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Acadia Autotape Tour: Eastern Half of the Park
Acadia Auto Tour Part 2
Here is our annotated version of the Acadia autotape tour...
Highlights (Stops and Sights)
OK, you have the Acadia auto tour tape or CD loaded into your car stereo, you're at or near the Hull's Cove entrance to Acadia National Park, and you're ready to go, right? Great! Then, let's begin...
1. Hull's Cove Visitor Center (Don't Pass Up This Resource)
Starting at the Visitor Center is a good idea, even if you already have a copy of the Acadia autotape tour (or CD). You can get a copy of the week's ranger program schedule, check in to see if any trails are closed (some almost always are), and browse their gift shop and bookstore.
They also have a 15-minute film you may want to watch, just to get acquainted with the island and the park, especially if this is your first visit. Plus, there are rangers there that you can ask questions, if you have any, before you get started.
Once you're done, head down the stairs to the parking lot and get ready to roll!
2. Begin Your Drive Along the Coast (Fun, fun!)
When you first start out on the Acadia autotape tour, you'll be paralleling the coast for a mile or two. Be sure to pull off to the small parking areas you'll see along the way. Each one provides a slightly different view of Frenchman Bay, Bar Harbor and the coastal areas. The largest of these areas even has a map of what you're looking at out in Frenchman Bay, so it's a great way to orient yourself.
3. Sieur de Monts Spring and Nature Center (Nature Tamed, Sort of)
Next stop on the Acadia autotape tour is a great place to let the kids stretch their legs and experience nature too. Gardeners will enjoy this stop as well.
When the road starts to turn away from the coast, you'll come to a spot where you'll need to turn onto the one-way section of the loop. Shortly after that, you'll see the sign for Sieur de Monts Spring.
Don't be fooled... this stop on the Acadia autotape tour is much more than a spring. Actually, you could probably spend the better part of a day right here, if you wanted. You'll find:
Access to several of the park's more interesting trails, including the Jesup Trail and the Hemlock Trail
The Wild Gardens of Acadia, with an interesting nature trail, maintained jointly by park personnel and the Bar Harbor Garden Club
Abbe Museum, home to one of largest collections of Native American artifacts in Maine
A little bit further on along the Acadia autotape tour and to the right, you'll see a large pond. Look closely and you'll see quite a few beaver dams scattered around in it. In fact, this was once the site of Beaver Creek, but the beavers' dams worked so effectively, they created the pond. It is a constant battle in Acadia to keep beavers from flooding the roads and carriage paths while letting them live normally.
You can also find beaver dams in a few other places in the park, but you won't find as many in one place as you will here. However, spotting the beavers themselves is much harder—we never have... but hope springs eternal!
Here's an insider's tip. If you cross the road from the pond, and follow a narrow trail down to the edge of the creek there, you might find a few frogs. You'll also be able to get a great up-close look at Jackson Laboratory.
5. First Glimpse of the Precipice Trail (Awe-Inspiring)
Keep driving along the road and you'll eventually see a parking lot off to the right at the base of a steep, rocky mountain face. The mountain is Champlain, and the trail you'll see going straight up (or at least it looks it from the road!) is one of the most well-known and loved trails in Acadia—The Precipice Trail.
Even though you don't want to take time during the Acadia autotape tour to hike this trail now (or it might be closed, depending on what time of year it is), do pull in to the lot and get out of your car. Amble over to the base of the trail head and take a gander... it's pretty impressive.
Looking at the trail from this vantage point was as close as we got on our first 5 trips to Acadia, because the trail was always closed! Finally, in 2004, we hiked the Precipice, but that's another story.
Look for rangers in the parking lot too... a lot of times they're there with telescopes, which you can look through to catch a glimpse of the peregrine falcons (and babies) that nest there every spring and summer.
6. Schooner Head (Hidden Treasure)
Continue on down the road until you start to see the toll booths coming up, with signs for Sand Beach. But just before you get there, take the left exit to Schooner Head. It's well worth it, but it's easy to miss the turn.
Schooner Head is an example of private land surrounded by park land. From the small parking area, hike down the paved path to the promontory looking over the coast. It's not a hard—or long—hike. We have sometimes taken our lunch break there. It's usually a fairly quiet place.
