Arcadia National Park - Maine

[wa-loaf]

Are there poisonous mushrooms around there too? Hate to grab the wrong ones!

Yeah, don't pick any if you don't know what you are doing. Not sure if there is anything that will kill you, but plenty that can make you very sick.

Lots of Chanterelles grow in the area. Those are the only ones I'm confident picking.

 

[o3jeff]

Yeah, don't pick any if you don't know what you are doing. Not sure if there is anything that will kill you, but plenty that can make you very sick.

Lots of Chanterelles grow in the area. Those are the only ones I'm confident picking.

I've seen on the news that they can wreck havoc on your stomach and digestive system. My grandmother used to pick wild mushrooms at their cottage and I remember them being real good!

 

[wa-loaf]

Also, there are a couple 1000 foot mtns near Tunk Lake that's maybe 30 mins NE of Acadia. They make a great hike, have virtually no tourists, and spectacular views of the island.

http://www.mainetrailfinder.com/trail/donnell-pond-public-reserved-land-black-mountain/

You can play with this website and find a bunch of nice hikes in the area.

 

[David Metsky]

Are there poisonous mushrooms around there too? Hate to grab the wrong ones!

If you need to ask, this is not the pasttime for you.

 

[bigbog]

Jeff...are you seriously going to trust a bumpqueen's dietary recs? Will you write me into your will for your skis...y/n?

 

[o3jeff]

Jeff...are you seriously going to trust a bumpqueen's dietary recs? Will you write me into your will for your skis...y/n?

Hell no!

Actually no one's has dibbs on the skis yet, my 11 yo nephew already claimed my car, TV, iPhone, iPad an Macbook if something happens to me!

 

[Bumpsis]

You can eat these:
http://www.naturephoto-cz.com/photos/maly/boletus-edulis-xxx010.jpg

 

[mlkrgr]

Don't forget the buses either. I like how you can do one way hikes; and there are numerous options and the buses make them viable unless you have someone picking you up on the other side. Sure, Acadia can be busy during July and August but the point is there's always somewhere to get away from the crowds. Sand Beach can be amazing especially on a very hot day. On a streak of a couple hot days, that's when the beach is at it's best and it's far better than anything I've been to otherwise in Southern ME or NH. Taking the bus can have it's own headaches (like 5-10 minute layovers at Blackwoods Campground but that's one of the best campgrounds to stay in and you can't go wrong at $20 a night even though you'll spend a few dollars of it each night on showers even if you take every other day off from showering; showers are $1.50 for 4 minutes). One of the most amazing mountain hikes is hiking up Dorr from Sieur De Monts and traversing to Cadillac and then either decend North or West ridge. Let the bus pick you up in the end. Buses end a bit early from the North Ridge stop but if they do, hike towards the nearby two way road to catch the Jordan Pond bus which runs late.

 

[o3jeff]

Don't forget the buses either. I like how you can do one way hikes; and there are numerous options and the buses make them viable unless you have someone picking you up on the other side. Sure, Acadia can be busy during July and August but the point is there's always somewhere to get away from the crowds. Sand Beach can be amazing especially on a very hot day. On a streak of a couple hot days, that's when the beach is at it's best and it's far better than anything I've been to otherwise in Southern ME or NH. Taking the bus can have it's own headaches (like 5-10 minute layovers at Blackwoods Campground but that's one of the best campgrounds to stay in and you can't go wrong at $20 a night even though you'll spend a few dollars of it each night on showers even if you take every other day off from showering; showers are $1.50 for 4 minutes). One of the most amazing mountain hikes is hiking up Dorr from Sieur De Monts and traversing to Cadillac and then either decend North or West ridge. Let the bus pick you up in the end. Buses end a bit early from the North Ridge stop but if they do, hike towards the nearby two way road to catch the Jordan Pond bus which runs late.

Thanks for the tip on using the buses.

Does the ocean water get warm enough to go swimming in there?

 

[David Metsky]

Does the ocean water get warm enough to go swimming in there?

Are you from New England? If so, then yes. If you're from away, probably not.

 

[mlkrgr]

Thanks for the tip on using the buses.

Does the ocean water get warm enough to go swimming in there?

Ocean water can be frigidly cold early in the summer especially if the highs just get up to 60s. Ocean water can frequently be under 55 degrees. However, I find the best month for the ocean as a repeat visitor is in August (particularly early to mid). If you get a stretch of 2+ days in the 90s, the water is great the second day on and it ends up being one of the best swimming experiences you can get. For warmer water, you can always go to Echo Lake as well. After a good storm, Thunder Hole can be a blast to watch 3 hours before high tide; otherwise it is still part of the beautiful Acadia scenery.

