Hike – Champlain Mountain, Huguenot Head, Beachcroft Trail, Champlain North Ridge Trail

The Thrumcap as seen from Champlain Mountain

This post describes a loop hike that traverses Champlain Mountain from west to north, with a walk back along part of the Park Loop Road.  In my opinion, on a clear, sunny day there is no better place to be in Acadia National Park than atop Champlain Mountain with its views of the ocean and surrounding area.

Hike – Four Summits, Bald Peak, Parkman Mountain, Gilmore Peak, and Sargent Mountain via Hadlock Brook Trail, Bald Peak Trail, Bald-Parkman Connector, Parkman Mountain Trail, Grandgent Trail, Sargent South Ridge Trail, Maple Spring Trail

The first three peaks summited (all in foreground)

This post describes a loop hike that summits four of the mountains west of Jordan Pond, including Sargent Mountain (the second highest peak in Acadia National Park), and then ends with a beautiful walk alongside a stream.

Directions: Take Routes 3 and 198 north out of Northeast Harbor.  Just after passing the end of Upper Hadlock Pond, which will be on the right, there will be a small parking area on the left off the side of the road.  Since this is the trailhead for several trails to Parkman Mountain, Bald Peak, Norumbega Mountain, and others, there may be cars also lined up along the side of the road.  The trailhead for this hike is across the highway from the north end of the lot.  Take care crossing since traffic will be going fast.

Hike – Norumbega Mountain, Goat Trail, Norumbega Mountain Trail, Hadlock Ponds Trail, Norumbega Connector

View from the summit of Norumbega Mountain

This post describes a loop hike that traverses Norumbega Mountain, which hugs the east side of Somes Sound in Acadia National Park.  This hike provides a physical challenge at the start, and varied conditions along the way, but the views are in short supply compared to other mountains in the park.

Directions: Take Routes 3 and 198 north out of Northeast Harbor.  Just after passing the end of Upper Hadlock Pond, which will be on the right, there will be a small parking area on the left off the side of the road.  Since this is also the trailhead for several trails to Parkman Mountain, Bald Peak, and others, there may be cars also lined up along the side of the road.  The trailhead for Norumbega is on the same side as the parking, at the north end of the lot.

The hike starts on The Goat Trail.  You will soon see that it is aptly named.  It rises 600 feet in a quarter of a mile.  In fact, almost all the elevation gain for this part of the hike is achieved in just this short starting section.  If you are part mountain goat it will help you to get up over the many steps and switchbacks.  In fact, at one point I passed a mountain goat that had stopped and was sucking wind.

Hike – Cadillac Mountain Summit to Summit Loop Hike Using the South Ridge Trail, Canon Brook Trail, A. Murray Young Trail, and Gorge Path

Looking southwest from Cadillac Mountain

There are four major ways to summit Cadillac Mountain on foot.  I have done all of them and you can find my posts for them here: North Ridge Trail, South Ridge Trail, West Face Trail, Gorge Path (east approach).  They all have one thing in common: they start at a lower elevation, summit Cadillac, then eventually return to their start.  Cadillac Mountain has an auto road to the top of it, so I decided to take advantage of that to do a different kind of hike.  For this one I would start at the summit of Cadillac, descend on the South Ridge Trail, loop back up between Cadillac and Dorr Mountain on the Canon Brook and A. Murray Young Trails, then return to the summit of Cadillac on the Gorge Path.

Hike – Pemetic Mountain, East Cliff Trail, Pemetic Northwest Trail, Jordan Pond Carry Trail, Jordan Pond Trail

The Bubbles as seen from the start of this hike

There are many trails that start from the Jordan Pond House in Acadia National Park in Maine.  This post describes one of the more popular ones.  It is a loop hike starting and ending at the Jordan Pond House that will traverse Pemetic Mountain from southeast to northwest then return along the shores of Jordan Pond.



