Statistics on Maine trip 09-19-16

Part of taking a Road Trip are the statistics, so if you are ho-hum about them skip this post!

From Placentia to Schoodic Institute/Acadia Nat'l Park, Maine  3861 miles
From Schoodic Institute/Acadia Nat'l Park, Maine to Placentia 3556 miles   Why the difference?  Well, I drove around the Park and that part of Maine for about 150 miles.  And I came home a different way that I drove out.  Total miles: 7417
 
Outward I took the 91 Fwy to I-15 to I-70 in Utah then east to Columbus, Ohio.  North on I-71 to Cleveland, and the east on I-90 to Portland, ME, and various small highways to Acadia Nat'l Park.  Schoodic is actually a separate part of the park on a penninsula slightly northeast.
Returning I drove the opposite way on the same roads, did not take a detour to see Ruth McDowell in MA, until I arrived in Limon, CO.  Then SW on US 24 to Colorado Springs to pick up I-25 south to Albuquerque, NM.   From there it is I-40 all the way to Barstow, CA. where I was back on I-15 and thence home.

This was not a sightseeing trip and I only stopped at two quilt shops and the New England Quilt Museum  (for a total expenditure of $214.94 for gifts and fabric)

I ate out twice. First at The Painted Pony in St George, Utah, where I enjoyed a meal on a previous trip and again on this one.  And at the Marriott in Portland, ME, on the advice of AAA and it was good advice - perfectly cooked salmon.  Other than that I ate from my small ice chest which I restocked periodically with stops at grocery stores and gleanings from the "free" breakfast at the motels I stayed at. .

Motel cost:  $2078.69 for 15 nights.  Comes to $138.58/night which is less than the estimated $150.  With the exception of one night at Comfort Inn and one at Fairfield Inn, the nights were all spent at Holiday Inn Express.  

My gas cost was $684.42.  The cheapest gas was $1.959 In Missouri  going both ways.
The most expensive at Cove Fort, Utah (which is, admittedly, out in the middle of nowhere) was $2.599.  Ten cents a gallon more than I paid before leaving Placentia.  And I used 271.41 gallons of fuel. 

Although I had sprinkles here and there, the only real rain was in Lowell, MA, Albuquerque, NM, and Las Vegas, NM.  Seems that almost the entire country is suffering from drought.

When I travel I eat crackers, which I rarely eat at home.  Most commercial crackers are too salty for me, but it is hard to find unsalted crackers.  I tried some gluten free at Schoodic and they were perfect, but I couldn't find any of those at the market.  I bought Blue Diamond Gluten Free Artisan Nut-Thins with Flax seed which were good, if too salty.  Also ate Nabisco Good Thins Potato with White Cheddar which were delicious but even saltier.  And Triscuits with Olive Oil and Rosemary which anyone with a taste for rosemary would love if they can take the salt.  At home I eat Trader Joe's unsalted water crackers which go with anything.  I had a box with me on the outgoing drive and I ate them all.

The most common flower I saw was the sunflower - in all it's multitudinous variety.

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This one, at least two feet taller than I, was growing in a yard in Corea, Maine.

The flowers were quite lacy and lovely.

 

 

 

This is a more common roadside variety growing in Maine along the roadway.

 

Unfortunately, I saw few live wild animals, only a sad dead porcupine.  There was a dark colored rabbit at Schoodic and some type of chipmunk.   Along the way I saw lots of cattle, horses, milk cows, mules, alpacas, llamas, sheep, goats, and buffalo.

 

It was a good trip and I would do it again given the right time and destination.

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