You'll have great coastal views, of course, as well as views of some impressive local mansions on private land. But in addition, you'll have dozens of tidal pools to explore. And then, there's the Anemone Cave, which we didn't fully explore during our first few trips because we never seemed to be there at low tide. But you can actually hike right down into the cave... be careful though, wet rocks are slippery!
Depending on the time of the day you're doing the Acadia autotape tour, you may also be able to watch some of the local fisherman gathering in their lobster pots.
At any rate, you can spot the many different colored lobster buoys floating everywhere in the waters around Schooner Head (and along most of the Mt. Desert Island coast). Each lobsterman has his/her own unique buoys... unique in terms of color combinations and shape. We always enjoy trying to spot the various styles.
7. Sand Beach in Acadia (Prepare to Shiver)
Once you come back out of the Schooner Head access road, the free part of your Acadia autotape tour will be over. You'll have to pay for a week's admission to Acadia at the toll booth. No sweat, though... it's worth it... even if you're only there for a day or two!
Then, it's on to the beach! Now coming from New Jersey, home of the famed "Shore", we found that Acadia's Sand Beach was a very different type of seashore. It's in one of the few coves on the Mount Desert Island coast that is protected enough for sand to accumulate. By the way, did you know that the sand there is actually tiny particles of shells?
Anyway, the beach is a good-sized strip of sand, backed by some impressive sand dunes and a lovely little lagoon. Don't go there with high hopes of body surfing in the waves, though. Sure, there are some nice waves... but the water tends to be around 50 degrees... even in the summer! Brrr!
Sand Beach is definitely worth seeing though, so take the time to stop and get out of your car (you have to walk down a short flight of steps). Spend some time soaking up rays on the beach, or explore the surrounding rocks, dunes, and lagoon.
8. Ocean Drive & the Ocean Path (Prototype Rocky Coast)
Turn left out of the Sand Beach parking lot and you'll be on the one-way stretch of the Park Loop Road known as the Ocean Drive. Ocean Drive is the winding stretch from Sand Beach to Otter Cove.
The Ocean Path "Trail" runs parallel to the road along this stretch as well. If you're up for a long, but easy hike, this might be the one to try. And, it's wheelchair accessible the whole way, as it is paved.
You'll have beautiful views of the coast and Frenchman Bay on the left all through this section of the Acadia autotape tour, while on the right you can see Champlain Mountain, Gorham Mountain and the rocky faces of the other coastal mountains of Acadia.
Too beautiful!
9. Thunder Hole (Tourist Trap... but Fun)
A little ways up along Ocean Drive, you'll start to see lots of cars pulled over, swarms of people walking and crossing the road from a parking lot on the right. This is Thunder Hole... easily the most "touristy" part of Acadia.
It has never been one of my favorite parts of Acadia, probably because there are always so many people there, but you must stop there on the Acadia autotape tour. It's tradition, after all!
At Thunder Hole, waves slam into narrow passages in the coastal rocks, compressing air, and making thunderous booming noises that are seen and felt.
The best time to hear the "thunder" noises here is midway between low and high tide, when tide is rising, though that can be hard to arrange in the middle of the auto tour. So, you might need to come back another time if your timing is off.
If you're really lucky, you'll get there during one of the occasional summer storms, when the effects are glorious. However, we hear the very best thundering is heard during the winter. Really violent storms can carry spray from the crashing of waves in Thunder Hole all the way across the park road!
In addition to looking at Thunder Hole, you may also want to climb out on some of the red rock cliffs you'll find there and all along the Ocean Drive. It's fun, as long as you're careful. It'll be crowded here, though.
In the lot across the road, you'll find a small gift shop. Do stop in... it's a bit different flavor than the other shops in the park and worth seeing. You can also pick up a candy bar or Popsicle, if you have a hankering (we always do).
10. Otter Cliffs & Otter Point (Red Cliff Wonders)
As you continue along the Ocean Drive section of the Park Loop Road on the Acadia autotape tour, you'll come to a point named Otter Point. This is named by the way not for otters (no sea otters live along the Maine coast); it is named for nearby Otter Creek (where you might be able to see freshwater otters).
