Hike Location: Quoddy Head State Park
Geographic Location: south of Lubec, ME (44.81380, -66.95257)
Length: 4.7 miles
Difficulty: 8/10 (Moderate/Difficult)
Date Hiked: July 2019
Overview: A rugged loop above the cliffs of Quoddy Head
followed by a fairly flat loop near Quoddy Head Lighthouse.
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=941471
Photo Highlight:
Directions to the trailhead: Take SR 189 to South
Lubec Road; this intersection is located 1.2 miles west of the Lubec town
center. Go south on South Lubec Rd.,
which deadends at the park. Where the
road forks at the park entrance, choose the right fork to park in the hiker
parking lot as opposed to the lighthouse parking lot.
The hike: When
I turned off of SR 189 onto South Lubec Road around noon on a Saturday in late
July, the thermometer in my car read 78 degrees under sunny skies. As I drove the last few miles out to Quoddy
Head, the thermometer in my car slowly dropped, and at the trailhead it read 65
degrees still under mostly sunny skies.
After my hike, the thermometer in my car read 62 degrees as I drove into
Lubec through a thick bank of fog. That
evening in downtown Lubec I watched a beautiful sunset across Johnson Bay with
temperatures in the mid 70’s. My
experience reflects two things any knowledgeable local will tell you: 1) Quoddy
Head’s extreme oceanic climate can be quite dramatic, and 2) fog can be your
worst weather enemy here, especially during the summer.
Quoddy Head has the distinction of
occupying the easternmost point in the contiguous 48 states. Thus, for a few weeks around the equinoxes each
year the first rays of sunlight to strike the United States in the morning land
here. The name Quoddy Head comes from a
Passamaquoddy word that means “fertile and beautiful place,” although
the rocky land seems more foreboding than fertile.
The 561 acres that comprise Quoddy Head State Park were purchased by
the State of Maine in 1962. In terms of
structures, the park’s centerpiece is its West Quoddy Head Lighthouse. A lighthouse has stood on Quoddy Head since
1808, and the present-day structure dates to 1858.
While most visitors to Quoddy Head
congregate at the lighthouse, the park protects an excellent rock/cliff-lined
stretch of coast that features a picnic area and several scenic views of the
Atlantic Ocean. For hikers, 5.5 miles of
hiking trails traverse the coast and points inland. This hike forms a double loop that explores
most of those trails, and it offers a grand tour of all Quoddy Head has to
offer.
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| Start of the Coastal Trail |
Two trails leave the west side of
the hiker parking lot: the Coastal Trail on the left near the rocky coast and
the Inland Trail to the right near the restroom building. To do the hardest part of the hike first,
this route goes out on the Coastal Trail and returns on the Inland Trail. The gravel
Coastal Trail heads west through a dense spruce forest with the rocky coast to
the left. Soon you reach the first of
many ocean views. This view features
appropriately named Sail Rock to the east.
At 0.2 miles, the Coastal and Inland
Trails briefly come together again before parting ways for good. Angle left to stay on the Coastal Trail. Henceforth the Coastal Trail becomes more
rugged: the smooth gravel trail surface is replaced by steep hills, rough
rocks, and roots. Some muddy areas will
also need to be negotiated. To
compensate for the difficulty, the clifftop ocean views are spectacular, and
the scenery encourages you to take your time on this trail.
 |
| Cliffs at Quoddy Head |
Soon you pass Gulliver’s Hole, a
narrow gap in the cliff line that the ocean laps into. Next comes appropriately-named High Ledge,
the highest point on the Coastal Trail.
As you would expect, the view from High Ledge’s bare gabbro rock outcrop
is spectacular. Just past High Ledge, a
spur trail exits right to form a short loop with the Inland Trail. This spur trail is your last chance to turn back
and avoid the hardest part of the Coastal Trail.
 |
| Gulliver's Hole |
 |
| High Ledge |
At 0.9 miles, you pass Green Point, a rugged jumble of rocks that
extrudes out into the ocean. Green Point
is the last named landform on the coast, but the fantastic ocean and cliff
views continue for the balance of the Coastal Trail. