Day 114: Meddybemps to Calais to Eastport

September 22, 2021

We did it! Coast to Coast

“Today will mark our completion of coast to coast ride,” Rachel says. “Congratulations,” Diane and Cary say as we have packed up and ready to start cycling to Eastport and the coast. Diane fixed us blueberry pancakes…wild blueberries, after all we are in the region of the wild blueberry capital. Cary has given us good route advice.

The day feels like the last day of cycling of a tour, though it isn’t. Today is only marking the destination to the coast has been achieved. For so long, destinations once studied on the map, one by one reached. We still will cycle another 3 weeks to Boston, including the “official end” of the Northern Tier, Bar Harbor.

We have a few steep hills on route 214 to Charlotte Road. This road takes us through the Moosehorn Wildlife Refuge Area and on the Route 1A bike route and East Coast Greenway. The road is not too busy with traffic, and beautiful. Toward the end of the road before merging back to Route 9, the road follows an abandoned railroad line. We look for moose but have no luck.

Back onto the Airline Road, only a few miles we ride through Calais, another one of those destinations on the map now realized. At a junction in town, left would have taken us across the International Bridge into Canada. We turn right and head south on Coastal US 1 with a shoulder and into a headwind. We take a break at the 45 degree latitude marker where we also dry our tent.

At Perry we pick up a small section of paved bike trail onto the peninsula that leads us to Eastport. The trail runs through a section of an Indian reservation. There is a narrow causeway, we stop to take some photos of us reaching the Atlantic. Eastport is a nice looking town, but many businesses are closed today. There is only one motel and fortunately we have a reservation because they are fully booked. The only place open in town for dinner is the Old Sow Grill.

A huge mug of local beer, fish and chips and a long awaited lobster roll is our celebration dinner.