Bar Harbor, ME. July 16th - 21st

kevinhorn7
Jul 21
2 min read

We've reach the farthest Northeast point of our journey and Acadia National Forest and Bar Harbor (pronounced Ba Haba by the locals) didn't disappoint. Acadia National Forest is one of the smallest national forests (~49,000 acres) but it's very dense and dotted with gorgeous coastline. Lots of different foliage throughout the park made for some diverse hikes.

One day we did the 27 mile Park Loop Road through the forest that takes you past most of the key points of interest including Otter Point, Sand Beach, Jordan Pond, and Cadillac Mountain. Cadillac Mountain is the highest peak on the East Coast and, in the winter time, it's the first place to see daily sunrises in the continental US. Visiting there has become so popular that you have to make car reservations just to drive up the mountain. Sunrise is around 5:00am and, believe it or not, it's hard to get a reservation. We decided to just see it during the day.

Bar Harbor was exactly what we expected, a charming coastal town that is a very popular summer destination. There is definitely no shortage of lobster here and it's pretty much the same price (about $35 per roll) no matter where you eat. We made sure to eat our fair share at road side stops, waterfront restaurants, and even an Irish Pub.

Lots of good people watching with folks of all ages including elderly couples, families, college students, etc. Of course, the summer flowers are EVERYWHERE.

We took a two hour harbor cruise on a tall sailing ship. Beautiful boat but the cruise was quite boring. We expected more history about Bar Harbor.

I'll finish by saying a few things about Mt Desert Narrows Campground. View, view, view! Therefore, we loved our campsite but the campground overall is in need of some refreshment. We joked that the weathered picnic tables could be described as vintage. Most signage is faded and the entire campground slopes to the water so there's no such thing as a level site. But you can't beat the views!

Today we start our travels down the East Coast with our first stop being in Salem, MA. We'll visit Boston from there with updates to follow.