Every trip to Acadia is a chance to experience new trails and summit new peaks. While we’ve enjoyed nearly every Acadia trail we’ve hiked, we find ourselves drawn back to certain trails. Here are our Top 10 Acadia Hikes:

10. Ship Harbor Trail – This easy 1.5 mile figure eight shaped trial is a great spot to stop on the way to or from Bass Harbor Light. The trail hugs shallow Ship Harbor, and features many interesting flowers and plants depending on the season. The ocean is particularly beautiful here in late afternoon.

9. Bar island – Check the tide charts to see when the Sand Bar will emerge from Frenchman Bay and create a path to Bar Island. The sand bar is a fun place to see what the tide brings in – like shells or crabs. Once on the island, the trail passes through a large field of wild lupine in spring time and always ends with a fantastic view of Bar Harbor from across the water.

8. Homan’s Path and Emery Trail – These historic trails lead up the east face of Dorr Mountain. The trails are accessible from the Sieur de Monts parking lot, but hikers can actually leave their cars at their Bar Harbor inns and walk to these trail heads via the Great Meadow Loop and Jessup Path. Be sure to check out the Sieur de Monts Spring and Wild Gardens of Acadia before venturing up the historic stone staircases that make up Homan’s Path and Emery Trail. We recommend going up one of the trails and down the other to ensure you enjoy all the great views of Frenchman Bay, Bar Harbor, and Great Meadow from Dorr Mountain’s cliffs. Homan’s Path is especially fun with its granite tunnels and archways.

7. Sargent Mountain via Penobscot Mountain and the Spring Trail – Starting on the Spring Trail, this exciting hike offers quick detours to Cliffside Bridge or West Branch Bridge. The trail utilizes some iron rungs and creative wooden ladders on the way to the top of Penobscot Mountain. After reaching the summit of Penobscot, the trail continues north to Sargent Mountain. Sargent’s summit is said to resemble the Scottish Highlands with its exposed granite and low lying bushes. Use the East Cliffs Trail to descend quickly back toward Jordan Pond.

6. Acadia Mountain – This trail offers amazing scenery as it ascends and descends the tallest of the quiet side peaks. The view of Somes Sound from the top is gorgeous. Be sure to take a spur trail to see the Man O’ War Brook waterfall where sailors (and maybe even pirates) filled their barrels with fresh drinking water.

5. Hadlock Brook Trail – This quiet side trail is accessed from the Parkman Mountain parking lot, but it can be added to hikes involving Sargent Mountain, Bald Peak, or Parkman Mountain. It offers the chance to see three carriage road bridges as it passes through a lovely forest along Hadlock Brook. Hemlock Bridge is one of our favorites and nearby Waterfall Bridge is always a treat to visit.

4. Pemetic Northridge Trail – This trail leaves from the Bubbles parking area and is the steepest way up Pemetic Mountain. The trail requires crawling over a series of boulders before giving hikers a choice between the ravine or the ledge. Hikers who chose the ravine proceed through a moss filled gorge to a pair of wooden ladders that lead back to the trail to the summit. We took the south ridge trail down and made a stop at Jordan Pond House for a blueberry lemonade before going back to the car.

3. Great Head – This 2 mile trail loops around the Great Head cliffs above Sand Beach. It is accessible from Sand Beach or the Great Head parking lot off Schooner Head Road. Climbing up from Sand Beach is the more difficult route. Once on top of the cliffs the trail is relatively flat. This is a great trail to do in the evening after the crowds clear out because of its close proximity to Bar Harbor.

2. Gorge Path – Maybe the most unique way to get to the top of Cadillac Mountain, the Gorge Path is one of Acadia’s historic trails. The hike begins with an easy and fun stroll along a creek with thoughtfully placed stepping stones that make traversing the creek easy. As the hike goes on, the trail becomes strenuous. At 1.5 miles, the trail splits with the left path joining the A. Murray Young Trail to the top of Dorr Mountain and the right path continuing to the summit of Cadillac. From the parking lot to the top of Cadillac is about 2 miles one way. We took the path up Cadillac first then returned down the trail and summited Dorr as well. It was a long, but fun day of hiking. Note that the parking area at the trailhead only fits 3 or 4 cars.

1. Gorham Mountain with the Cadillac Cliffs – At only 2 miles round trip from the Gorham Mountain parking lot to the summit and back, this trail can be completed in a couple of hours. It provides outstanding views of Sand Beach and Otter Cliffs. The Cadillac Cliffs trail splits off from the main trail shortly into the hike and includes a narrow passageway, a short granite tunnel, and an old sea cave. From the summit, the hike can be extended to the Bowl, the top of the Beehive, or even the summit of Champlain. This is a great year-round hike, but fall colors make it especially spectacular!

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