Hike – St. Sauveur Mountain, Valley Peak (St. Sauveur Trail, Valley Peak Trail, East Face Trail, Man O’War Brook Fire Road)

Somes Sound as seen from St. Sauveur Mountain

How would you like to get away from some of the crowds in Acadia National Park, but still do a hike that gives you great views?  The “quiet side” (west side) of Mount Desert Island features several hikes like this.  Today’s post is about hiking the trails on St. Sauveur Mountain.  It can be done from two different starting points and I will describe both.  Each is a loop hike, so only one vehicle is needed.

Hike – The Triad, Day Mountain, Hunters Beach (Hunters Brook Trail, Triad Trail, Day Mountain Trail, Lower Day Mountain Trail, Hunters Cliff Trail, Hunters Beach Trail)

View from trail between Hunters Cliff and Hunters Beach

How would you like to get away from most of the crowds in Acadia National Park, but still do a hike that combines walking alongside a gentle stream, two traverses of smaller mountains, enjoying the view from cliffs right over the ocean, and a walk along a secluded beach?  This post describes such a hike.  It is a loop hike, so only one vehicle is needed.  If you do not want to do the entire hike, I will mention a few places where you can cut it short.

Hike – Sargent Mountain and Penobscot Mountain (Deer Brook Trail, East Cliffs Trail, Sargent South Ridge Trail, Penobscot Mountain Trail)

Jordan Pond as seen from the northern shore

Many people who visit Acadia National Park in Maine either drive or hike to the summit of Cadillac Mountain, which is the highest mountain in the park.  The second highest mountain, however, is almost unvisited in comparison.  That is Sargent Mountain.  It can only be reached by hiking, and even then it’s not straightforward.  On its southeastern shoulder is Penobscot Mountain.  This post describes a loop hike that traverses Sargent Mountain and summits Penobscot Mountain. 

Hike – Schoodic Peninsula Park Loop Road and All Trails on Schoodic Head (Anvil Trail, East Trail, Alder Trail, Schoodic Head Trail)

Plaque describing how Schoodic Peninsula became public

Many people who visit Acadia National Park in Maine never leave Mount Desert Island where the largest part of the park is located.  These people are missing out.  There are also sections of the park on Schoodic Peninsula and on Isle au Haut.  Schoodic Peninsula is the land you can see across Frenchman Bay from Bar Harbor.  It is easy to get to and I will be describing all four hiking trails located there, as well as the drive on the one-way park loop road that is located there.

Hike – Cadillac Mountain Gorge Path (east approach), Dorr Mountain West Trail, North Ridge Trail, Hemlock Trail

East side of Cadillac as seen from the west side of Dorr

Cadillac Mountain is the highest point in Acadia National Park in Maine.  It is also the highest mountain on the Atlantic Ocean anywhere north of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  In the Fall and Winter it is the first place in the U.S. that sees the sunrise.  It has a free auto road that allows people to drive right to the top.  It also has multiple hiking trails to the summit.  Some are more challenging than others.  This post describes a hike up the Gorge Path on the east side of the mountain, the second most difficult way to ascend.  It then includes a west to north traverse of Dorr Mountain just to the west, then a loop back to the starting point via the Hemlock Trail. 

Hike – Shore Path

Looking towards Bar Island on The Shore Path

Some folks like getting away from all the people on the streets of downtown Bar Harbor by taking a walk along The Shore Path.  This path has existed for more than 130 years so that “genteel folks” could enjoy themselves.  This post describes a loop that will also take you through the main street of Bar Harbor (which most everyone walks anyway.)

Hike – Acadia Mountain, Flying Mountain, Man O’War Brook, Somes Sound, Valley Cove

Somes Sound from the summit of Acadia Mountain

The east side of Mount Desert Island is the part that most people think of in regards to Acadia National Park.  The west side, or the “quiet side” as some people call it, provides a number of opportunities for hiking in the park, and without the crowds that can sometimes be a part of the popular hikes to the east.

