Bold Coast -- An Ambling Guide for Seniors

By Anura Guruge

The 'Bold Coast' is 60-miles further up Maine's fabled Downeast from 'Acadia'. The Bold Coast offers Acadia's visual glory distilled to its essence, ruggedized & minus the crowds. The word 'Acadia' way, way back referred to a 'refuge' – an idyllic place. Well, the Bold Coast is certainly that. If you like Acadia, the Bold Coast will enchant you. If you (like the author) love Acadia, the Bold Coast will entrance you. It is not one or the other. They complement each other. This is a simple, informal & pragmatic guide to the Bold Coast primarily aimed at 'senior' amblers – those that savor communing with nature, in exceptional settings, at leisure, smelling the roses. The author, very much a senior, is a rabid ambler. In this book he invites you to literally follow in his footsteps as he ambles through all the Bold Coast 'hotspots' – bar none. If you have never heard of Maine's Bold Coast this book will make you want to visit, ASAP. If you are heading to the Bold Coast you will want to have a copy of this beforehand so as to make sure you miss nothing. Color versions of the umpteen photos appearing in this book can be found, (albeit copyrighted), online. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Anura Guruge
• Release date: Sep 20, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201124021

Anura Guruge

Anura Gurugé is an independent technical consultant who specializes in all aspects of contemporary networking, corporate portals and Web services – particularly if they involve IBM host systems. He has first hand, in-depth experience in Web-to-host, SNA, Frame Relay, Token-Ring switching and ATM. He was the founder and Chairman of the SNA-Capable i·net Forum in 1997. He also teaches graduate and post-graduate computer technology and marketing at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) – Laconia/Gilford and Portsmouth campuses. He is the author of Corporate Portals Empowered with XML and Web Services (Digital Press, 2002). In addition, he has published over 320 articles. In a career spanning 29 years, he has held senior technical and marketing roles in IBM, ITT, Northern Telecom, Wang and BBN. His Web sites are: www.inet-guru.com and www.wownh.com.

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Copyright

Copyright © 2021, Anura Gurugé.

All Rights Reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

First published in September 2021.

WOWNH LLC

New Hampshire

USA

www.wownh.com

Photographic Credits:

All of the photographs & images in this book unless stated otherwise are by the author, Anura Guruge – a compulsive photographer & a veteran of PowerPoint.

Dedication

To:

The delightful denizens of

the Bold Coast

who help enhance

the whole experience.

Quintessential Bold Coast – from the northernmost edge of the ‘Coast Guard Trail’ at ‘Quoddy Head State Park’. [Chapter II]

‘Hamilton Cove’ – along the ‘Coastal/Main Trail’ as it approaches the long stretch close to the ocean. [Chapter IV]

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The Last 9 Conclaves

The Last 10 Conclaves: 2013 to 1903

The Election of the 2013 Pope

Pope Names for the 2013 Conclave

Pope John XXIII: 101 Facts & Trivia

Popes: 101 Facts & Trivia

Pope Francis’ U.S. Visit – 2015

The Conclave (published in 2020)

Electing the Next Pope (published in 2020)

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A ‘Think’ A Day, Keeps Alzheimer’s At Bay (two versions: Big & Thin)

THINK A Day – 2019

Anu’s Camera Crib Sheet.

All available worldwide – print & eBook (on all platforms).

Map 1: The Bold Coast – highlighting its location between Acadia & Canada.

Hamilton Cove, in spring, in late evening just ahead of sunset.

A smartwatch GPS track of ambling about Quoddy Head. The elevation plot attests to the rather modest elevation changes involved.

Quoddy Head Light from the ‘Inland Trail’.

Table of Contents

Preface

Notes On How To Read This Book

I. Preamble—Or More To The Point, Pre-Amble

II. Quoddy Head

III. Lubec

IV. Boot Head Preserve  & Hamilton Cove

V. Cutler, Cutler Coast, Bog Brook & Moose Cove

VI. Machias & Surrounds, Roque Bluffs & Jasper Beach

VII. The Western Fringe: Jonesport, Beals & Jonesboro

A Postamble—  Some Miscellaneous, Auxiliary Background

Select References

Preface

Hard it is to teach the old horse to amble anew.

—Edmund Spenser, ‘The Faerie Queene’, 16th century

Indeed, what more could you want? A little garden to amble about in, and infinite space to dream in. ...

—Victor Hugo (1802 – 1855)

I don't like either the word [hike] or the thing. People ought to saunter in the mountains - not 'hike’!

—John Muir, Father of the National Parks (1838 – 1914)

This book is an attempt to shine a much-needed spotlight on the bewitching & enduring magnificence of Maine’s ‘Bold Coast’ – the far reaches of Downeast, way beyond ‘Acadia’. It is not a matter of the Bold Coast playing second fiddle to the justly famed Acadia. In Maine’s abundance of scenic & wilderness destinations of note, the Bold Coast, inexplicably, is a hinterland – little known, & as such overlooked & unappreciated. In 2020, when I did a book search for ‘Bold Coast’ the only book that came up had the title ‘Beyond Acadia’. ‘Bold Coast’ was relegated to the subtitle.

