We drove all the way to Maine (7 hours north of our home in central NY), to see Tyler Childers perform. Since it was quite the trek, we decided to make a mini vacation out of the experience because we knew we’d be within an hour of Acadia National Park.

In an effort to keep vehicles in the park at a minimum, the park offers free shuttle bus loop services with drop offs at various attractions within the park. Unfamiliar with the park, we opted for the free shuttle bus loop (Park Loop Route) around the Eastern part of the park. There are several other shuttles but this one was one of two offered on July 4th and gave the most extensive tour of the East side of the park.

The shuttle allows you get off at various stops; every 30 minutes a bus will come by to pick you up along the route. It’s a great way to check out a couple of the places in the park that are of interest. In fact, the park is really huge and has a lot to offer. If you don’t have much time, I highly recommend the Park Loop tour. It gives you an opportunity to see a few places while planning for your next trip where you’ll spend more time in the park.

We stopped at two notable places that I highly recommend. Sand Beach and Jordan Pond.

Sand Beach is a must see. It includes a beautiful sand beach that looks out to the Atlantic Ocean. The views of the cliffs and mountains are breath taking. Equally impressive is the view of the mountains behind the beach where there is a little inlet that is a beautiful juxtaposition of where land meets sea–mountains and forests kiss the ocean and cliffs. We were in awe of the beauty of this first stop.

The next stop along the shuttle loop where we hopped off was Jordan Pond. Nestled in the park are streams and ponds like this one. The Jordan Pond stop also has a restaurant that has outside seating to enjoy the views, and a grab and go sandwich shop. We opted for a sandwich and ate out on the upper deck of the visitor center and gift shop there.

Hiking around the pond itself is a level and doable 3 mile or so loop. We were pressed for time, but we did walk down to the waters edge and get some great photos.

Our final stop was Bubble Pond. While not as scenic, offered a freshwater pond with nice views. There are hiking trails through the woods around the pond and it was one of the quieter stops.

Final thoughts:

Based on the advice of the driver, next time we would definitely do the Ocean Path Hike that runs parallel to Ocean Drive and has some breathtaking scenery.

The shuttle loop itself offers spectacular views of the park and was comfortable. Be prepared to stand at times when you hop back on after your stop, as it gets busy.

Familiarize yourself with the map and research the stops to determine where you’d like to spend some time.

Pay attention to the time–the 27 mile loop takes about an hour and a half without stops so you’ll want to account for that when planing.

Lastly, enjoy! The park is breathtaking and worth a visit.

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About the Author:

Michelle Osterhoudt is a school administrator, mom, wife and former small town newspaper columnist who enjoys going to concerts with her husband. She can be reached at osterhoudtmichelle@yahoo.com