Acadia National Park

We spent a week visiting Acadia National Park. Since it can be very busy, we waited until after Labor Day when the crowds would be less.

Main Stay Cottages and RV Park

It is located in Winter Harbor and had very good water views. The park is also close to the uncrowded and unspoiled Schoodic Peninsula. 50 amp service, 45 psi water pressure, and sewer. Internet was better than most of the parks in Canada. We were parked next to Billy, Jen, and the kids from martinsgonemad.com. We really enjoyed getting to know them and their retro 40 foot bus. Beautiful inside with stunning views out the huge windows.

Schoodic Peninsula

Schoodic Acadia Maine

Schoodic is a smaller segment of Acadia National Park. But, it is still over 2000 acres and represents 5% of the park. An anonymous donor bought the entire 3,200 acre tract of the Schoodic peninsula and built the Schoodic Woods Campground and miles of gravel bike paths before donating all of it to Acadia National Park in 2015.

Sandy Huntley Acadia Maine

There is a one way loop around the peninsula with plenty of turn offs. We arrived on Labor Day.

Sandy Huntley Picked Wrinkled

We had lunch at Picked Wrinkle. A wrinkle is a welk/snail that is a byproduct catch of lobster fishing. The locals pickle it and love it. Kind of like conch and chewy. Sandy tried them. Once was enough.

Fog Acadia National Park Maine

Rain was in the forecast, so we took the opportunity to enjoy the fog.

Even though it was early fall with the leaves starting to change, there were still some flowers blooming.

The rose hips were huge. They are high in Vitamin C. Rose hips are used for herbal teas, jam, jelly, syrup, rose hip soup, beverages, pies, bread, wine, and marmalade.

Salt Box

Salt Box Sandy Huntley Acadia Maine

It is a nice restaurant in Winter Harbor with views of the bay. The restaurant and bar were open concept with have high ceilings and an exposed kitchen. The food was very good. We haddock, steak, and a bottle of pinot.

Smugglers Den

Smugglers Den Acadia National Park

We enjoyed this campground. Smugglers Den is in Southwest Harbor, Maine and first opened in 1969. There was good privacy and space between sites. Geez, they could have put 2 RVs in this site. We had 50 amp service, 45 psi water pressure, and the internet was fast enough to surf and occasionally stream Netflix. Because it was wooded, we could not use the satellite, but the campground had decent cable. There was a pool, but since the air temperature was only in the low 60’s, no one was using it.

Sandy Huntley Maine Lobster over Campfire

Smugglers Den sold live lobster for $7.99/lb. and supplied a lobster pot, lid, fire grate, salt, and tools. We started a fire, put a pot of water over it, and steamed 2 lobsters. Wow, delicious! They were sweet and tender.

Acadia National Park Maine

Google Maps Image of Acadia National Park. Samuel de Champlain sailed by the island in 1604. Because he saw bare rock, he named it Mount Desert Island. A French Missionary colony was established in 1613. The island was granted to Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac by Louis XIV of France in 1688, but ceded to England in 1713. The Maine Legislature in 1901 created a charter to acquire and hold land on the island in the public interest. The first land was donated by Mrs. Eliza Homans of Boston in 1908, and 5,000 acres had been acquired by 1914. President Woodrow Wilson established it as Sieur de Monts National Monument in 1916, and in 1919 it became Lafayette National Park in honor of Marquis de Lafayette who was a French supporter of the American Revolution. The Park was renamed Acadia in 1929 to honor the former French colony of Acadia. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. financed and directed the construction of a network of carriage trails in the park (now bike trails), over 50 miles worth, including 17 granite bridges and two lodges.

Acadia National Park Cadillac Mountain

Bar Harbor in Frenchman Bay and surrounding islands viewed from Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park. Even though the Mt. Desert part of Acadia National Park is larger than Schoodic, we enjoyed the loop drive around Schoodic compared to Mt. Desert. There were more scenic stops along the ocean and less crowds.