Hike, bike and explore Acadia National Park

For those with a (mild) sense of adventure, Acadia National Park is just 1 hour away. Hiking and biking abound. Make a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday of it, and enjoy! Or better yet, extend your vacation and see if Maine lives up to its Vacationland moniker.

Some General Notes

All vehicles entering the park are required to purchase and display a $30 parking pass. Note that the park pass is good for one week—so make the most of it!

Acadia ostensibly requires park visitors to purchase individual passes, which cost $15 per person. We encourage all of our wedding guests to comply with all applicable laws, but note that we have never known anyone to buy individual visitor passes, nor anyone to have been penalized for failing to do so.

Please see here for an Acadia Trail Map, or descriptions of popular routes. Some of our favorite hikes are below.

 Safety & Responsibility

Be sure to stay on the marked trails at all times so as not to trample the fragile alpine ecosystem. Please also abide by Leave No Trace principles: that means packing out all trash or food and not taking “souvenirs” from the local flora. Acadia receives tens of thousands of visitors a day—please do your part to lighten the load!

Mount Desert Island

  • Easy Hikes

    Jordan Pond Trail: This beautiful walk circumvents Jordan Pond. Start and end your hike at Jordan Pond House on the south end of the pond, famous for its afternoon tea and popovers.

    Length: 3.5 miles

    Time: 1.5 hours (be sure to leave time for a snack!)

    Little Long Pond Loop: a beautiful 4 mile loop around Little Long Pond.

  • Moderate Hikes

    Acadia Mountain & St. Sauveur Loop: This hike on MDI’s “quiet side” provides views of Somes Sound, the ocean, and the islands. Start at the trailhead along Rt. 102 by Echo Lake (and be careful crossing the road!). While this trailhead isn’t on a park road, you still need a parking pass to park here. You can go either way you want on this loop. After the hike, head in to Southwest Harbor, a quaint Maine seaside town, for a pastry at Little Notch Bakery (Emy’s favorite bakery on Earth!). Emy suggests the blueberry scone and Bucky recommends the cinnamon bun!

    Length: 4 miles

    Time: ~2 hours

    Bubble Rock: MDI was formed by the glacier that covered North America in the last ice age. The glacier’s effect is evident in MDI’s long, north-south ponds, Somes Sound, and the rounded hills of Acadia; but nowhere is it more evident than at Bubble Rock, a large boulder deposited by the glacier right on the edge of a cliff. This short, pretty hike from the Bubble Pond parking lot will take you right to Bubble Rock as well as to summit views overlooking Jordan Pond.

    Length: 1 mile

    Time: 1 hour

    Beehive/Bowl Trail Loop: A more challenging hike but has some of the best views! The Bowl Trail is up the backside of Beehive and is an easier hike that gets you to the same summit for those views! Pack a lunch to enjoy the view at the top.

    Length: 1.3 mile loops

    Time: 1.5-2 hours

    Sargent Mountain - South Ridge Trail: A longer hike but at the top you will find a beautiful fresh water pond. Pack a bathing suit and go for a swim at the peak!

    Length: 6.5 miles out and back

    Time: 3-3.5 hours

  • Difficult Hikes

    Champlain Mountain – Precipice Trail: For experienced hikers only! The Precipice Trail is one of Acadia’s best known—and most strenuous—hikes. Expect rock scrambles, ladders bolted into the mountain, and beautiful views out to the Schoodic Peninsula and the ocean. Please be careful, as the trail can get quite slippery after rainstorms. To get here, enter the park at the Sieur-de-Monts entrance south of Bar Harbor and pick up at the Precipice Trailhead.

    Length: 2.1 miles

    Time: ~2 hours (leave yourself plenty of time to go slowly over the tricky sections).

  • Sunrise Hikes

    Rumor has it that, given Acadia’s location so far north and east, and the prominence of its mountains, Cadillac Mountain’s summit is the first place in the United States to see the sunrise each day. In June the sun will rise over Cadillac around 4:45 AM. We recommend reaching the summit at least a half an hour before sunrise, so depending on how you plan to get there, you may need to start your journey several hours earlier—making a sunrise hike, or drive, up Cadillac is a great way to start your day (or end your night…).

  • Bike the Carriage Roads

    An absolute favorite of ours! Forty-five miles of rustic carriage roads, the gift of philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr. and family, weave around the mountains and valleys of Acadia National Park.

    Rent bikes in Bar Harbor!

  • Favorite MDI Spots

    Little Notch Bakery in Southwest Harbor

    The Claremont in Southwest Harbor

    Thuya Garden in Northeast Harbor

    Asticou Azalea Garden in Northeast Harbor

    Milk & Honey Kitchen in Northeast Harbor

    Rusticator Shop in Seal Harbor

    Abel’s Lobster in Northeast Harbor

    The Asticou Inn or Jordan Pond for popovers!

    The Salt Market Northeast Harbor

    Beal’s Lobster Pier in Southwest Harbor

    Pete’s Tavern in Southwest Harbor

    Hearth and Harbor in Southwest Harbor

  • Gardens

    The Asticou Azalea Garden combines the best natural features of Mount Desert Island with design elements inspired by classic Japanese gardens. Located in Northeast Harbor, the beauty of Asticou changes and evolves throughout the year. You can expect a myriad of colorful azaleas and rhododendrons, which bloom from late May through June.

    The Thuya Garden is a favorite of ours (and where we got engaged) - we recommend hiking up the trails to the garden.

    The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden isn’t open to the public until July.