I had visited Acadia (including Schoodic) close to 15 times & spent at least 50-days in that region without ever hearing about the Bold Coast – 2-hours up the road. I stumbled upon the Bold Coast on Facebook – in a group dedicated to hiking Maine. I saw some pictures & thought it was Acadia, but they looked unfamiliar. So, I inquired. I was told they were from the Bold Coast. ‘Ah!’ ‘What?’ ‘Where?’ I immediately Googled. This was 2020, the ‘Year of COVID’. But, I knew I had to visit. I am sure glad I did. I was hooked. This book is my way of trying to share my serendipity with you.

I am not qualified to write a generalized guide to the Bold Coast. Plus, the 307-page ‘Beyond Acadia’, in brilliant, full-color, addresses that need. I, however, as a habitual writer still wanted to publicize the manifold delights I had stumbled upon. Then it struck me. I had spent most of my time happily ambling – savoring the sights. And, I am most certainly a senior, &, moreover, a daily ambler. Bingo! Thus, this book.

I am not striving for anything profound with this book. It is meant to be an informal, but informative ‘chat’ as to how us seniors can have a ball ambling through the grandeur that is the Bold Coast. My goal was to gather as much information as possible in one place, in an ordered manner, with my recommendations thrown in as a bonus (or otherwise) – at an affordable (near-giveaway) price.

[You should see from the price, which is basically at ‘cost’, that I am not expecting to become rich from this book. For 20-years (+) of my life I was ‘Mr. SNA’ & for 9-years ‘Baby Lactogen’. So, if, thanks to this book, I was to become ‘Mr. Bold Coast, Sr.’ I would be ‘OK’ with that. As you might perceive, I have become real partial to The Coast. I feel privileged to be able to sing its praises & bring it to your notice.]

Yes, this book did start off as a ‘hiking guide’. I then started having doubts. I am in full concurrence with (the esteemed) John Muir (above). I like to saunter – which, as far as I am concerned, is no different to ‘amble’, or even ‘mosey’. The term ‘hiking’ appears to have been hijacked. It seems to have become too regimentalized. There is increasing emphasis on ‘achieving set goals’ (which invariably seem to involve gains in elevation) & having the right gear, as opposed to the simple joy of just communing with nature. I am hoping that by stressing ‘amble’ I will give you the license to take your time enjoying the Bold Coast rather than trying to see how many trails you can complete.

Please note that the word ‘camping’ does not appear on the cover. This book most certainly is not a camping guide. There is nobody less qualified to write about camping than I. I will leave it at that. I do mention a few campsites – in passing. That, however, is it. If you want to go camping on the Bold Coast the most I do here is to tell you about the options you might have of getting to the desired campsites on foot.

There really should be little mystery as to how to read this book. In terms of structure it should be straightforward – with explicit, self-explanatory chapter headings (& subheadings). That said, on the next page, i.e., ‘Notes ...’, I explain some of my idiosyncrasies, especially my penchant for (apparently arbitrary) highlighting of text. I hope you come to appreciate that there may be some method to my madness.

I do plan to augment this book with Web content. For a start, I will publish (for free), color versions of all of my photos & maps that appear in this book. Please start by visiting: guruge.com/boldcoast.

I hope you find this book of use. I am sure you will relish the Bold Coast. It is hard not to. You can share your experiences via: guruge.com. I wish you happy ambling.

Anura Gurugé

Lakes Region, New Hampshire

July 2021

Notes On How To Read This Book

The layout of the book: This book does not have to be read sequentially. You can, at will, pick & choose what you want to peruse & how you do it. Each chapter is self-contained. That said, it would be beneficial to at least skim over Chapter I. That will provide you: with an introduction to the Bold Coast, essential bearings (including some maps) & a complete listing of the ‘attractions’ covered in the book. Early pages in this chapter will make sure that you are never at a loss as to what you can find in this book—& where. You will also find an Index on page 121.

Images in color: Full color versions of all the images in this book are available (gratis) at: guruge.com/boldcoast.

[The author owns the domain: boldcoastguide.com & time permitting will build it up to be a ‘real-time’ adjunct to this book with a growing library of images & links to pertinent resources.]

Informal style: The tone of this book is far from formal. It is a guide to a v. scenic part of the world. An ambling guide. It is not meant to be a treatise – though it strives to be informative & accurate (per a trademark of the author). The author wants it to be akin to a chat—& hopefully this will come across.

Use of highlighting: Used extensively and sometimes arbitrarily for emphasis – in particular to draw the reader’s attention to key Bold Coast names. The intent should become increasingly clear as you go along.

Use of italics: Also used liberally & definitely more than the norm, though not, albeit, that capriciously! Italics are primarily used: (1) for (added) emphasis, (2) to further highlight names or, (3) to signify words/phrases that are being used in a context atypical to how they are best known.

‘Words’ (‘phrases’) in quotation marks: The author (who has written a book about the names of popes) has a ‘thing’ about names. He likes to emphasize them & make sure that they register with the reader. To this end, he uses bold, italics & ‘quotation marks’ to highlight pertinent names – the first few times they get used. Once a name has been mentioned ‘enough’, he will start using it without any embellishment. He fully recognizes this as an idiosyncrasy & affectation & as such begs your indulgence. He just has this thing that names are important & need to be emphasized. So, you will see a pattern. Bold Coast Names, when first used, in the book or in a chapter, are heavily emphasized. Then, with each usage the amount of emphasis decreases. Note that the author is a Brit. They punctuate differently!

As with italics quotation marks are sometimes used when a term or word gets used differently to its ‘base’ meaning – another ‘bad’ habit of the author’s. Hopefully these foibles will not detract you from