"Heading Back"

I have made it past the halfway point!  I spent the last few days in Acadia National Park on the Southern coast of Maine.  It was too early for the fall colors to be out yet, but the park was still very pretty.  I spent the first full day exploring the park proper, which has a 25 mile one way loop running through it.  Being right on the edge of the Atlantic in the middle of a very green forest added for some amazing scenery.  I was surprised by how different the Atlantic Ocean is; it doesn't have the big waves or salty smell that you get on the West Coast.  Although, the Maine coastline islands offered some really cool ocean views.

I also took a day to head out to Quoddy Head State Park to see the Eastern-most point in the continental US.  There was a lighthouse there (red and white like out of a story), and it was surreal to realize how far I had come in the last few months.  Then, I turned around and headed back.  From here on out, everyday I get a little closer to home.  This trip has been amazing and I am really looking forward to the second half, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a bit tired.

Quoddy Head Lighthouse and the edge of the US

Right now, I'm exploring some of the historical sites in Pennsylvania, like Independence Hall and Gettysburg, before heading down to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to start off a stretch of 3 parks in a row (Shenandoah, Congaree, and Great Smoky Mountains).  Then, I turn West.