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Home » Travel » Bar Harbor – CharM oF QuainT
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Bar Harbor – CharM oF QuainT

Kanika August 27, 2013 Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Bar Harbor Maine, Cadillac Mountain, Frenchman Bay, Maine, Mount Desert Island, United States 10 Comments

IMG_0478

Bar harbor ( or as the locals say it ,  Bah..hah..buh ) is one of my favorite holiday destinations. Located in the state of Maine in the northeast part of America , this place has vintage feel to it. Not to forget 41,000 – acre Acadia National Park which attracts
thousands of tourists exclusively for hiking and biking. The peak season to visit this place is June – September. Its hard to find a hotel or motel or an Inn  or a campground on any weekend in these 4 months on run time. So pre booking is always advised. Bar Harbor has a wide variety of things to offer. From high mountain peaks to coastline vistas, from secluded lakes and ponds to touristy downtown, you name it and Bar harbor has it.

Me and my husband planned a sudden 2 day trip to Bar Harbor . As it was last minute, our hotel (Best western inn) was 15 minutes drive from main town.IMG_0229 All the hotels nearby were either booked or very expensive ( above 200$ ). After a 6 hour drive from Boston, we reached Bar harbor in middle of the day and it was gorgeous out there. Our first stop was Bar island which is a tidal island across bar harbor. I was pretty amazed to see that at low tide the part of Frenchman Bay becomes walkable and hence one can reach to this island by foot across a natural gravel land bridge. An hour walk on this island was very pleasant and refreshing. we were able to spot some deers in the woods too. A piece of advise before going , do check for local times of low and high tides and give yourself enough time so that you may not get stuck in the island. We did that mistake of not checking and on the way back dry gravel land was not very dry and we had to struggle a bit to reach back to Bar Harbor.

After a quick walk in the town, we decided to go to Cadillac mountain. A quick stop at visitor center to get our 7 day validity pass got us to know that Cadillac Mountain IMG_0639is commonly believed to be the first location in the United States to be struck by the sun’s rays each morning. There are several trails that lead to mountain top but we decided to go by car.At a height of 470 mts this place provides abundance of scenic beauty. For photography lovers like my husband, this place is an absolute bliss. The day time  pictures turned out so good that we went to Cadillac mountain following day for sunrise. That was totally magical.

In the evening we went to Bass harbor to see the sunset. It is around 35-40 mins drive IMG_0493from bar harbor. If you decide to go to Bass Harbor search for BASS Harbor
Headlight.Just behind the light house there is a small trail which will take you to the amazing sunset point. It is one of the most photographed light houses and evenings
at this place are purely magical.

Next morning we went around 28 mile long park loop road. Park loop road is mostly one way and is very popular among cyclists.There are several pull off observation points
along the road. We saw thunder hole, schnooder point, jordan pond and echo lake.  IMG_0967Schnooder point was a real gem of a place. This place has small caves with water where one can get in  and have a lot of fun. Besides that, big rocks give excellent view of Atlantic ocean. Just opposite to Bar Harbor, there is Winter Harbor across Frenchman Bay. Its around 2 hours drive from Bar Harbor. We went to Winter harbor to witness one more magical sunset. This place was worth the drive. It has plenty of picnic areas ( if you intend to spend the entire day), beautiful ponds and some lookout points from where you can enjoy the beauty of Mt Desert Island from a distance.

The following day ( the day we were returning to Boston) we decided to go for hiking on IMG_1168Gorham mountain. Its an hour hike and just after your start, the trail splits in two ways. The left one is relatively easy. The right trail can be very rough in places. Once you reach the false summit, you can enjoy spectacular view of Otter Cliff, Baker Island, and the Cranberry Islands.If you fight through breathlessness and tiredness and reach to the true summit of Groham Mountain you will be bolt down by panoramic view that Acadia national Park Provides.

Bar Harbor has abundance of things to offer for all the age groups. From whale watching to sea kayaking , hiking on trails to enjoying peaceful sunrises and sunsets, Bar Harbor has something for all.

I plan to return to this place in fall to enjoy the fall colors.

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About Author

Kanika

Her love of travel and documenting it has led to the start of this blog which she hopes keep evolving and turns into something more broadly-encompassing with time. She holds a full-time day job and is here to inspire people to travel more with their 9 to 5 jobs. Through this blog she intends to share her stories from trips, give travel preparation tips and pointers for where, when and how-to's.

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10 Comments

  1. Manhar Reply
    August 27, 2013 at 8:19 pm

    Loved the content
    Hooray for the First Post !!

  2. Jyotsna Reply
    August 28, 2013 at 8:20 pm

    Congrats on your first post :). Love Acadia! made me relive my memories…

  3. Supreet Reply
    August 29, 2013 at 4:33 pm

    It’s on my list for this fall now. How cold does it get there in October?

    • Kanika Kalia Reply
      August 30, 2013 at 7:44 am

      I will suggest to go early October… as me and Manahr once have been there in October end and it literally looks like zombie land… Early October will have good fall colors too….. Bar Harbor in general is a bit colder than Boston.. so it does get a bit cold in October….

  4. Ruchika Reply
    August 30, 2013 at 10:30 am

    Congrats on your first post! We’ll be at Acadia this coming weekend.. Will try to hit these spots!

    • Kanika Kalia Reply
      August 30, 2013 at 11:26 am

      I am sure you will love it. There are
      Sme places where u can just sit n look
      at ocean n be at peace kinds :)

  5. vipan kalia Reply
    September 2, 2013 at 2:43 am

    hai kanni, your 1st attempt is very very good. Keep going

  6. vipan kalia Reply
    September 2, 2013 at 7:22 am

    it sounds so magical and i m looking forward to visit this place in near future.u have nice skill to write so wonderfully.congrats

  7. Kanika Kalia Reply
    May 6, 2014 at 12:03 pm

    Thank you so much. I am planning to visit Bar harbor again this summer :)..

  8. Pingback: Bar Harbor - The Talking TrailsI Love Bar Harbor

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