Acadia National Park: Day 2

Panorama of Matt, working a boulder problem a mile past Sand Beach, ME. Matt worked that route and got it, showing his star-power once on top. More in article.
Panorama of myself on a lone tower on a rounded-boulder beach, .3 miles past Thunder Hole, ME. More in article.
Panorama of myself on top of Otter Cliffs, Acadia National Park, ME. More in article.

Acadia National Park: DAY 2: The day began with a bang! Matt and I shower. It's the 29th, which means that it's Day 30 for me or for The Big Trip. This is my 10th shower. 10 showers/30 days. Not a great ratio. Over the next few days I will definitely take advantage of free hot water and shower myself albino. Or clean.

Matt and I boulder. A lot. We hike maybe 10 miles for the day, to and fro amongst piles of boulders and choss (bad rock to climb) and just plain old rock along the ocean. It's really nice weather. Some cirrus clouds wisp around the edges of the sky like fairies sprinkling dust on our vista. Sightseers, beware: Here lies a sight! As we come to areas to boulder, we hike down to them off the main trail, after parking at Sand Beach where the throngs of cars and people are.

Matt stands victorious on top of the climb shown in the panorama (Top).

We find a spot and boulder. Above us are tourists. I hear them speaking mandarin Chinese, so when I climb to the top of the boulder and the father gives me a nod, I ask in Chinese, "Do you speak Chinese?" This is followed by a conversation about climbing and what great fun it is. His son, who has watched us climb chimes in as well! I'm having a blast climbing and speaking Chinese off the coast of Maine. Matt laughs as he spots a young Japanese kid who solos up a gully just as tall as our problems! His mom watches him, video camera in hand. I look at Matt and think: we've just been outdone!
Oh well! Chin up! We move to this other area and I spot a tower that would be awesome to get on top of. I set up the crash pad. I'm not sure why: If I were to fall from up there, it wouldn't do me much good! But it's a laugh of a picture:
After much bouldering in the sun, we catch wind of an "awesome bouldering cave" on the other side of Sand Beach. It's obvious where this is. You must hike on rocks and seaweed and barnacles, dodging salt water pools all the while to arrive at this cave. It's awesome, it's true. However, it's also wet. Too wet to climb the parts that look very fun. Apparently this cave is overrun and splashed when high-tide hits. Matt stands on the outside of the cave and searches for cool routes, of which there are a few.

I head into the cave only to be both excited and turned down. I do find some moves that can be protected and aren't too wet and drippy. And so I try them out.
There's a great view from the Cave, too. Below is a panorama of it.Thunder Hole is a place where tourists gather to hear the roar of thunder as waves clap against the rock in a tunnel, or hole. Right beside this critically acclaimed Thunder Hole are a handful of fun and mentally testing high-ball problems. Matt and I get up our nerves and try them. We look up and the cirrus clouds that once feather-tickled the sky are now heavy cumulus thunderdomes, rolling in as if a hungry cook impatiently wields his/her rolling pin on the sky above. Yikes! We quickly pack up but we're too late. We're soaked and running! Crash pads make for an arduous run in downpours. It's more than .7 miles back to the car. That's too much in a thunderstorm! We arrive soppy.

We decide that it's likely the storm will pass quickly, as summer thunderstorms in Maine tend to. This decision wavers after an hour in the car in the parking lot of Sand Beach. We have played a lot of "Guess this song artist and title" with our ipods. Finally, the weather changes. Matt "swims" in the ocean. Or should I say 'jumps'? It's time for some dinner and bed. But first, we can't help but examine the locations for tomorrow's climbing while we're still in the area. Remember, our campground is a 20-or-so-minute drive away.
So we get to some high-ball bouldering area 1/4-mile offpath of the Gorham Mtn. Trail. There is a huge rainbow after the rainstorm. Surely we'll climb here tomorrow. Then we check out Otter Cliffs (above). Have you heard about the huge rockslide at Otter Cliffs? Maybe not. Matt and I examine the oceanside climbing cliffs to see what causes this:
"Ooops" says your Landescaper, N8