Acadia National Park

Mount Desert Island (East)

Separated from the quieter west side by Somes Sound, the east side of Mount Desert Island is the most visited part of the park. The 27-mile Park Loop Road is the go-to scenic drive here, linking lakes, mountains and shoreline on its way to Sieur de Monts, Sand Beach, Otter Point, Jordan Pond and the top of Cadillac Mountain. Thunder Hole and Otter Cliffs are other highlights. Pinkish Cadillac Mountain granite makes up much of the island's bedrock, and glaciers carved the U-shaped valleys that hold Jordan Pond and Eagle Lake and shaped The Bubbles, two rounded granite knobs. Hiking is especially popular on this side of the island, and trailheads fill quickly, so the fare-free Island Explorer bus is a handy way to reach them. Non-motorized carriage roads also wind through the area, and Bar Harbor sits close by.

Mount Desert Island (West)

Across Somes Sound from the busier east side, the west side of Mount Desert Island offers quieter, more secluded recreation among wooded mountains and glacier-shaped lakes and ponds. Trails climb through forest and along ridgelines to summits such as Acadia, Beech, St. Sauveur and Flying mountains. The Western Mountain Loop, a challenging 3.8-mile route over Mansell and Bernard mountains, ascends more than 300 cut granite steps on the historic Perpendicular Trail. Paddlers and boaters can explore Long Pond, Echo Lake, Hodgdon Pond and Seal Cove Pond, and swimmers head to Echo Lake Beach. Seawall has camping, hiking and ranger programs, while Bass Harbor Head Light Station in Tremont marks the entrance to Bass Harbor and Blue Hill Bay. The Carroll Homestead shows how farm life on the island changed through the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Schoodic Peninsula

The only section of the park on the mainland, this peninsula is managed to stay quiet, with minimal development and a more secluded feel than Mount Desert Island. Its granite headlands show the wear of storm surf and flood tides. Past Winter Harbor, the park road leads by the Schoodic Woods Campground and Ranger Station, then the Frazer Point Picnic Area, where tables and fire rings overlook coves, rocky beaches and islands. From there a one-way stretch hugs the western shore, with turnouts for watching lobster boats and gulls and looking across to Mount Desert Island, before reaching Schoodic Point. A 7.5-mile trail network crosses spruce-fir forest, pine woodland and shrubland, with lookouts from the Anvil and the 440-foot summit of Schoodic Head. Another 8.3 miles of packed gravel paths suit cyclists and walkers alike.

Isle au Haut

Reached only by passenger ferry from Stonington, this island in Penobscot Bay is the most remote corner of the park. Samuel Champlain named it "High Island" in 1604. The park manages about half the land, and the rest is private, shared by summer residents and a fishing community living there year-round. Eighteen miles of rough trails wind past marshes, bogs, a mile-long freshwater lake, forested uplands and rocky coast. Duck Harbor is the best place to start a hike, and Western Head and Eastern Head are among the island's highlights. Duck Harbor Mountain is the most strenuous climb, while the Goat Trail traces a rocky stretch of coast. Cyclists get five miles of paved road and seven of rough unpaved road, suited to mountain bikes, though trails are off-limits to bikes. Duck Harbor Campground offers five designated sites.

Outer Islands

South of Mount Desert Island, the Cranberry Isles, Baker Island and more than a dozen other outlying islands hold park land and structures alongside communities whose residents have worked these waters and waterfronts for generations. These islands are reached only by water, on passenger ferries, personal watercraft or tour boats. The main way to experience the area is a ranger-led boat tour to Islesford on Little Cranberry Island, home of the Islesford Historical Museum. Passport collectors can pick up the Islesford stamp at the museum. Baker Island, marked by Baker Island Light, is another landmark. Beyond Little Cranberry, the islands are closed to the public; some are owned by the park, others protected through conservation easements. Camping and fires are prohibited on all of them.