This post describes a traverse of Acadia Mountain, a side trip to Man O’War Brook, a hike along the edge of Somes Sound on the Valley Cove Trail, and a traverse of Flying Mountain.  Although I usually do loop hikes back to my vehicle, I did not on this one.  I will explain below.

Hike – South Bubble, Bubble Rock, North Bubble, Conner’s Nubble, Eagle Lake

The Bubbles rising over Jordan Pond

The Bubbles are perhaps the two most photographed mountains in Acadia National Park.  Everyone seems to stop at the Jordan Pond House and when they walk down in back of it the two mountains dominate the view across Jordan Pond.  Some people hike to the top of the nearer one from this point, but there is a better way to do it. 

This post describes a loop hike up to Bubble Rock and the summit of South Bubble, then a traverse of North Bubble, then a traverse of Connor’s Nubble, then a walk along the shore of Eagle Lake, then finally a loop back to the start.  This is a hike that can be split into multiple pieces so that you can make it a length that is comfortable for you.

Hike – Ocean Path

Otter Cliffs from the Ocean Path

The Ocean Path is a very scenic walk along the ocean side of the Park Loop Road in Acadia National Park.  It leads from Sand Beach to Otter Cliffs.  While you can drive by the same views in a car, you get an entirely different perspective when you walk it.  This is an easy way for even non-hikers to enjoy tremendous views and it is highly recommended.

Hike – Gorham Mountain

Otter Cove from Gorham Mountain

Gorham Mountain is located in Acadia National Park in Maine.  It is a not-too-difficult way to get excellent views of the ocean and Park area from Great Head to Otter Cliffs.  It is also the first hike I ever did in Acadia.  My sister Lynette and her husband George asked me to join them on it. 

This post describes a loop that traverses Gorham Mountain and returns to the starting point via part of the Ocean Path.  

Hike – Jordan Pond

Jordan Pond and the Bubbles

There are many trails that start from the Jordan Pond House in Acadia National Park in Maine.  The Jordan Pond House is a very popular destination for both tourists and hikers.  The food there is good (the popovers are excellent) and there are many trails that can be explored.  This post describes an easy loop hike that will take you around the shores of Jordan Pond itself. 

Hike – The Triad

Day Mountain and Seal Harbor from the Triad

There are many trails that start from the Jordan Pond House in Acadia National Park in Maine.  Some are more popular than others.  This post describes a loop hike that starts and ends there that will allow you to avoid some of the crowds that take the more popular trails. 

Hike – Compass Harbor Trail

Bald Porcupine Island from Compass Harbor

This post describes an easy hike on the Compass Harbor Trail, which is very near downtown Bar Harbor.  In fact, you could even walk to the trailhead from the downtown area, if you wanted.  This trail leads out to the ocean and makes a loop on the Dorr peninsula.

Hike – Wonderland, Ship Harbor, Bass Harbor Lighthouse

The ocean off Wonderland Trail

The east side of Mount Desert Island gets most of the attention when it comes to hiking in Acadia National Park.  If you want to get away to some quieter hikes try the west side of the island.  Among these more quiet trails are two short hikes that bring you right down to the ocean.  These are the Wonderland and Ship Harbor trails.  I will also discuss the Bass Harbor lighthouse, which is nearby.

Hike – Cadillac Mountain, West Face

West Face of Cadillac over Bubble Pond

Cadillac Mountain is the highest point in Acadia National Park in Maine.  It is also the highest mountain on the Atlantic Ocean anywhere north of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  In the Fall and Winter it is the first place in the U.S. that sees the sunrise.  It has a free auto road that allows people to drive right to the top.  It also has multiple hiking trails to the summit.  Some are more challenging than others.  This post describes a hike up the West Face Trail, the hardest and most dangerous way to summit Cadillac.  It also describes a loop down part of the South Ridge trail, down the Canyon Brook trail, and back along a carriage road to the starting point at Bubble Pond.