My favorite time to go to Acadia in mid to late July. You can catch wild blueberry season (usually) but it'd probably be a bit late this year with the big winter season and you can usually get in a good beach day if you go for a week (but it always doesn't happen).

Sand Beach parking ends up getting totally jammed especially during hot days, so taking the bus is highly recommended. It used to be hectic to do this when only the Sand Beach Route ran to the beach but you can also get there using another route called the Loop Road bus and the last bus back from the beach is just before 7 which is decent. Buses are well-maintained and only get really crazy on the first two weekends of August which I hear is the peak times of the season. Any issues they used to have with them a few years ago in terms of capacity of mostly been addressed.

Plus, another good tip is if you are staying in Blackwoods, you can walk down the fire lane at the bottom of A Loop and easily get to Jordan Pond, where there's great dining, etc.

My favorite dining spot is Epi's sub shop. They've got great subs such as the precipice (vegeterian) sub and a cadillac (steak bomb) sub.

 

[wa-loaf]

Thanks for the tip on using the buses.

Does the ocean water get warm enough to go swimming in there?

Echo Lake has some nice swimming if you don't want to brave the ocean. It's also a great stop after hiking, especially on the west side. Just look for the parking on the southern end off of rt 102. There's also Lake wood closer to BH off of Crooked Road. If you want a little more adventure follow the trail to the left of the beach for a bit to find the naked people ...

 

[o3jeff]

There's also Lake wood closer to BH off of Crooked Road. If you want a little more adventure follow the trail to the left of the beach for a bit to find the naked people ...

Kind of ironic it's called Lake Wood.

 

[St. Bear]

Are you from New England? If so, then yes. If you're from away, probably not.

This is funny.

 

[mlkrgr]

Echo Lake has some nice swimming if you don't want to brave the ocean. It's also a great stop after hiking, especially on the west side. Just look for the parking on the southern end off of rt 102. There's also Lake wood closer to BH off of Crooked Road. If you want a little more adventure follow the trail to the left of the beach for a bit to find the naked people ...

Been going to Acadia for 20 years and never realized there was a naked beach in Bar Harbor.

But another traction to not miss is deep sea fishing on the Masako Queen out of Southwest Harbor.

 

[wa-loaf]

Been going to Acadia for 20 years and never realized there was a naked beach in Bar Harbor.

More of a swimming hole than beach. You'll find mostly locals and kids who work in town there.

 

[tomcat]

Precipice is closed as of yesterday, it opens usually around mid August again. My favorite hikes for views are Pemetic and the Sargent/Penobscot Ridge. You can hike Bald, Gilmore, Parkman and Sargent all with bare summits all in a short 4-5 mile hike. On the other side of Somes Sound, Beech, Mansell, and Barnard all are 900-1000 foot range and very few people in summer. If you are ambitious you can do the Acadia Traverse which covers 10-11 Peaks depending on route but is a tough 14 mile hike with more elevation gain than a Presidential summit or Katahdin but it is a great hike covering the main peaks in the main area of the park.
For carriage road rides Around the Mountain Loop is around 12 miles and covers some scenic spots. Starting at the Park Headquarters also gives you several options with several ponds and views. I ride here a handful of times each year and I can do 25-30 mile loops with less than a mile of overlapping the same trails. The carriage roads are very well graded and there is no need for a super burly mt. bike. I see people on road bikes ride them occasionally. At the very least I'd recommend a hybrid bike though

 

[ski_resort_observer]

Acadia is one of the most visited NPs in the country while being one of the smallest so hitting it up during the prime summer season gets pretty busy. Bar Harbor is a typical tourist trap but getting ice cream at Ben & Bill's is worth a visit. Incredible unique flavors. Check your maps as many roads on the east side are one way so if drive by a place you want to stop at your basically screwed. Biking on the carriage roads is fun...if you don't have a bike, plenty of places to rent one.

 

[wa-loaf]

Acadia is one of the most visited NPs in the country while being one of the smallest so hitting it up during the prime summer season gets pretty busy. Bar Harbor is a typical tourist trap but getting ice cream at Ben & Bill's is worth a visit. Incredible unique flavors. Check your maps as many roads on the east side are one way so if drive by a place you want to stop at your basically screwed. Biking on the carriage roads is fun...if you don't have a bike, plenty of places to rent one.

Only one way road I know of is the Park Loop road.

September and early October are the best time of year there IMHO.

 

[o3jeff]

Only one way road I know of is the Park Loop road.

September and early October are the best time of year there IMHO.

So I need to plan this as a fall vacation and plan something else for the summer now?