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Map of our route in blue
(Click on the map for an enlargement)
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We started early in the morning from our motel in
Belfast in nice sunshine as predicted on Canadian television. All the way up to Ellsworth
along highway 1 gave us breathtaking views to bays, fjords, rivers, islands and we passed
many nice holiday resorts. Acadia Natl. Park constitutes mainly the eastern part of Mt.
Desert Island, which is shaped like a lobster claw. You can follow our roundtrip on the
map above. We entered at Hulls Cove where we made stop at the visitor center. Inside was
an interpretive video about the park and outside was a nice garden with exhibition of
plants and wildlife within the park. There was also a small museum with Indian artifacts.
Because several road constructions were in progress we were not charged the 10 US$
entrance fee.
At the visitor center we also learned about the History of the park. The inhabitants of
Mt. Desert Island when the first European explorers arrived were the Wabanaki Indians.
Samuel Champlain who was also the founder of Quebec made trade with these Indians from
1604. French and English settlers struggled for the island for about 150 years but around
1760 English settlers prevailed and soon Bar Harbor was established as a town. In the
1850īs tourism emerged and in 1880 Bar Harbor was a busy summer resort with more than 30
hotels. Extravagant summer cottages were built by the wealthy summer residents. Among
these summercators were socially prominent families like the Rockefellers, Morgans, Fords,
Astors, Vanderbilts and Pulitzers. They all acquired large plots of land and built
magnificent summer palaces, which forever altered the rustic character of the island.
Ironically enough donations of land by these colonists were the fortunate creation of
Acadia. After less than 20 years of land acquisitions Acadia was established as a national
park in 1919. It was named Lafayette National Park and was the first natl. park east of
the Mississippi. Under English influence the name was changed 10 years later to Acadia.
One of the biggest contributors of land was the Rockefeller family. John D. Rockefeller
Jr. has also been responsible for the establishment of a 45 miles road inland with 17
beautiful granite and cobblestone bridges. Today these roads are enjoyed by hikers,
bicyclists and in winter by cross-country skiers. |
Peregrine falcon
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We now entered the 20 miles Park Loop Road.
Choosing the eastern loop we had marvelous views to Frenchman Bay and the richly scattered
small islands in this bay. South of the visitor center at a rest area an ornithologist had
put up a set of professional binoculars to watch a pair of the endangered Peregrine
falcons nesting high up in the cliffs. These majestic birds have been reintroduced
(hacking) into Acadia. We were so lucky to spot one of the falcons flying high in the sky.
You must believe that the spot on top of the photo is the bird. Unfortunately even our 210
mm zoom was not good enough for this work. Further south we made stop at a rather crowded
rest area. The attraction here turned out to be Sand Beach, a graceful beach of sand among
the high rocks. It is also the starting point for hikes to the close Beehive mountain or
the |
Peregrine Falcon
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Anna standing on the cliffs in fron of Sand Beach
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highest peak of the island: Cadillac Mountain. We
decided to enjoy the scenery and walked on a path along the loop road until Thunder Hole.
Here the tides are swept into a narrow granite channel. In the channel the water traps a
large amount of air. Upon the escape of the entrapped air a thunderous noise arises. This
phenomenon is best watched when waves are going high under strong |
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walked back and drove comfortably further in our car. At the picturesque Seal Harbor,
which is outside the natl.park we had lunch at a nice restaurant. We then reentered the
Loop Road and drove north along the two lakes Jordan Pond and Eagle Lake. At Seal
Harbor we had studied our brochures and one of the attractions we had noticed was the
Bubble Rock which is on a mountain top above Jordan Pond. |
Thunder Hole
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Rising from the north shore of the
lovely Jordan Pond are two rounded mountains; called The Bubbles. We had read that
on the top of the south Bubble should be a large peculiar granite stone. So we stopped at
a parking lot at the foot of the mountain and started the half hours climb which was
relatively easy. On the top we had a marvelous view to the Loop Road, Jordan Pond and the
Cranberry Islands to the south (photo in upper left corner). To our north was Eagle Lake
and at our hand Bubble Rock (photo in upper right corner) and to the east we saw Cadillac
Mountain and the winding road leading up to the peak. As you see on the left photo there
was a nice pile of stones to mark the peak. We decided to descend via the south path to
Jordan Pond. This is probably one of the most strenuous climbs we have ever done. we had
to climb down sheer rock walls of 2-3 meters height as you see on the left photo. When we
arrived lower we had nice birch trees between big rocks (lower photo on the left). When we
arrived at the beautiful Jordan Pond we needed a rest (see lower right photo). The short
hike back to our car was easy and in one level. |
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| Next we drove up on Cadillac Mountain.
To our surprise this was not really a peak but a large flat stony area. The views were
panoramic to all sides, but unfortunately very strong winds prevented us from a more
detailed exploration up here. We now headed to the western "claw". Here the
National Park only constitute a minor part. To the south this part is more abundantly
inhabited and touristic. It is a wonderful playground for a summer vacation but the nature
is not as filled with pristine nature as on the eastern claw". We had read so much
about the east coast light houses |
Cadillac Mountain
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Bass Harbor Lighthouse
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and the Bass Harbor Head
Lighthouse particularly should be among the most beautiful. We then drove south, passed
Bass Harbor and easily found the light house which was in fact really pretty lying on the
edge of the cliff and nicely maintained. It was built as early as 1858 and is now managed
by the US Coast Guard. From the lighthouse are views to nice green islands to the south.
We now headed north along the western coast. Just before sunset we arrived at Pretty
March; an isolated picnic area with views to Bartlett Island. A recent storm had been
quite hard to the trees here. On the photo you get an impression of the mess of fallen
trees behind Michael and Anna.
We had spent a wonderful day in Acadia and we drove back to our motel in the dark, very
tired but also very satisfied. If you have the time you could easily spend a week or more
here hiking and relaxing. Probably in the high summer seasons it is too crowded here.
Except for the Peregrine Falcon we encountered no wildlife here. Certainly we spent too
much time driving. Around the coast line you should be able to watch seals, dolphins
(rare) and whales. There are as many as 5 different snakes in the park. Coyote and red
foxes are common while black bears are rarely seen.
The next morning after having paid for our lovely motel room we were read for our return
to Pittsburgh. |
Late afternoon rest at Pretty Marsh
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