Acadia National Park

If someone had told me a couple of years ago that Dale and I would be spending a month in Maine, during the peak of Autumn colors, I would certainly have wondered how in the world that would come to pass. I can only say that the Lord is so gracious to us. I don’t know what tomorrow holds, but today is a good day.

We spent our second weekend in Maine at Acadia National Park, which is located on the coast about three hours north of our Airbnb in Saco. Acadia is a 47,000-acre park on Maine’s Mount Desert Island. It has woodlands, rocky beaches and glacier-scoured granite peaks such as Cadillac Mountain, the highest point on the East Coast. It also has millions of visitors each year and I now believe most of them were there when we were! Patience was definitely a choice, not a natural response to the crowds we encountered.

We arrived Saturday around noon and stayed until late Monday afternoon. And though Bar Harbor is a beautiful coastal town, our focus was really the park. God’s creation is better than any souvenir store! We left our car at the visitor’s center and took advantage of the free shuttle to get around the park. The shuttle travels the mostly 27-mile, one-way loop, stopping at various spots. It can take over two hours to complete! We were concerned that we may miss our entrance reservation for Cadillac Mounting at 4:30 pm, but more about that later!

Thunder Hole to Sandy Beach

Our first stop was Thunder Hole. During high tide this area has tremendous waves that splashes everyone around. Unfortunately we were there at low tide. Nonetheless, the craggy shoreline was a beautiful site and we took our time looking around and taking photos. We then followed a walking path toward Sand Beach. We marveled at the sights along the way. I have never experienced coastal terrain like this. I’m used to flat coasts and beaches. So, it was surprising when we made it to Sand Beach, where nestled among the rocky coast, was a beautiful sandy beach. It was a chilly but someone was actually swimming! The average temperature for the water is 50-60° Fahrenheit!

Cadillac Mountain

We hopped back on the shuttle to ride the rest of the loop back to our car at the visitor center so we could make our Cadillac Mountain reservation. The most popular time to visit this mountain is at sunrise because it is the first place a person in the United States will see the start of a new day. The sun hits this peak before any other place on the East Coast. There are a few hundred tickets that are made available at 10 am the day before you plan to visit. I tried twice to get tickets. At 10 am exactly, I refreshed the page, hit the button and waited as it said it was working to get me a reservation, then it told me they were all gone. So, I figured let’s get an afternoon ticket and hang around until sunset, and that is just what we did.

Acadia Wild Gardens & Jessup Path

On Sunday morning we headed to the Wild Gardens. On the previous day’s shuttle ride we passed by the stop for the Wild Gardens because it seemed like a place that was best suited to elderly gardeners. Haha! But we thought it would be a good place to stretch our legs and enjoy the Lord’s natural “worship center” on this Sabbath day. I had no idea how much we would enjoy the time we spent here. The trails and foliage were unlike anything we saw elsewhere in the park. We were definitely “slack jaws” as we gaped at every new aspect. Photos do not do it justice.

Gorham Mountain Loop

After visiting the Wild Gardens we got back on the shuttle and headed to Gorham Mountain to hike the loop trail. It’s 3.5 miles long and not too strenuous. It was very enjoyable. After this we walked down the road to enjoy Sandy Beach again and wait for the next shuttle. We finished off the day at Jordan Pond House where we at a late lunch.

Jordan Pond Loop

Our main goal for Monday was to hike the 3.3 mile loop around the Jordan Pond. We checked out of our bed and breakfast and headed back to the park. Once in the park, we drove directly to the pond instead of taking the shuttle. We were hopeful that we would find a parking spot since it was so early, and we were correct. However, when we left several hours later, there were people swarming like buzzards looking for a parking spot. So glad we came early!

The path follows the shore of the pond, one of Acadia’s most iconic landscapes. It’s located in a steep valley carved by the retreat of glaciers. Jordan Pond is bordered by several beautiful mountains. I’ve seen photos of the pond completely frozen in the winter.

We took our time and enjoyed every minute of it. We left the park and grabbed some lunch in town, which is literally just a few miles down the road.

Ships Harbor Trail

For our last event of the trip we headed to the Southwest part of Acadia to see the Bass Lighthouse and walk the Ships Harbor Trail. Unfortunately the line of cars trying to get to the lighthouse was unacceptable, so we headed straight to Ships Harbor Trail. By this time it was close to 3pm and overcast. The dreary weather, craggy shoreline, receding tide and isolated location made the experience more interesting. Unlike every other location, we only saw a handful of people.

We began our three-hour drive home around 5 pm. We really enjoyed our trip to Acadia National Park.