Activities

Mount Desert Island in early October is about as spectacular as it gets. About half of the island is Acadia National Park, and there are limitless opportunities for hiking, biking, kayaking/canoeing, and more. Bar Harbor and Northeast Harbor are on the eastern side of the island, which is more mountainous and home to the most popular parts of Acadia, like Cadillac Mountain, Jordan Pond, Sieur de Monts Spring, Sand Beach, and Ocean Drive. The western side of the island, or the “quietside,” is where our wedding venue is. The main town on the western side is Southwest Harbor, and some awesome but less busy spots in the park are over there as well, like Wonderland/Ship Harbor, Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, Echo Lake, and Long Pond. Bar Harbor, Northeast Harbor, and Southwest Harbor all have restaurants, art galleries, and cute shops. Bar Harbor is the main town with the most activity options, however it’s also the busiest. Just to give you some ideas, here are some suggestions for fun activities for all ability levels, but feel free to reach out if you want other recommendations!

Things to be aware of

Park Passes

Please note that Acadia requires visitors to have park passes. There are only two places where you need to show the pass to enter: Ocean Drive Fee Station, required to get to Sand Beach or Ocean Drive, and the new Cadillac Mountain Fee Station. Note that you now need reservations to drive up Cadillac Mountain: these can be made on Reservations.gov ahead of time and cost like $6. Most locations in the park can be accessed without explicitly showing a pass to a ranger, but you may get a ticket if you don’t have a pass displayed on your dash when parked anywhere in the park.

Crowds

Acadia and MDI in general will be busy on our wedding weekend. People come from all over the world to experience the fall colors here. While it won’t be as busy as the following weekend (Indigenous Peoples Weekend), it will still be pretty crowded, so when planning your trip, we recommend that you try to time things to avoid the busy places between around 9am and 3pm. Early mornings are amazing and you’ll have the park to yourself if you’re willing to get after it! Afternoons / early evenings are great too, with mellower temps and great light. Doing things in the towns will be pretty consistently busy no matter what. Just go in expecting that.

Weather

In classic coastal New England fashion, you never know what the weather will be. In early October, it can be anywhere from 70s and sunny to 40s and rain. Weather changes quick too so even if it looks lousy there are likely to be decent windows. Dress accordingly and bring a raincoat! We recommend bringing hiking shoes or rugged sneakers for hiking in the park.

Maps

Good trail maps are key to figuring out what to do and how to get around. Our recommendation is to use an outdoor mapping app on your phone like Gaia GPS - it’s got topo lines, all the trails and other spots listed. Apple/Google maps have the trails on them now which helps. The National Park Service free maps are good for a general overview but are not very detailed. Paper trail maps can be purchased at gear stores like Cadillac Mountain Sports.

Bike Rentals

If you’re looking to get on a bike and it doesn’t make sense to bring your own, the best option by a mile to rent one is from Bar Harbor Bicycle Shop. They offer normal bikes (road and mountain/hybrid) and e-bikes and are great folks to work with. They can run out of bikes on busy days, so reserving one online or showing up right when they open is your best bet.

Iconic Viewpoints and Favorite Spots (These are likely to be busy!)

Cadillac Mountain Summit - Drive / hike / bike up the mountain and check out the views and/or walk the 0.3 mile summit loop. It’s the first place in the US to see the sunrise at this time of year. Driving up requires a reservation that can be made online.

Jordan Pond - The iconic view of the bubbles is from the southern end of Jordan Pond. Walk around, take some pics, maybe even get popovers at the Jordan Pond House!

Sand Beach - Aptly named and busy but insanely gorgeous. Even on the busiest days, it’s not crazy on the far side of the beach. If you’re brave, go for a swim - the Atlantic will be ~60º in early October (as warm as it gets)!

Otter Cliffs - Featured on our invite! The view of the cliffs from Boulder Beach is gorgeous and you can walk along the Ocean Path and onto the cliffs. Also a world-class rock climbing spot.

Thuya Gardens - Not part of Acadia, but is in the Land and Garden Preserve, which protects ~1400 acres of former Rockefeller land. Thuya Gardens is a peaceful and stunning border garden tucked into the woods near Northeast Harbor.

Bass Harbor Head Light - Not necessarily our favorite spot but it’s one of the more iconic views on the island, plus it’s only about 10 mins from the venue.

Short/Medium Walks / Hikes

Jesup Trail - Famous boardwalk through a floodplain forest with stunning fall colors. Park at Sieur de Monts Spring and make a loop of the Jesup Trail and Hemlock Road (~1 mile). Extend to the Stratheden Path if you want a bit more. Not super busy but the boardwalk can get crowded at peak times.

Homan’s Path / Emery Path - Incredibly built historic stone stepped trails leading up Dorr Mountain from Sieur de Monts Spring. Awesome fall color views. 0.6 miles (serious elevation gain!) and can be extended in a bunch of ways. Not busy.

Wonderland or Ship Harbor - These gorgeous coastal walks are each around a mile in length and are located off Rt. 102A on the quietside. Both feature beautiful coastal woods and cool shoreline and cobblestone beaches. Not super busy but can get crowded at peak times.

Great Head - 1.5 mile coastal hike near Sand Beach. Gives you a taste of the rugged coast with awesome views, plus you can stop by Sand Beach mid-hike. Park at the southern end of Schooner Head Road. Parking can get tricky at peak times.

Beech Mountain - Probably the best bang for your buck in terms of a mountain hike, plus it’s on the quietside roughly 15 mins from the wedding venue. There’s a cool fire tower at the summit with awesome views. Done as a short out-and-back, it’s 0.8 miles, or can be extended down the south ridge and back along the Valley Trail to make it longer (2.2 miles).

Stone Barn - Newly preserved by Maine Coast Heritage Trust, the Stone Barn is an iconic property on MDI with a historic barn, pastoral vibes, and great hiking trails.

Longer Walks / Hikes

Little Long Pond - Part of the Land and Garden Preserve. Park at the southern end and hike some of the trails. The loop around the pond is

Pemetic Mtn -

Bike Rides

Carriage Roads -

Park Loop Road -

Water Activities

Off-island Ideas