Trail: Ocean Path
Hike Location: Acadia National Park
Geographic Location: south of Bar Harbor, ME (44.32968, -68.18364)
Length: 3.8 miles
Difficulty: 4/10 (Easy/Moderate)
Date Hiked: August 2004
Overview: A long, but fairly flat out-and-back atop cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.
Directions to the trailhead: From the Acadia National Park Visitor Center, head south on the park loop road, passing the park entrance point, where you will have to pay an entrance fee. Continue past the entry point for 5.5 miles to the Sand Beach parking lot, which is on your left. Park in this parking lot. The trail begins behind the changing facilities.
The hike: Established in 1916, Acadia National Park was the first national park to be founded in the eastern part of the United States. After one visit to these grounds, you will know why. The sights and sounds of the Atlantic Ocean meeting Maine’s pink granite cliffs can be found at no other point along the east coast. Even better, the park provides not only good ocean scenery, but also the opportunity to hike long, difficult mountain trails to spectacular views rivaling any ocean views in the world.
For those not desiring a long, difficult mountain trek, a good time with great scenery can still be had. Cadillac Mountain Road allows you to drive to the summit of Cadillac Mountain along a road that never climbs at more than a 5% grade. Once at the top, you can look down 1532 feet to the Atlantic Ocean as well as obtain a 360-degree view of the surrounding landscape.
Those desiring a more intimate experience with the ocean will have to leave the car and do some walking. The Sand Beach itself can be reached by descending a wooden staircase from the parking lot. The beach features soft, orange sand, cool water at the head of a small harbor, and large crowds on a nice summer day.
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| Sand Beach |
A different perspective of the ocean can be had by hiking the trail described here. The trail is somewhat popular due to its proximity to the ocean and ease of hiking. For this reason and because the trail runs right beside the park loop road for much of its distance, you should not expect to be alone on this trail.
Look for the sign for the Ocean Path near the top of the staircase leading to Sand Beach. The trail goes behind the restrooms and changing area and climbs moderately to reach the upper parking lot. At this point, the trail makes a sharp left turn and climbs again to reach the park road. The trail now follows immediately to the left of the one-way park loop road, going with the flow of traffic. Views of the ocean unfold down the pink granite cliffs to the left of the trail.
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| Granite cliffs along Ocean Path |
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| Rock outcrop along Ocean Path |
The sun-drenched gravel trail undulates with the park loop road, alternating between 40 and 100 feet above the ocean. 1 mile into the hike, arrive at Thunder Hole, which can be accessed via a series of concrete and metal steps leading downhill to the left. This is one of the highlights of the hike, and you will have plenty of company coming down from the Thunder Hole parking lot across the road on the right. The steps leading toward the ocean take you to the opening of a small cave that is located right at water level. As a wave rolls in, water is forced into the cave, which forces air out of the cave. After this happens for a few waves, loud crashing of the water against the cave walls sends a reverberating boom around the cave and out the entrance. This boom that gives Thunder Hole its name can be observed (usually without getting wet yourself) from the platform at the base of the steps.
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| Thunder Hole |
Continuing south on the Ocean Path, 1.3 miles from the trailhead, pass a set of steps that lead uphill to the right. This is the end of the Gorham Mountain Trail, which leads to Gorham Mountain, a hill 525 feet in elevation that overlooks the ocean. The Gorham Mountain Trail could be combined with the Bowl Trail as an alternate route back to the trailhead, but this route is more difficult and longer than retracing your steps on the Ocean Path.
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| Otter Cliff in the distance |
At 1.6 miles, the trail leaves the side of the park loop road and enters the pine forest. This is my favorite part of the trail, as the noise from the park road is left behind as is the warm sunshine for the coolness and solitude of the forest. The trail climbs gradually, and in another 0.2 mile, arrives at the top of Otter Cliff. Here you stand on bare rock about 100 feet above the Atlantic Ocean. Spectacular views open up to the east, south, and north. In fact, you can even see Sand Beach as a small white area in the distance to the left.
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| View east from Otter Cliff |
From Otter Cliff, one has a couple of options. If a second car is available, you could leave one of the cars at a parking lot along the park loop road at Otter Cliff. This parking lot can be accessed by ascending the stone steps to your right as you come out on top of the cliff. Alternatively, you can retrace your steps along the Ocean Path back to the Sand Beach parking lot, or for the more adventurous, you can try the Gorham Mountain option, which will also return you to the Sand Beach parking lot. Choose the option that best suits your ability and desires to complete the hike.
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