In which I ride to where the sidewalk ends.

[Buckethead]

Most things in Maine can be found elsewhere. There are plenty of places with trees. Many of those places also have mountains. A few of them even have the combination of mountains and trees along with a fantastic coast line.

No place in the western hemisphere offers a better vantage point for all of these natural wonders than the Penobscot Narrows Bridge and Observatory.

Now its not just my Mainer pride that makes me say this. I'm not a Mainer. I'm a transplant. No mater how long I live here, I'll always be From Away. No, the fact is, the observatory at the top of the western tower of the Penobscot Narrows Bridge is one of 3 of its kind. One is in Thailand. Another is in Slovenia. The one just outside Bucksport, ME, is the only one of its kind in the western hemisphere. And damn is it cool!

There was an article in Rider magazine a while back that sparked my interest. Alan Paulsen had come to Maine in search of moose. While he didn't have much luck finding the elusive quadrupeds, he did manage to stumble across the tallest occupied structure in the state. His travelogue inspired me to hit the road on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon.

Viewed from Rt 1, approaching from the south:


The left hander to get down to the park is a tricky little sensor light, and I hadn't had lunch, so I headed down to the Bucksport House of Pizza and caught a great view from across the bay. Fort Knox is on the right.


Finished lunch and headed down to the park. Admission of $5 lets you traipse all over Ft. Knox and gets you a ticket for the tower. The new bridge is just downstream from its predecessor and parking is underneath the two.


The entrance is at the base of the south tower.


The elevator, the tallest and fastest in Maine, New Hampshire, or Vermont, takes about 50 seconds to get you up to the equivalent of the 42nd story. I was amused to see the buttons in the elevator marked 1st and 2nd floor. The view that greets you:


The Observatory Deck:


Awww.... They look like ants!


The town of Bucksport, ME, as viewed from the top.


Hello down there, little Ducati!


Back down at the bottom, the trusty Duc and I decided to storm Fort Knox. I hear there's gold in there!


Interestingly, Ft. Knox, ME, and Ft. Knox, KY, were named for the same Maj. Gen. Henry Knox, America's first Secretary of War.

While the fort tour experience is absolutely as cool as the Observatory tour, the pictures don't really do it justice.

If your plans ever include a stop-over in Midcoast Maine you should go out of your way to play tourist at this place. If you happen to be on your moto, I recommend heading up on Rt. 1 to take in the coastal scenery, but head back via Rt. 3 through Augusta for a better ride.

[StrikeJollyRoger]

Thanks for the pics and for the route recommendation!  I'll be sure to check it out sometime soon!

[TiNi]

looks like you enjoyed your sunday
great pics and sounds like a nice ride too  [moto]

[DesmoDiva]

Thank for the write up and picts.   

Now if we only could get one of these bridges to replace the Peace Bridge in Buffalo.  We could probably see Niagara Falls and most of southern Ontario including Toronto to the north, Rochester to the east, Erie to the west and the Allegahny region to the south.  It is flat out here.

[Shortie]

Looks like an awesome time! That is a really beautiful area!

I remember that article in Rider... I still can't believe the author failed to see a single moose the whole time

Another great thing about this area - it's just a stone's throw from Mt. Desert Island!

[mstevens]

Looks as if I need to head over and take a look.

Great photos!

[Buckethead]

Thanks, all!

Made for a great Sunday afternoon ride. Couple of hours up, mill around for a while, couple of hours back. The weather was great, if a bit hot. There was an obscene amount of American Iron on the road, a few of whom I got stuck behind for a while. Even at the park, I saw no less than a dozen Harleys and a total of 2 helmets, not including my own. It was almost enough to make me feel like cafe-racing Eurotrash. 

Also, I don't know if it has something to do with the rich sea-level air, or if it had more to do with me cruising at 65 in 4th at around 4500rpm as much as I could, but I managed to squeeze 160 miles out of 3 gallons of gas. A new record for me, by far. That includes the occasional short spurt up to 90 (or so) mph while passing!

I have a Google map of my trip saved, but I can't figure out how to post it up. Anyone?

[CougarSlayer]

Yeah sounds like fun great pictures now I am trying to find how I can get up there on my bike and bring my wife and kid.  Just mapped it out its about 200 miles from my house.  Definitely going to try to get up there before the end of the summer

-panthro

[Buckethead]

Now if we only could get one of these bridges to replace the Peace Bridge in Buffalo.  We could probably see Niagara Falls and most of southern Ontario including Toronto to the north, Rochester to the east, Erie to the west and the Allegahny region to the south.  It is flat out here.

Wiki says that the cable-stay design was proposed for the replacement/expansion bridge but was rejected "due to concerns that endangered birds would possibly fly into the bridge." You know, if the birds were a bit smarter, maybe they wouldn't be endangered? 

It also says that decision is being appealed, so it may just happen. 

It would definitely be cool. Hell, you could probably see all the way to Alfred on a clear day. Not that Alfred ever has a clear day. 

[DesmoDiva]

Wiki says that the cable-stay design was proposed for the replacement/expansion bridge but was rejected "due to concerns that endangered birds would possibly fly into the bridge." You know, if the birds were a bit smarter, maybe they wouldn't be endangered? 

It also says that decision is being appealed, so it may just happen. 

I'm not going to hold my breath on a great replacement bridge design.  I just don't think that it will ever happen.  There are peoples in high places that are trying their hardest to keep this area down.

It would definitely be cool. Hell, you could probably see all the way to Alfred on a clear day. Not that Alfred ever has a clear day. 

I can remember clear days...

They were memorable because they were few and far between.   

[Buckethead]

They were memorable because they were few and far between.   

Amen, sister.

[CRASH!]

That was a sweet little ride report. Thanks for sharing  [moto]

Might be more day trip than I'm up for though; 226 mi one way, almost all slab. I'm good for 400+ mile days, but only of 250+ are twisties.

May have to think about heading up to Maine for my fall tour instead of VT/NY...