Thunder Hole, Jordan Pond, and Cadillac Mountain – Acadia National Park

Acadia National Park is perhaps one of the most famous national parks on the East Coast. It is known for being the location of Cadillac Mountain. It is from this peak that you can view the sunrise first in the United States. This area has the highest mountains found on the East Coast. The park also has more diversity than you might imagine with over 1,100 species of plants and there are even 20 different mountains within its boundaries. Acadia was the first national park established east of the Mississippi River.

We had been to Acadia National Park more than 20 years ago with our girls. It has been long enough ago that many sights were “new to me.” For this visit, we were very early in the season and that had some advantages. There were not the vast crowds of tourists this time of year and we had some places to ourselves. On the other hand, many restaurants, museums, and stores are not open until around the U.S. Memorial Day holiday.

For example, the Jordan Pond Restaurant was not open until our last day in the area and, when it did open, the wait time for a table was 1.5 hours. Many locals told us that they refuse to visit the park between the Memorial Day and Labor Day holidays. With over 4 million visitors a year, Acadia National Park is one of the 10 most visited parks in the United States.

Before the summer season starts, you are not required to have a timed entry to drive up to Cadillac Mountain. So we took advantage of being able to visit it on our own timetable. It was really windy the day we visited but we enjoyed beautiful skies and the awesome views. It was the first time all winter that we needed cold-weather clothes!

We also visited the Thunder Hole viewpoint but did not check the tide chart first. It is still a beautiful area, but no thunder, just a splish-splash.

What the folks from Ellsworth, Maine, where we parked the Bighorn, did recommend was to visit the Schoodic Peninsula which is not as crowded and is very beautiful. This is part of the Acadia National Park but is about a 30-40 minute drive to the east. As the crow flies, it is close to Bar Harbor, ME. There is even a ferry that travels between the two locations (Bar Harbor to Winter Harbor). Bring your bike and lunch on the ferry for an enjoyable visit.

On the way to Schoodic Point we could see the Winter Harbor Lighthouse in the distance.

At the tip of the peninsula is a viewpoint with stunning views of the ocean breaching the rocks and pounding them repeatedly with forceful waves. We sat on the rocks for a while just enjoying the sights and sounds with very few folks around.

We also visited the Schoodic Institute to check out the amazing building and its bathrooms. As with so many of the buildings and land within national parks, John D. Rockefeller was the major benefactor. Rockefeller paid to relocate a naval radio listening station from Mount Desert Island to the Schoodic Peninsula. In addition, he hired the New York architect, Grosvenor Atterbury, to do the design work on this new facility. Mr. Atterbury had designed the famous gatehouses on the carriage roads that are found on Mount Desert Island. The majority of the national park is on MDI, as the locals call it.

The Schoodic Institute is now an education and research center which offers housing, meals, conference rooms, and laboratories.

From the nearby trail head, we hiked up to Schoodic Head viewpoint.

This is the highest point on the peninsula. Like much of Maine, the ground was very rocky which made for a fun hike. The views from the top definitely made the trip worth it.

We did visit Bar Harbor and found lobster ice cream. Some things are not meant to be.

On the way back to the Bighorn we ate a late lunch at the only “lobster pound” that was open this time of year. The food was excellent.

Visiting here brought back fond memories. The island drives and hikes are beautiful and scenic. It is a location that everyone should visit at least once.

Its off to Canada now for the next two months. Maine has been a lot of fun.