Down East Coast - Adventure Guide to Maine - page 287

walk could reward you with eagle or moose sightings. Drive to 191 south
on a local road, then go east on 191 to 214. Take 214 south to West
Pembroke , site of the Reversing Falls, then go south on US 1 through
Machias , the site of Burnham Tavern, where the first naval battle of the
Revolutionary War was planned. While in Machias, plan a side trip to
Jasper Beach and Roque Bluffs for beach combing. Continue on U.S. 1
to Cherryfield , then west on 182 through Franklin to US 1; drive south
on 1 back to Ellsworth.
Routes courtesy Maine Department of Conservation
Route 15, Orland to Stonington
35 miles, 1 hour, one way
Highlights: Poet Robert Frost would love to have driven on Route 15
from Orland to Stonington. From a visitor's perspective it is truly the road
less travelled.
Route: Jump on Route 15 where it meets Route 1/3 about five miles east
of Bucksport . Also called the Blue Hill Road , this minor highway
sticks to the high ground as it heads south toward the coast, passing the
small village of North Penobscot. Route 15 takes hard right in North Blue
Hill and drops quickly past the town's namesake mountain (with its open
fields and hiking trails) toward the quaint yet trendy harbor village of
Blue Hill.
From Blue Hill Route 15 makes another hard right and courses inland
and for a while (here the road also has Route 176 markers). Apparently
Maine has more routes than roads and one road often carries more than
one numerical designation for part of its run.
Bear left at the next “t” intersection and begin a straight southerly shot
toward Deer Isle . Watch for the picnic area on the right a couple of miles
south of where Route 175 joins from the west.
Soon open fields provide spectacular glimpses of the Eggemoggin
Reach Suspension Bridge, with its high arch and graceful towers.
Suspended Safely?
Like the suspension bridge over the Penobscot River between
Prospect and Verona Island at Bucksport, the Deer Isle bridge is
similar in design to the famous one Tacoma Narrows, which was
twisted apart when high winds set up harmonic vibrations. Both
Maine bridges have been altered to diminish this potential prob-
lem, but the Deer Isle bridge is known to sway in high winds,
prompting many squeamish local residents to avoid it on windy
days.