Acadia National Park

Included in this page:

Location | Address | Operating hours/ Seasons | Climate/Clothing Directions | Transportation | Fees | Trails/Roads | Recommended Activities Camping/Lodging | Food/Supplies | Concessions | Accessibility | Events/Attraction

	Though the affluent of the turn of the century came here to frolic, they had much to do with preserving the landscape that we know today. It was from this social strata that George B. Dorr came. He devoted 43 years of his life, energy, and family fortune to preserving the Acadian landscape. In 1916, Sieur de Monts National Monument was created with 6,000 acres of land donated by individual landowners. In 1919, it became Lafayette National Park, the first national park east of the Mississippi River. In 1929, the name was changed to Acadia National Park.
Today, Acadia preserves about 40,000 acres of Atlantic coast shoreline, mixed hardwood and spruce/fir forest, mountains, and lakes, as well as several offshore islands.

VISITATION Highest in July and August; lowest in December, January and February. LOCATION Mount Desert Island, Maine ADDRESS Acadia National Park PO Box 177 Bar Harbor, ME 04609 TELEPHONE (207)288-3338 (Voice/TDD) OPERATING HOURS, SEASONS 24 hours year-round; some roads closed in winter. Winter visitor center hours: 8:00AM-4:30PM daily, November 1-mid-April, except Thanksgiving Day, December 24 and 25, and January 1. Summer visitor center hours: Mid-April through June and October, daily 8:00AM-4:30PM. July-August, daily 8:00AM-6:00PM September, daily, hours vary CLIMATE, RECOMMENDED CLOTHING Summers are generally warm, cooling off at night, sometimes dry, sometimes rainy. Winters are very cold and snowy. Always be prepared for cool weather, and dress in layers. DIRECTIONS I-95 north to Bangor; 1A east to Ellsworth; Route 3 east to Mount Desert Island TRANSPORTATION Bangor International Airport, 50 miles from Acadia Vermont Transit bus transportation from Bangor FEES, COST, RATES May 1-October 31: $10 per vehicle for a 7 day pass $5 for motorcycles for a 7 day pass FACILITIES AND OPPORTUNITIES See above for visitor center hours. Trails, Roads: 120 miles of hiking trails 45 miles of carriage roads for walking and biking Programs/Activities: Visitor center audio visual presentation every half hour. Ranger-led programs, May to mid-October; pick up park newspaper with schedule at visitor center. Lodging and Camping Facilities: 2 campgrounds: Blackwoods; on reservation system June 15-September 15. See Camping details below. Open year-round with varying facilities and prices. Seawall; open late May-September on a first-come, first-served basis always. Other camping and lodging in nearby towns. Food/Supplies: Available in nearby towns Concessions: Wildwood Stables Acadia Corporation: Jordan Pond House restaurant and gift shop, Thunder Hole gift shop, and Cadillac Mountain gift shop. Accessibility: Guidebook is available through the mail or at the visitor center. Wheelchair for use at visitor center. Special Needs: Some trails, restrooms, and campsites are accessible. Sign language interpreter provided with 2 weeks notice of arrival, if funding is available. Script for audio visual presentation at visitor center available upon request. RECOMMENDED ACTIVITIES/PARK USE 27 mile drive on Park Loop Road, which encompasses shoreline, forest and mountain scenery. A cassette tape tour is available for rent or purchase at the visitor center. Ranger-led programs Hiking, biking, shore exploration Cross-country skiing in the winter CAMPING Beginning February 5, 1999 reservations for Blackwoods can be made through the secure Internet site above. On-line reservations can not be made before the dates listed below. The hours for making on-line reservations are 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (EST).

Campground	Open	Reser- vations	Price per Day	Showers	Rest- rooms	Hookups	Dump Station
Blackwoods	Yr. Round	Yes	*$18	**Nearby	Yes	No	Yes
Seawall	late May-Sept. 30	No	*$12-$18	**Nearby	Yes	No	Yes

* Fees vary during the off season, when facilities are limited to picnic tables, fire rings, chemical toilets, and hand pump for drinking water. ** Showers and camping supply stores, operated by private, non-park vendors, operate within 1/2 mile of both campgrounds. Reservations for Blackwoods Campground are made through Biospherics Inc. Use the following schedule:

If your date of arrival is between:	Call starting:
June 15 - July 4	February 5
July 5 - August 4	March 5
August 5 - September 4	April 5
September 5 - September 15	May 5

Telephone Numbers:

USA 1-800-365-2267

TDD 1-888-530-9796

International Reservations 1-301-722-1257

Phone Hours:
AST 6:00 - 6:00
EST 10:00 - 10:00
CST 9:00 - 9:00
MST 8:00 - 8:00
PST 7:00 - 7:00

For mail-in reservations, write: NPRS P.O. Box 1600 Cumberland, Maryland 21502 Mail-in reservations can be made no earlier than two weeks before the call dates listed above. Reservations received more than two weeks in advance will be returned. Types of payment: VISA, Master Card, Discover Check and Money Order - no less than 20 days in advance of arrival at the park. Cancellation Policy: All changes of a reservation will be considered a cancellation and charged a $12.50 cancellation fee. Cancellations made on the day of arrival will be charged an additional one night camping fee. When making a reservation, you are simply securing a space in the campground; it is not possible to reserve a specific site or adjoining sites. Group Campimg: Group camping sites at Blackwoods Campground are available May 15 to October 15 or at Seawall Campground, from May 27 to September 30. Call for information,(207)288-3338, $40.00/night/site(up to 20 people) Isle au Haut Camping: Isle au Haut special use permit, May 15-October 15, call park for mail-in registration form at (207)288-3338. Camping fee is $25.00 BASIC VISIT RECOMMENDATIONS One to four day stay SPECIAL EVENTS. PROGRAMS National Park Week, late April Free park admission on August 25, birthday of the National Park Service. This park is featured in a lesson plan created by Teaching with Historic Places, a program of the National Park Service that helps teachers and students understand how parks and other historic places embody America's historical experiences and cultural expressions. VISITOR IMPACTS Stay on trails; bike on carriage roads, not hiking trails; keep dogs on leashes; turn off car and bus engines. ADJACENT VISITOR ATTRACTIONS Baxter State Park, 2 1/2 hours northwest of Mount Desert Island, (207)723-5140 Last revised 9/5/99 http://www.nps.gov/acad/index.htm