Acadia is a gem on the east side of the United States. Some of the Best Hikes In Acadia National Park include cliff trails, quiet ponds, historic Maine lighthouses, and ocean views.
This park has climbing paths for people of all ages and abilities. Some of the cliff hikes can be hard and dangerous, but most of the tracks in Acadia are family-friendly and easy for people who are just starting out.
We’ve spent a lot of time exploring this national park in the fall, and it’s always a great time. The park has more than 47,000 acres of coastal beauty, which is even more beautiful when the leaves change color in the fall.
This is my list of the best hikes and trails in Acadia. These are some of the best hikes in Acadia National Park, in my opinion.
Best Hikes In Acadia National Park
1. Beehive Trail
This is a fun cliff walk with some of the Best Hikes In Acadia National Park. It is also one of the best hikes in the park to see the fall foliage.
The Beehive Trail is not as hard or dangerous as the Precipice Trail (below), but it still has some rung climbing parts and a few steep drop-offs. If you want to hike Precipice Trail, this is a good way to start.
I wouldn’t suggest this hike to anyone who has trouble moving around, is afraid of heights, or is a child. I wouldn’t try it when the road is wet or icy, either, because slipping could kill me if I fell.
At the top, you can see Sand Beach and Great Head below, as well as the shores of Acadia and a few small islands in the distance.
This hike goes in a circle, so the way down is different than the way up. getting down is a much easier and safer part of the hike than getting up. The whole loop hike can be done in 1 or 2 hours.
Beehive’s start is near Sand Beach. Parking spots fill up quickly, so it’s best to go early. It’s worth the effort to get there!
It’s 1.5 miles (2.4 km) away. trip around
Gain in altitude: 500 feet (150 m)
Moderate to hard difficulty
2. Jordan Pond Loop
This is a flat, easy walk that goes in a loop around Jordan Pond, one of Acadia’s most famous sights.
Jordan Pond is known as the lake in Acadia National Park that is the cleanest and deepest. People say that people can usually see 45 feet (15 meters) below the surface.
You can walk around the whole pond in about 1.5 to 2 hours, though the road can be muddy or narrow in a few places. When you’re done, go to the Jordan House Restaurant and treat yourself to popovers, which are baked rolls.
During the fall, the leaves on all sides of Jordan Pond have pretty colors, but the best colors are on the north side of the pond.
Round-trip distance: 3 miles (5 km)
Gain in Height: Not Much
Hardness: Easy
3. Precipice Trail
The Best Hikes In Acadia National Park is the Precipice Trail, but it is also the most dangerous. It’s like the Angels Landing hike on the east side of the United States, but even more dangerous.
This hike has great views and gives you a lot of energy. You’ll have to squeeze between big rocks, use metal steps to climb a steep mountain, and shimmy along narrow cliff edges. It is one of the most exciting hikes in Maine and the national parks of the United States.
There are parts of the trail where you have to climb a vertical ladder with steep drops on all sides. Several people have died on this trail, so it’s not one to take lightly.
Before you even think about trying the Precipice Trail, you should hike the Beehive Trail. Beehive is like a shorter, easier, and safer form of Precipice. If you have any trouble with it, you’ll know that Precipice is not a good fit for you.
I wouldn’t suggest Precipice to anyone who has trouble moving around, is afraid of heights, or is young. I also wouldn’t try it if the path was wet or icy, because slipping could be fatal in those circumstances.
This hike goes in a circle, so you take a different road to get back down. Going down (the second part of the hike) is much easier and safer than going up. You can climb to the top in about 1.5 hours, and then the way down is much faster.
If you want excitement and energy, this is one of the best trails in Acadia National Park.
Distance: 3.4 km (2.1 miles) way around
Gain in altitude: 1,050 feet (320 m)
Challenge: Hard
4. Ocean Path
This is a flat, easy walk along the most beautiful part of Acadia National Park’s coast. Along the way, there are several nice places to stop and take pictures.
The full ocean walk goes from Sand Beach to Otter Point and is about 2.2 miles long. If you go all the way to Otter Point and back, the total distance is 4.5 miles. The whole path is flat and in good shape, so anyone can do it. It’s one of the simplest hikes in Acadia.
This hike can be as long or short as you want, or you can just do the best parts and skip the rest. Several places along the trail that are worth stopping at have parking lots.
Thunder Hole is one of the best places to see along the trail. It is at the halfway point, just 0.7 miles from Sand Beach. This is a crack in the rocks where the waves crash and make a ‘boom’ sound. Time is everything, so the best time to come here is when the tide is high.
The distance is 4.5 miles or 7.2 km. trip around
Gain in Height: Not Much
Hardness: Easy
5. Cadillac Summit Loop
Cadillac Mountain is one of the Best Hikes In Acadia National Park to watch the sun rise. It is also known as the first place in the United States to see the sunrise because of where it is. Don’t forget that Acadia is the most eastern national park in the United States.
