Chimani – an awesome Acadia NP app

A new app providing all sorts of cool information about Acadia National Park just hit the iTunes store. Chimani, a company run by fellow Mainer Kerry Gallivan, recently released the first in a series of national park applications for the iPod Touch, the iPhone and the iPad. Versions for other platforms such as Android (July 1) and Palm are also in the works.

This is a multimedia application that truly packs a punch, with interactive maps, detailed photographs, descriptive audio clips, and a wealth of information for anyone interested in exploring the park. I recently had an opportunity to test the app out, and I can categorically report that it did not disappoint.

For a while I have wanted to explore some of the carriage trails in and around the Jordan Pond House, so on a recent visit I carried my iPod Touch with me as I headed south and away from the parking lot. I was trying to find the famous Cobblestone Bridge, and using the interactive map included in the app to do so was a breeze. More than just a topographical map though, the app also offers details and ideas for just about every activity a visitor to Acadia might be interested in. As someone who likes to photograph in the park, the sunrise/sunset and tide schedules are especially useful.

Major features include an auto tour, sunrise/sunset tool, tides tool, Island Explorer shuttle bus schedule, off-line high-resolution maps, audio guide, ranger-led events, hiking, bicycling, camping, horseback riding, lighthouses, museums, parking, restrooms, picnicking, swimming, birding, boat launches, and fishing guide. (http://www. chimani.com)

I enjoyed exploring the wealth of historical and geographical information available on the many points of interest included in the app, and it certainly suits my preference for a guide to the park. Incredibly easy to use, there is a level of depth to the resources provided that makes this app a must-have for the traveler interested in exploring Acadia National Park.

I love Acadia and all that it offers, and as a resource for those seeking to learn about and experience the park to its fullest, this app truly does it justice. I highly recommend downloading it from the iTunes store. Oh yes… regular visitors to my blog might recognize some of the photographs : )

Bass Harbor Light, Acadia National Park

Bass Harbor Light is quintessential Maine. Part of Acadia National Park, it is a classic New England-style lighthouse perched on jagged rocks overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

I was looking through some archived files, and based on the number of images I have from here it is obvious that I must have visited this location quite often. It is a place that I genuinely enjoy being at… whether I am fighting off the summer mosquitoes, enjoying the fog-dampened sound of the buoy bell, or fumbling with cold fingers in the dead of winter.

Here’s a sampling of landscape oriented images I have recorded from this spot in different seasons and at different times of the day. Though there is only a small, somewhat limiting outcrop of rocks from which to photograph this scene, as you can see I haven’t exactly been creative in my compositions… maybe it is time I returned to try to get something new? I would really like to get to the other side of the lighthouse at low tide and shoot back toward the east as the sun sets with some stormy clouds in the background, but that requires literally jumping the fence, and I just don’t do well with disobeying signs in National Parks :}

Bass Harbor Lighthouse in Acadia National Park

Today I had the good fortune to be working with a group of teachers in a school district right next door to Acadia National Park. Planning ahead, I packed my camera gear just in case the conditions in the late afternoon evolved to where a side trip for photography might be in order. It was cloudy and cold when I left the house in the morning, and by the time my workshop wound down it was sunny and VERY cold.

Despite the chilly 12 degree temperature and gusty winds that were driving the wind chill down to almost unbearable levels, I decided to make my way down to Bass Harbor in the hope that I would be able to shoot the famous landmark with some snow in the scene. The cold and wind were somewhat challenging, so perhaps it comes as no surprise that I had the place all to myself.

I arrived at low tide and was able to carefully scramble down over some snowy rocks to reach where a thick layer of ice had formed. The sun was quite low in the sky off to the left of the scene, and I was excited to see the warm winter light hitting the lighthouse. The granite in Acadia is pretty special in that it welcomes low-angled sunlight and almost glows in the right conditions, and I was especially drawn to the how the icy foreground sparkled.

I maneuvered my tripod to where it was about a foot off the ground, using the low angle to help accentuate the lines in the rock and ice leading into the scene and up to the lighthouse perched on the cliff. I bracketed three exposures and blended them together to create a representation of how the scene looked to my eyes.

Despite wearing many layers of clothing and my fingerless mitten-gloves, the cold was absolutely brutal. When actually shooting, I had to weigh down my tripod so the camera could withstand the wind gusts and help ensure a sharp image. After about an hour out on the rocks, my camera batteries decided it was too cold for them and stopped working. By that time I had enjoyed some really nice light, but was starting to struggle with the cold and wind myself. The tips of my fingers were tingling, aching and useless, so I decided not to even bother trying to replace my batteries. Even though there was still some exquisite light available, I made the decision to call it a day.

The heated seats in my Jetta brought warmth and relief that you cannot imagine. On the drive home the radio weatherman informed me that the wind chill made it feel like -10 degrees, and I couldn’t help letting my mind wander to the warmer temperatures ahead when Sam and I visit California in the next couple of weeks. Anyway, here’s Bass Harbor Lighthouse in winter… would love to hear any thoughts.