As you approach the point on the Acadia autotape tour, you'll be passing by Otter Cliffs, which are the highest shore cliffs along the Atlantic coast in the United States. The cliffs are made up of pink feldspar, white quartz, and a black horn blend of rock, and they are gorgeous.
Do stop and take a look. If you're lucky, you may even be able to watch some happy rock climbers rappelling down or climbing back up... we even tried that once!
11. Fabbri Memorial (War Buffs, Take Note)
Back on the road, head around the point and you'll soon come to another parking lot, with signs for the Fabbri Memorial. Pull in here and listen to the info about this memorial on the Acadia autotape tour.
World War I buffs may find this especially interesting... In 1917-1919, this spot housed a Naval radio station, which was important strategically during WWI. The memorial is named for Lt. Alessandro Fabbri, naval officer in charge of the base during those years.
12. Otter Cove (Quiet Beauty)
Just past the memorial, you'll cross a small bridge over a creek that empties into a quiet, rock-edged cove off the Bay. This is Otter Cove, again named for the creek, not for wildlife. You will find lots of chattering seagulls there, though!
Otter Cove is a fun place to park and take a short break from the Acadia autotape tour. Wander along the shore, collecting rocks and/or seashells. I always found it an especially nice break after the crowds at Thunder Hole. On one trip, when we returned to our minivan, a seagull had taken up residence on our van roof. He wasn't too thrilled about moving off, either!
Are you enjoying this Acadia autotape tour? Fun, isn't it? The good news is, we're not done yet with our Acadia autotape tour. Lots more fun and beautiful sights are ahead...
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When you first start out on the Acadia autotape tour, you'll be paralleling the coast for a mile or two. Be sure to pull off to the small parking areas you'll see along the way. Each one provides a slightly different view of Frenchman Bay, Bar Harbor and the coastal areas. The largest of these areas even has a map of what you're looking at out in Frenchman Bay, so it's a great way to orient yourself.
Next stop on the Acadia autotape tour is a great place to let the kids stretch their legs and experience nature too. Gardeners will enjoy this stop as well.
A little bit further on along the Acadia autotape tour and to the right, you'll see a large pond. Look closely and you'll see quite a few beaver dams scattered around in it. In fact, this was once the site of Beaver Creek, but the beavers' dams worked so effectively, they created the pond. It is a constant battle in Acadia to keep beavers from flooding the roads and carriage paths while letting them live normally.
Keep driving along the road and you'll eventually see a parking lot off to the right at the base of a steep, rocky mountain face. The mountain is Champlain, and the trail you'll see going straight up (or at least it looks it from the road!) is one of the most well-known and loved trails in Acadia—
Continue on down the road until you start to see the toll booths coming up, with signs for Sand Beach. But just before you get there, take the left exit to Schooner Head. It's well worth it, but it's easy to miss the turn.
Depending on the time of the day you're doing the Acadia autotape tour, you may also be able to watch some of the local fisherman gathering in their lobster pots. 
Once you come back out of the Schooner Head access road, the free part of your Acadia autotape tour will be over. You'll have to pay for a week's admission to Acadia at the toll booth. No sweat, though... it's worth it... even if you're only there for a day or two!
Turn left out of the Sand Beach parking lot and you'll be on the one-way stretch of the Park Loop Road known as the Ocean Drive. Ocean Drive is the winding stretch from Sand Beach to Otter Cove.
A little ways up along Ocean Drive, you'll start to see lots of cars pulled over, swarms of people walking and crossing the road from a parking lot on the right. This is Thunder Hole... easily the most "touristy" part of Acadia.
The best time to hear the "thunder" noises here is midway between low and high tide, when tide is rising, though that can be hard to arrange in the middle of the auto tour. So, you might need to come back another time if your timing is off.
As you continue along the Ocean Drive section of the Park Loop Road on the Acadia autotape tour, you'll come to a point named Otter Point. This is named by the way not for otters (no sea otters live along the Maine coast); it is named for nearby Otter Creek (where you might be able to see freshwater otters).
Just past the memorial, you'll cross a small bridge over a creek that empties into a quiet, rock-edged cove off the Bay. This is Otter Cove, again named for the creek, not for wildlife. You will find lots of chattering seagulls there, though!