You can drive to the top of Cadillac Mountain and see the sunrise without having to hike, but it’s very busy and most of the year you have to make a reservation for your car. Sunset is also a nice time to take pictures, and you don’t need a ticket for that.
At the summit parking lot, there is a short loop walk with great views of Acadia, Bar Harbor, and the many small islands around it. This full loop can be walked in about 30 minutes, making it one of the easiest and most accessible hikes in Acadia.
Distance: 0.8 km (0.5 miles) trip around
Gain in Height: Not Much
Hardness: Easy
6. South Bubble Trail
The walk to the top of South Bubble Mountain is short and easy. From the top, you can see beautiful views of Jordan Pond. It also has some of Acadia National Park’s best fall colors of any walk.
Along the way, you can stop and see the Bubble Rock, a huge granite rock that sits on a cliff and gives you a great view of Park Loop Road and the forest below.
Depending on where you start and how far you go, this hike can be easy or hard. If you start from the very small parking lot at Bubbles Divide, it will take you less than 30 minutes to get to the top of South Bubble.
But if you start the walk at Jordan Pond, which is farther away, or if you keep going past the South Bubble, it can be a longer and harder trip. It’s one of the best hikes in Acadia National Park no matter how you look at it.
It’s 1.5 miles (2.4 km) away. trip around
Gain in altitude: 350 feet (110 m)
Easy to moderate difficulty
7. Bass Harbor Lighthouse
This one isn’t really a hike, but more of a quick stroll down a road to the coast, where you can see a nice old Maine lighthouse.
The Bass Harbor Head Light was built in 1858 to protect the entrance to Bass Harbor, which is on the southwest side of Mount Desert Island. It is Acadia National Park’s only lighthouse.
You can’t go inside the keeper’s house or the tower, but you can walk around the lighthouse on either side. There’s also a short road down to the beach where you can look at the tidepools, watch the waves come in, and look up at the lighthouse.
The lighthouse is free to visit and stop at, but there are only about 20 parking spots, so it fills up quickly. The most popular and busy time to come is at sunset, but any time of day is nice for taking photos, so unless you really want to see it at sunset, I’d suggest you don’t go.
Distance: 0.6 km (0.4 miles) trip around
Gain in Height: Not Much
Hardness: Easy
8. Flying Mountain
Fewer people hike up Flying Mountain than on other trails in Acadia National Park, but the views are worth the effort.
There is some elevation gain, but if you are fit and keep a good pace, you can reach the top of the peak in about 20 minutes.
It’s 1.5 miles (2.4 km) away. trip around
Gain in altitude: 320 feet (100 m)
Hardness: Easy
9. Jordan Cliffs Trail
This is another walk at Jordan Pond, but this one goes up the narrow cliffs on the west side of the pond.
The Jordan Cliffs Trail is hard, but it gives you a different view of the lake and is less crowded than the Jordan Pond Loop, which is easy.
This walk can also be done as a loop that includes either the Jordan Pond Loop or the South Bubble Trail, or both.
The Jordan Cliffs Trail is a nice place to see the fall colors, but the view isn’t that different from what you can see at South Bubble. If you have to choose, I’d suggest doing the South Bubble Trail instead.
Round-trip distance: 3 miles (5 km)
Gain in altitude: 1,050 feet (320 meters).
Medium level of difficulty
10. Beech Mountain Fire Tower
Beech Mountain is a Best Hikes In Acadia National Park that not many people know about. At the top, there is an old fire tower with a great view of the area. It’s also a great hike to do at sunset.
This 1.2-mile loop trail is pretty easy and can be done in less than an hour by people of all ages and climbing skills.
Along the way, there are great views of Long Pond, and at the top, you can climb partway up the fire tower to see the park from all sides. It’s without a doubt one of the best hikes in Acadia.
The distance is 1.9 km or 1.2 miles. trip around
Gain in altitude: 350 feet (110 m)
Easy to moderate difficulty
Best short, easy hikes in Acadia
Here are some suggestions for the best short, easy hikes in Acadia that older people and families with kids can do:
- Cadillac Summit Loop — 0.5 miles (0.8 km) roundtrip
- Ocean Path — 4.5 miles (7.2 km) roundtrip
- Sundew Trail (Schoodic Peninsula) — 2 miles (3.2 km) roundtrip
- Bass Harbor Lighthouse — 0.4 miles (0.6 km) roundtrip
- Beech Mountain Fire Tower — 1.2 miles (1.9 km) roundtrip
- Jordan Pond Loop — 3 miles (5 km) roundtrip
When Can You See Maine’s Fall Foliage?
The best time to see the fall colors along the coast of Maine, including in Acadia, changes from year to year, but it’s usually around the middle of October.
But the best date for fall foliage can often be a week earlier or a week later in October, and you can also see great colors outside of the official “peak” date.
If you’re planning a trip to Acadia, you can check out the Maine state website to read about past fall weather dates and see some very helpful predictions for this year.
