Ocean Drive Trail

The Ocean Path - An Easy Acadia Hiking Trail

The Ocean Drive Trail (also known as the Ocean Path) lies along the Park Loop Road south of Sand Beach and is one of the most well-loved Acadia hiking trails.

While it may not provide too many hiking "thrills," this path is lovely and what we like about it is the red rock cliffs you find along it just past Sand Beach. We always take time during the auto tour to spend an hour or two on the cliffs, having lunch, climbing up and down and exploring the tide pools.

It's great fun to explore the Ocean Drive Trail... easy or not!

Trail Description

Distance: 4 mi
Type of Hike: Out and Back
Where to Park: Anywhere along the drive, but to do the whole thing, park either at Sand Beach or Otter Point

This easy trail is a mixture of paved and gravel paths. It offers the best close-up views of Acadia's shoreline, as it follows along Park Loop Road. You can begin the trail at Otter Point or almost anywhere along the Park Loop Road from Sand Beach to Otter Point.

From Otter Point, the trail leads you along Otter Cliffs, through pine groves, past Thunder Hole, and ends at Sand Beach.

If you’re looking for an easy hike that really shows you a sampling of all that Acadia has to offer, this is definitely a great trail to try. This trail can also be used to create a loop hike.

If—like us—you don't like doing out-and-back hikes, the make-your-own-loop is a great option. You can hike up one side of a mountain (like Gorham Mountain and back down the other, and then at the end just use the Ocean Path to get back to where you left your car.

Insider Tips

• If you want to increase your intensity level on this hike, take an hour or two to roam the rocky cliffs along the way. You can climb anywhere you like, but please stay away from the ocean... as it is very strong and cold and would be extremely difficult to climb back out if you were to fall in!

• Explore the tide pools that exist along the oceanside cliffs. You can find all sorts of cool things like barnacles, seaweed, crabs, snails and loads more. Remember not to take anything with you as you are supposed to leave everything the way you found it! (And it's against the law to take things out of a national park.)

• There is a really cool cave along the shore. Try to find it. If tide's out you can almost climb all the way down inside it, but be careful because if the tide starts to come back in you could be in a jam!

• This is another great trail to combine with the auto tape tour. Throw your lunch in your backpack, park on the side of the Park Loop Road and walk along the path until you come to the cliffs. Follow the short foot path down to the cliffs and find the perfect quiet dining locale for your lunch!

So, if you're a beginner hiker, have young children (or older folks), or just are not up for a rocky scramble, the Ocean Drive Trail might be the right choice for your Acadia hiking experience!

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