In the mood for a fall trip?
Whether you’re bored and looking for adventure or are simply dying for some fall fun, it might be in your best interest to take your travels up North. Maine is a beautiful coastal state filled with fall foliage, hiking adventures, and small towns perfect for sweater weather.
Acadia National Park sits on the northern Maine coastline on Mount Desert Island, teeming with wildlife, hiking trails, and cute food spots you’re destined to try.
This past summer, my siblings and I had the pleasure of taking a weekend trip to Acadia, where I hiked for two days, explored the various towns scattered along the length of the Maine coast, and managed to sneak in some picturesque photos.
Our first stop was Sand Beach, tucked away into a little cove with soft sand and turquoise water. Acadia and its vicinity are known to have pretty cool wildlife, with puffins on nearby islands and whales just off the coast. I hoped to spot a seal. Alas, none came to visit that day, and I wasn’t trying to take a dive in such chilly Maine water. But for someone that’s spent quite a bit of time vacationing up in Maine, the water wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d expected. Chilly, if not icy, the water was somehow refreshing in the late summer heat. Some people can handle Maine’s chilly waters, and others avoid it like the plague; why not test out which kind of Maine vacationer you are?
It wasn’t just the water that impressed me; it was also the colorful rock cliffs that lined either side of the site, and the countless evergreens that nearly touched the shoreline! I highly recommend getting here early, as I visited this popular spot around 8 a.m. and there were only a handful of people wandering the shores.
Next up on the docket: the Beehive Trail. When I originally wrote about visiting Acadia, I admit I had never even visited the park. In my research, bloggers claimed over and over again that this was actually the most difficult trail in the park. Maybe it was their age, maybe it was their fear of heights, but coming from someone who can’t say she loves looming cliffs all that much, it wasn’t as bad as people made it out to be. Actually, it was the most eerily beautiful hike I’ve encountered yet.
Beehive Trail mainly gets this rep due to its staggering cliffs, and I mean, complete drops. A misstep or loss of balance could send you freefalling if you’re not careful. However, I find there is plenty of room for preventing that. You can simply use the towering rocks lining your side to support you.
However, I do believe it’s the iron rungs that make this hike the trickiest. Large boulders border this trail, so while necessary to the hike, they do have one fault: a lot of them lack grip. For when it’s time to hoist yourself up them, you might find your grip slipping, especially if you’re sweaty. Still, it could’ve been a lot worse. The adventure upwards was breathtaking, and full of wonderful views of the park’s seaboard. Maybe skip this popular trail if you don’t like lines, or, you know, sharp cliffs.
After the Beehive, we still had a lot of hiking left to do. The Beehive is roughly 550 feet of elevation gain, which is small. So, on our way down, we took a detour to the Gorham Mountain Trail.
This was significantly easier than the Beehive Trail, as no iron rungs were required, just trekking through more dense, forested parts of the island. There were pretty views here as well; at one point, my brothers and I stopped along a cliff face to relax. The summit was just as beautiful as Beehive; you could see much more coastline and surrounding areas of the park. Plus, there were lots of cute pups conquering this mountain too!
Following our descent, we were left at an entrance to Ocean Path. A very simple, flat hike that takes you along the coast; you’ll find one of the park’s most popular spots along this trail.
Thunder Hole has long been recognized for its thunderous waves. At first, I was skeptical because if you don’t time this visit right, you’re probably going to leave underwhelmed. Ideally, you should aim to get there just before or after high tide when the water is close enough to shoot through and slam into the cave. I will say that it did sound really close to thunder! It’s a sweet spot to watch the waves roll in, but watch out, you might get splashed!
At this point, we were itching for some grub and took a trip down to Thurston’s Lobster Shack. Don’t ask me about the lobster; I hate seafood. My brother claims it was a very delicious, reasonably priced meal though.
Following this, we decided to gander to Beech Mountain. Another well-known trail, this one features a local landmark: the fire watch tower. This hike wasn’t all that difficult either, but it did contain some steepness. I found its rock staircases quite helpful. You can’t climb all the way up the fire watch tower, but you can access part of the stairs. It was an awesome sight to see! However, the lookout from this trail marker was even better. It seemed like there were endless rolling hills, mountains, and oceans.
A long day of hiking requires a reward, and in this case, a cheesecake reward. It was out of the question to not visit Momo’s Cheesecakes. We arrived at 9 p.m., and yet it was bustling with sugar-craving customers. An entire wall full of cheesecakes embodied one side of the shack, and two more cases of various other desserts like baklava and cake lined the opposing wall. Bright pink, yellow, and blue Post-it notes written by customers from all over the world crawled along the walls from floor to ceiling. Currencies from countries you’d least expect were glued to these cheesecake cases as well. I went with cookie dough on our first visit, then the next day bought the German chocolate cake cheesecake. Both were excellent!
I don’t know about you, but the thought of visiting this delicious cheesecake shop sold the trip for me!
However, I think one of my favorite adventures of the whole trip was the Jordan Pond Loop Trail. Funnily enough, the day was pretty dreary leading up to this, so I half expected it to be all that remarkable, but if anything, I think it made the trail more worth it. Not to mention the pre-hike tea and pot pie we got at Jordan Pond House.
The meal was divine! They are known for their popovers, and I can confidently say they’ve lived up to this reputation. The tea really warmed up my stomach on such a cool, late summer day. Try the Earl Grey if you’re considering visiting.
The trail itself started by a brisk walk along wooden planks, and all the while the pond stretches far to your right. The whole time it felt like I was walking in a painting of a river valley. Plenty of squirrels and chipmunks scuttled along the trail, more than happy to greet you. However, beavers, bears, and fish have been spotted here as well! Funnily enough, we were able to spot a little frog friend of our own there too.
It’s a very long, winding trail, filled with scenes of the forest treetops, the rippling pond, and looming mountains nearby. If you really enjoy long, scenic hikes, then this is the one for you!
Following this last excursion, we headed home. I couldn’t help but feel a little sad that I was leaving a park as beautiful as this, which is crazy because we only scratched the surface of it. Next time, I hope to visit Cadillac Mountain and Schooler’s Point. Not only this, but I want to snag a boat tour and visit some puffins on nearby islands.
If you too want to visit, I highly recommend all these trails, but also visiting the more low-key spots as well. Otter Point was another simple walk with a major lookout. There, we were able to catch the attention of three seals hanging out maybe 15 feet offshore! No otters, though.
If you’re looking for a fall trip, a spring adventure, or a summer excursion, I highly recommend visiting this national park. People from all over the country come to this beauty to see its landscape, and it’s not something to pass up! It’s not as far as you think, and the Maine coast provides lovely little towns for you to explore on your way up. If you like hiking, exploring coastlines, and visiting Maine, I highly recommend adding this to your travel plans. But you can’t forget about Momo’s Cheesecakes, too.