Activities

This area is an outdoor lover’s playground! Biking ... Hiking ... Canoeing... Acadia National Park has it all! And it is easy to socially distance while enjoying the great outdoors!

You’ll find an article on one of the many hikes on the following pages.

The Port Directory Featured Hike

Parkman Mountain Beginning and Ending at the Norumbega Mountain Parking Area on Route 198 Approximately 2.5 miles round trip This hike was initially featured in 2009 All photos in this section are © Bayside Graphics unless otherwise noted.

If you only have time to climb one mountain while on Mount Desert Island, you might want to consider Parkman Mountain. For a relatively short trip, you get a varied hike with great views. There is lots of water going up, and lots of views coming back down. From Northeast Harbor, take Route 198 north for 2.3 miles and park in the long, narrow parking area on the left. From Somesville, take Route 198 for 4 miles and the same parking area will be on your right. The trail up Norumbega Mountain leaves from this parking lot, but you are going to cross the road and take the Hadlock Brook Trail. The trail descends a little to cross a stream. About 100 yards in the Parkman Mountain Trail bears left. Stay to the right here and a little further on stay right again and follow the sign for Maple Spring and Hadlock Brook Trails. You will come to a carriage road shortly after, which you should cross and continue on the Hadlock Brook trail. You will next climb moderately over ledges and through a pine and spruce forest with the carriage road below you on the right. As the trail flattens out near Hadlock Brook, you will come to where the Hadlock Brook Trail bears off to the right and the Maple Spring trail bears off to the left. This is also the general area where Deer Brook coming down from the left and Hadlock Brook coming down from the right converge and continue on down as Hadlock Brook. You are going to bear left here

Country Store Museum

Books by local authors, Tremont Historical Society historic photos and artifacts and much more.

COME

VISIT! 4 Granville Road We also stamp lighthouse passports! Bass Harbor Follow signs to Swan’s Island Ferry

Open M, W, F from 1-4, July to mid-October Facebook @ Tremont Historical Society www.tremontmainehistory.us 207-244-9753

Canoe, Kayak and Paddleboard Rentals on Great Long Pond. Call for a reservation!

Self-Guided Sunset Tours $22/pp 207-244-5854 www.nationalparkcanoerental.com 145 Pretty Marsh Road, Mount Desert, ME 04660

on the Maple Spring Trail and follow the course of Deer Brook. The Maple Spring Trail climbs gradually with Deer Brook below you on the right. Further on you will descend to the brook over stone steps and hike along its banks, then cross the brook and climb the opposite bank. As you continue along the right bank of Deer Brook, the large granite face of Deer Brook Bridge looms ahead. The trail continues under the bridge still on the left bank. The bridge you are going under is part of the Carriage Road system of graded dirt roads that weave around the mountains on this part of Mount Desert Island. If you wish to explore this area a bit, go up the stone steps that rise to the right before you go under the bridge. Once you reach the road, you can go to the right to see Waterfall Bridge, SW Cycle 2014 red 4/24/14 7:36 PM which is essentially a twin of Deer Brook Bridge. As you look at the beautiful stonework of the bridges, it seems they are made entirely of granite blocks. Actually, the bridges are made of steelreinforced concrete with granite facing. These bridges, built by John D. Rockefeller Jr. and many talented laborers, are a big reason why the Carriage Roads are more than a woods road. Return back to the trail by going down the same stone steps and under the 370 Main Street • Southwest Harbor 244-5856 service - sales - rentals Continued p. 8 www.southwestcycle.com

Deer Brook Bridge. Be careful to be on the correct bridge as Waterfall Bridge has very similar stone steps that descend to Hadlock Brook. You still want to be on the Maple Spring Trail, which goes under the Deer Brook Bridge. As you continue to ascend, you will follow the course of Deer Brook, which becomes a shallow gorge. There are a few crossings on this part of the trail, so watch your footing, as wet rocks can be slippery. This is the last chance for reliable water. So, if you are thirsty or have an empty water bottle, you might want to fill up here, especially on a hot, humid day. We need to point out here that even though mountain spring water is clear, cold and delicious, it may not be safe to drink. Any untreated water may contain parasites or other impurities. While these nasty things probably won’t kill you, they could make you pretty sick for a while. Solutions are a steri pen, (about $100), a compact water filter, (about $50), or tablets, (about $15). Regardless of whether you want to treat your water or “risk it”, you should take your water from a fast moving place and not water that is standing still. Further on Deer Brook splits. Take the left fork and then a left on The Giant Slide Trail. Go past Bald Mountain Trail on the left as the terrain levels out a bit as Deer Brook dwindles down to a trickle. The next stretch is more open woods as the cliffs of Bald Peak tower above on the left. Continuing on for about 1/4 mile, the Giant Slide Trail descends gently to a trail intersection.

Continued p. 10

Helianthus Bird by Jordan Chalfant, sunfl ower petals, 2019

(207) 244-7555 wendellgilleymuseum.org 4 Herrick Road Southwest Harbor, ME 04679

SPREAD YOUR WINGS

Fly to wendellgilleymuseum.org for ONLINE CLASSES MUSEUM VISIT INFORMATION CREATIVE & LEARNING RESOURCES