An introduction to Acadia National Park and its hiking trails

Approximately 110 miles of hiking trails exist within Acadia National Park (ANP). The Park’s trail system exhibits a diversity of natural history and a great variance within the trails themselves. The trails in the park range from short and easy hikes to more challenging and strenuous climbs. Hikes exist for all level of hikers and outdoor enthusiasts in ANP. This park is one of the smaller National Parks, approximately 35,000 acres, but for its size, ANP boasts a great diversity of ecology, wildlife and varying scenery.

The forests of the park are a mixture of coniferous trees (evergreens), deciduous trees (trees with leaves), mixed forest (a mixture of coniferous and deciduous) and marine habitat. The varying types of forest result from a 1947 fire that burned over 17,000 acres on Mount Desert Island, mainly on the eastern half of the Island. Approximately 9,000 of those acres are located within the park. As a result of the fire, the eastern side of Mount Desert Island has more deciduous trees and mixed forest than the western half, which is primarily coniferous.

The scenery on the park trail system has uncompromised beauty with numerous vantage points of Frenchman Bay, off shore islands and surrounding mountains. Glacial activity shaped Mount Desert Island’s physical features, creating a unique landscape of scoured granite mountaintops offering many unobstructed views of the bay.

Click here for information on hiking safety, how to be prepared and what to know before you go out.