The full size bed took up all but a narrow path that circled the perimeter of the room requiring us to take turns as we got dressed in the dark. We had chosen this bed and breakfast because of sentimentality. We got engaged here almost a half century earlier. We’d chosen this particular room because of the lower cost and the fact that it was available on short notice.

I didn’t need my phone alarm to rouse me although I had set it as a precaution. I woke up naturally when I heard my husband get up first and, once he finished dressing, I got out of bed reluctantly but determined not to miss the first rays of sunshine to hit the East Coast. We were quick and ready to leave in ten minutes giving us just enough time to get to Cadillac Mountain before the scheduled sunrise which according to our tandem google searches the day before would be 4:50 am.

We quietly walked down the narrow staircase and opened the large wooden entrance to the Castlemaine Inn eager to see the impending sunrise only to be greeted by light immediately followed by confusion. Not being early risers and having rarely seen a previous sunrise, we didn’t understand that the darkness slowly starts dissipating before the sun officially rises.

Since we were already up, we made our way to Acadia National Park anyway. It was a short 8 minute drive to the Cadillac Mountain entrance. Once we were inside the park, we began maneuvering the winding road to the top but well before reaching the parking lot we began seeing cars parked on the side of the road a sure sign that the lot was already full and that we had gravely misunderstood the popularity of being the first to see the sunrise in the United States.

Cadillac Mountain at Sunrise

Cadillac Mountain at Sunrise

Cadillac Mountain at Sunrise

We found a spot tucked off on the side of the road and proceeded to rapidly walk towards the summit.  We had left so little buffer time to get there for the official sunrise that we raced to the top although, as it was already light out, we probably could have walked a little more leisurely.  As we got closer to the top, we saw that people were everywhere. The stone wall that bordered the left of the parking lot had been commandeered with people squeezed into every open spot of the winding wall.

Cadillac Mountain during the day.

Cadillac Mountain during the day.

Cadillac Mountain during the day.

Cadillac Mountain during the day.

The summit also had pockets of people in every nook and cranny many who looked like they had camped out for many hours if not overnight. There were people huddled in blankets and others dressed for summer. The one thing they all had in common was that they had planned their sunrise viewing better than we had.

The clouds covered all but a few slivers of the sky limiting the view but there were still some stunning bands of yellows, with occasional hints of pink and orange peaking through. It was beautiful and even if we were not the first to see the sunrise, as that honor goes to someone who planned far better than us, it was still fun to join this expansive group who made it to Cadillac mountain to be the first to see the sunrise on the east coast.

I’ve also included pictures from our day time visit to the summit that we took the day prior to our sunrise stop proving that Cadillac Mountain is beautiful no matter what time you come.