On Tuesday morning at 8:45 we left to begin our journey to Acadia National Park. We would be there from Tuesday to Friday morning. Mr. Shawn Shultz, Ms. Elizabeth Garret, Mrs. Christine Arsenault, Mr. Andy Bosworth, Mr. Barry Lonhes, Ms. Susan Small, and Mr. Chris Dumaine came, Mr. Scott Foyt would be meeting us there on Wednesday and, Mr. Mike Burnham would follow on Thursday. It took about three hours to get there, and boy were we bored!

At 10:30 we arrived at Blackwood’s Campground. When we were done setting up our tents, Ms. Small’s voice rang out. (Were hiking up Gorham Mountain grab your gear and lets go.) We loaded the buses and headed to Gorham mountain. Going up the mountain our hands clenched the rock as we pulled our selves up the mountain. We hiked up to the top; it was steep but not that bad. On the top it was foggy; otherwise it would have been beautiful scenery and; as our luck would have it, it began raining again, so the trails became very treacherous. The rain shattered against our face as we headed down the mountain. As Mr. Bosworth was helping students down steep rocks one or two students fell on Mr. Bosworth, and Ms. Small would throw out a comment like, ” Keep your hands off him he is a married man.” Which made everyone laugh and brighten their sprits up. Down at the bottom of the mountain we again loaded up the buses and headed back to camp for supper then it would be bed time.

At six the next morning we were awakened by Ms. Small’s voice telling us to get up, and one by one people started to come out of their tents with ruffled hair. We ate breakfast and got on the bus heading for Bar Harbor. We were going on a whale watch! When we got to Bar Harbor the teachers gave out bonnie (sea sick pills). The first half of the trip everyone was pretty much fine until we started to see whales and they would stop the boat. It would rock back and forth, up and down as the waves splashed the boat. That’s when people started to get sick. We saw about a half dozen whales.

After the whale watch we headed to Sand Beach where we ate lunch and soaked our feet in the water. After we were split into groups, the first group did a drawing for Ms. Garret of what we saw and felt like, while the second group hiked up a mountain. When the second group came back, our group hiked up the mountain; step by step up the mountain we went. When we got to the top we did a sketch of Beehive Mountain, then we hiked to the peninsula and did a sketch there. When we arrived back down the mountain, we headed to camp. At nine that night we went back to Sand Beach to study astronomy. Mr. Dumaine and Mr. Bosworth gave a presentation on the stars. We saw satellites, and they told us the story of Cassiopeia. Then we headed back to the campsite, for tomorrow was going to be a big day we hiking up two mountains!

At six on Thursday morning Ms. Small’s voice was gone so she had to resort to shaking the tents and one or two times she would ask if she had already harassed the tent and would resume shaking the tent until someone answered. At eight we left for Seawall, where Mr. Shultz and Mr. Bosworth would give a presentation on Marine Biology. While we were looking for three different kinds of sea animals, Louie Masi found an eel. We also found a sea cucumber, tons of crabs and a starfish.

We then left for Ships Harbor where a friend of Mr. Bosworths would give us a presentation. When we walked to a point of Ships Harbor she gave us a presentation on ecology. After we hiked down to the lake Mr. Lohnes told us the history of Ships Harbor. It was then followed by a walk to another part of Ships Harbor where we ate lunch and studied eco zones. At that time the teachers decided to eliminate Plying Mountain for they thought the kids would be to exhausted to hike two mountains. So we headed to Bubble Rock. Bubble Rock was steep but worth the hike; the scenery was astounding. Mr. Foyt made everyone who was on the edge back up for his fear was that one of us was going to faint and going rolling down the mountain! After Bubble Rock we headed back to camp for showers! I think this was the favorite part of the trip getting to take a shower after four days. We were split into groups, when the first group went the other groups made supper.

After showers and supper it was Ghost stories, the stories they told would make you jump out of your skin! That made some of the students have a hard nights sleep.

On Friday morning we packed up our tents, packed up the rider and loaded the bus for Cadillac mountain. Our last mountain. Most of the kids got souvenirs in the store that they had there. Next it was McDonalds and home.

If asked what their favorite part was, some would say raccoon hunting as a joke, while others would say the whale watch or Bubble Rock, while most of us would say the whole experience was amazing. So these were our days, spent hiking mountains, cold nights in tents, and where new friendships began.