Acadia Vacation Pg 5

November 2012

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continued from page 4 of our November 2012 trip to Bar Harbor & Acadia National Park:

There is, of course, more to Mt Desert Island that just Bar Harbor and the loop road of Acadia National park. Since we were staying in Bar Harbor, we did not get over to the West side of the island as much, but we did certainly go there some. One of the villages on that side of the island is Bass Harbor, which of course includes a harbor not-so-coincidentally called Bass Harbor.

Bass Harbor at low tide with moored boats, exposed flats, and rounded mountains beyond

Another one of the larger harbors on the island is Southwest Harbor. There was a Tall Ship docked there.

Long wooden dock extending out into the calm blue water at Southwest Harbor

Tall ship docked in Southwest Harbor with mountains and houses behind it

Closer view of the tall ship moored in Southwest Harbor

Fishing boats and waterfront houses in another harbor with mountains rising behind them

There are many other harbors on the island, some smaller and some larger. We visited a number of them.

Weathered pilings and ladders along the side of a working dock above green water

Small pale blue rowboat named Little Dot resting on a slanted ramp in warm sunlight

Hooded mergansers and gulls gathered at the edge of the water

One fun event of the week was a bird sighting of Hooded Mergansers. This is a very unusual looking duck, with the males very flashy and the females rather elegant.

Three hooded mergansers swimming across calm water with warm reflections behind them

The most prevalent birds were, of course, various gulls. At Seawall Picnic Area (Southwest section of the island), the gulls enjoyed sunning themselves.

Large group of gulls resting on the rocks at Seawall

Single gull standing on a rock beside the water

Not much action with the picnic tables that week.

Empty picnic table silhouetted against the bright sky at Seawall Picnic Area

This next picture was from nearby Wonderland. This area has two walks, Wonderland and Ship Harbor, that are part of Acadia National Park but are separate from the main section. These are very nice easy walks. Wonderland is through nice woods, ending on a tiny point. Ship Harbor is a loop that goes along an inlet and through woods. One of the most spectacular aspects of Acadia National Park is to be on coast, at sea level, looking at nearby mountains.

View from Wonderland across the coast toward low mountains and rocky ledges at sea level

A major attraction on that side of the island is the picturesque Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, which is very close to the two hikes I just mentioned. This is an attractive lighthouse on an imposing rocky shore. We were lucky enough to have some beautiful light near sunset.

Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse glowing in warm late-day light above the rocky shore

Sunlit pink granite cliffs beside the sea near Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse

Rocky shoreline below the lighthouse in warm evening light

In the lower left of this next photograph, you can see a shadow... a somewhat familiar shadow... It's Paul! This angle is only possible at low tide on a fairly calm day, since it requires walking across the rocks to get there.

Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse and keeper's house above the rocks in golden sunset light

Lighthouse bell casting a shadow on the white brick wall in warm sunset light

Close view of the red light inside the lantern room at Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse

Lantern room glowing red against the deep blue evening sky

Wide sunset view of Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse above the rocky coast

A "must do" hike if you get up to Mount Desert Island is not part of the park. It is a nature preserve, The Nature Conservancy's Indian Point Blagden Preserve. It isn't necessarily the most photogenic, and in fact we don't have a lot of pictures from it. But it is a really nice hike. I absolutely love it. The walk goes through some very nice woods, a little field, more woods, and then along a shoreline. Occasionally you can see seals, although there were none there when we went.

Golden seaweed covering the rocky shoreline at Indian Point Blagden Preserve

Continued on page 6 for a different perspective ...

Updated April 2026