your body adjusted. After swimming we decided to hunt for Crayfish, which look like mini-Lobsters. We found three hiding under a few large rocks near the shore. Dad boiled them and we all ate one to see if they taste like Lobster, to my surprise they do!

On the way home I snapped a few photos of the sunset over Lilly bay. I did not see one Moose on the ride home which was very unusual.

Here are some of the photos I took: Dad & I, Live Crayfish, Live Crayfish, Cooked Crayfish, Eaten Crayfish, baby Ducks, sunset and the sunset few minutes later.

My mother had been planning on coming up for Mother’s day weekend to visit me and her parents. Her parents did not know she was coming up visit as it was a surprise. Her flight was due to arrive at 11AM but actually got in twelve hours later due to massive fog in Boston. I picked her up at Bangor International and we headed home.

The next morning we went to her parent’s house in Dexter. She went up the stairs and said, “I’m here to pick up my donut cutter”. My grandmother’s jaw looked like it hit the floor she was so surprised. We visited for awhile and headed to Bangor to do a little shopping. We went to the Orono Bog Boardwalk but arrived too late. We went home and watched Pirates of the Caribbean.

The next day we got up early to go to Denny’s for breakfast, which was packed due to it being Mother’s Day. After we ate we attended Church than proceeded to my grandparent’s for dinner. My grandparents finally got a DVD player; it’s one of the VHS / DVD combo players. Their children had converted all of their home videos to DVD for them and the rest of the family. After a few hours of visiting we dropped off some candies at Jack’s mother’s apartment and went shopping at the mall.

On Monday we went back to the boardwalk, there were a lot of people there. The walk was very interesting; I learnt that Pitcher plants and Sundew plants actually grew in the wild in Maine.

Mom went home early Tuesday morning with only a few delays in Bangor due to the weather. The only days we had rain was Friday and Tuesday which worked out well. I had a very good time with her this past weekend.

Today was a very nice fall day for Maine, roughly in the 50’s, cool and crisp with a bright sunshine. I got up early today… I normally sleep in. I saw that it was a nice clear day so I got ready and headed for Bar Harbor, Maine.

The Foliage on the way to Bar Harbor was very pretty, so many bright yellow and orange leaves, they gave off their own radiance as if they have a light source within. After I passed through Ellsworth, I was nearly to Bar Harbor, I could see the Ocean, the tide was out, which is just what I wanted. I stopped and took a few photos of the seaweed beach. It’s amazing to think how the moon affects so many things on this Earth. After taking photos and just sitting on a rock breathing in the salty air I got in the car and made my way to Bar Harbor. I decided to take one of the Acadia routes around Cadillac Mountain and towards Sand Beach. There were surprisingly a lot of people at the beach, not swimming of course, but just hanging out. Sand Beach is made of sand and tiny pieces of sea shells. It was great to relax on the beach and climb the salted rocks to the right of Sand Beach. I’ve seen a lot of beaches, but you can only see a beach like this in Maine or in other eastern States. You first see the Ocean, then the sandy beach and then Evergreens all in one package.

After awhile, I headed towards Thunder Hole, which is a cave in the ledge along the beach, when the tide is in, it makes a thundering canon noise, hence the name. After the sites, I just drove throughout the park and took random photos of the scenery. I kept thinking, “How can anyone say and believe that there is no God?”. Everywhere you look, you see His Glory and works in His Creation. There is no way that everything you see from the chemical makeup of metals that form from different elements to the very simplistic way of communication, mathematics, “just happened”. Everything is created to Glorify God, see Romans 11:36.

So, for all of readers out there, here are some photos for you to enjoy. They are cropped to save bandwidth, but if you’d like to have the original size, send me an e-mail.