There’s a sense of natural paradise around Bar Harbor. Funny coincidence, then, that it was once named Eden – in honour of an early settler – Sir Richard Eden. From a secluded haven for artists to elitist holiday retreat, Maine’s oldest summer resort also enchants visitors with its immense natural beauty in the fall. In Acadia National Park, take to Cadillac Mountain – the East Coast’s highest with outstanding views of the Porcupine Islands and Frenchman Bay. If you have the opporunity to visit in late September or early October, you are sure to see some amazing fall foliage. Whale watching is popular during this time as well, but bundle up! It gets VERY cold. If you like seafood, the lobster is wonderful, and don’t forget to taste a piece of homemade blueberry pie.
Here are some other things you can enjoy while visiting Bar Harbor:
ACADIA NATIONAL FOREST
The 35,000-acre (14,163.9-hectare) park was established by concerned summer residents in 1916 and declared a national park by Congress in 1919.
ABBE MUSEUM
Maine’s first people are known as the Wabanaki, The People of the Dawn. Their story is told at the Abbe Museum.
SOMESVILLE
Mount Desert Island’s oldest settlement. This tiny storybook village overlooking Somes Sound, is the only fjord on the eastern seaboard of the United States.
THUNDER HOLE
Impressive ocean swells converge against granite cliffs, creating a thunderous roar.
WEST STREET DISTRICT
Some of the best examples of the Bar Harbor shingle-style “cottages” can be found here.
