Jackman, ME to Burlington, VT

This was a pleasant day of driving through New England.  I have spent twelve days passing back and forth across the northern half of this region.  I have drawn no conclusion, and I didn't expect to.  I just wanted to experience the area for all of its worth.

Along the way today I visited my second unusual bridge in Maine.  The first was the cribstone bridge between Orr Island and Bailey Island in the Mid-Coast Region.  This second bridge was in New Portland, and is a cable suspension bridge called the Wire Bridge.  It was completed in 1866, and looks like a miniature version of the Brooklyn Bridge, which was built seven years later.  Here it is:

Wire Bridge Over Carrabassett River

New Portland, Maine

Wire Bridge Over Carrabassett River

New Portland, Maine

New Portland got its name on account of being given to the residents of Portland (formerly Falmouth), Maine, as compensation for losses suffered at the hands on the British in 1775.

The Bailey Island bridge is the only cribstone bridge in the world.  The cribstone design allows tidal waters to pass through the bridge, thereby greatly reducing the effect the flow would have on boats passing through the channel under the bridge.

Cribstone Bridge Between

Orr Island and Bailey Island, Maine

Mileage: 328.  Cumulative mileage: 5,505