Lobster, blueberry beer, lighthouses, cool weather and did I mention lobster? This was our first visit to the northeast and it didn't disappoint. We had heard about the magnificent colors that show up as the weather turns cooler in New England. While we may have been a week or two early in late September, we could already start to get a glimpse of what was to come.
We utilized Natalie's fall break from school to make the trip. Acadia National Park was our main(e) destination for this trip. The intent was to experience a different type of National Park than the likes of Yellowstone, the Tetons, and Glacier that we'd traveled to earlier this year.
The Plan: Our Route
We flew from Atlanta to Boston Friday after work making it to the Comfort Inn & Suites just north of the Boston Logan airport at around 10pm. We were only staying here one night, so a clean, budget friendly hotel was our choice.
We made our way north stopping in Salem to see all of the Halloween shops as well as some of the filming locations from the first Hocus Pocus movie. Halloween is probably one of Natalie's favorite things to celebrate so this was a must do on the bucket list.
We chose to hug the coastline as we continue north stopping to see the Portland Head & Rockland Breakwater Lighthouses. We stopped for lunch in Portland at Luke's Lobster where we experienced our first northeastern lobster rolls and blueberry beer! Yes...it lived up to the hype.
We made it into Bar Harbor at around 7pm. We stayed at the Island Place motel and would highly recommend it. It was a 10 minute walk to downtown Bar Harbor. The rooms were clean, the staff was friendly providing plenty of recommendations, and had plenty of space for the two of us.
Restaurants we enjoyed in Bar Harbor
- Jordan's Breakfast - make sure to get the blueberry muffin grilled with homemade whipped butter!
- Testa's Bar & Grill - awesome Seafood Alfredo & "Chowdahh" fries
- Thirsty Whale Tavern
- Finback Alehouse
- Leary's Landing Irish Pub
- Atlantic Brewing
- Acadia Perk - great coffee
- Ivy Manor Inn's Garden Lounge - enjoy a beverage outside with live music
Acadia National Park
We woke up early on Sunday and set out for Acadia. It is a quick 10 minute drive. You will need a National Park pass for entry into the park. We planned a 5 mile hike that included the Beehive trail, Thunder Hole, Ocean Path Trail, Sand Beach and Great Head Trails. We highly advise arriving early (~7am) to the Ocean Path trailhead as parking fills up fast.
Beehive Trail: Natalie has no problem with heights, while I am quite the opposite. The Beehive is a short hike made up of iron rungs mounted to the side of the mountain. While there were a few sections that induced a bit of panic, we made it through and can say it has been one of our favorite trails to date. The views were spectacular. Do this trail first thing in the morning as it gets very busy by 8am and you can get stuck waiting on fairly narrow ledges.
Ocean Path Trail & Thunder Hole: The viewing area at Thunder Hole was closed and we thought it was fairly overhyped. Ocean Path trail is an easy path alongside the road leading from Ocean Path Trailhead to Thunder Hole. Our recommendation is to take one of the many detours off of the path and view the ocean from one of the rock ledges.
Sand Beach: it is a beach and it has sand. Plenty of people relaxing here or using it as a cut through between trails.
Great Head Trail: The trail begins after you cross Sand Beach. A better than expected easy hike with some great viewing opportunities. We stopped to watch a rock climber preparing to scale one of the rock ledges.
Cadillac Mountain: One of the main attractions in Acadia as it offers the first sunrise in the U.S.. People visit for sunsets as well. You will need to get Cadillac Mountain Road Sunrise tickets in advance. They become available two days prior to your intended date of visit and have limited availability. If you fail to get tickets you can always wake up early and hike the 4 miles to the top to see the sunrise. We had tickets for Monday morning and it was unfortunately raining and very foggy; however, it was still a fun experience just being together in the elements.
Precipice Trail: Natalie had me convinced to test my fear of heights even more with this trail. Like the Cadillac sunrise, we missed doing this trail (luckily?) due to the rain. It is advised not to attempt this dangerous trail in wet conditions.
Schoodic Peninsula: The rain cleared to a great day after our failed sunrise attempt. We decided to make the hour drive to the Schoodic Peninsula which is in another section of the national park. We'd highly recommend adding this to your itinerary. Watching the waves crash into the rocks was exactly what we had imagined it would be like when thinking of the New England coast.
Carriage Roads & Jordan Pond House: Let us get this out of the way...Jordan Pond House didn't live up to our expectations. Make reservations in advance. We called the day before and had no issue; however, there is a long wait if you don't plan in advance. It is known for popovers. They were good and lunch wasn't bad, but it just couldn't live up to the hype or the cost. We think it is driven more by the location with it being inside the park. We did enjoy the coffee and Bailey's.
We had a blast on the Carriage Roads. They are comprised of 57 miles of unpaved, but easy to navigate roads/paths that are car free. Make sure to stop and step aside if you come across an actual horse-drawn carriage ride! We rented bikes from Acadia Bikes who provided us with optimal route recommendations and a great map. You can rent electric bikes, but we chose to get more exercise with our experience and rented traditional bikes. You can reserve them online in advance and we had no issue reserving them the night before. It is an easy ride to the start of the Carriage Roads from the bike shop. Throughout the roads you will see many picturesque bridges. We'd highly recommend detouring just south of Jordan Pond to the Cobblestone Bridge.
Bar Harbor Land Bridge: While not technically in the park, visiting the Bar Harbor Land Bridge at sunset is a must do and can easily be done after an early dinner. You can watch ships (like the Margaret Todd) entering the harbor and there is plenty of nature to be seen. The seagulls were busy catching crabs the entire time we were there.
Final Thoughts & Recommendations
Acadia National Park and the New England experience was everything we could have asked for. We did this trip traveling from Atlanta on Friday night and returning on Wednesday and that includes a 5 hour drive each way between Boston and Acadia. It is easily doable during this time and we thought it gave us plenty time to see everything it had to offer. We do not recommend bringing young children. We didn't think the main attractions within the park would have been easily accessible with a stroller and many of the areas are dangerous if not paying careful attention. With that being said, we'd highly recommend this area of the country during the fall. Acadia and Bar Harbor offered plenty of opportunity to make the trip as relaxing or adventurous as you'd like.
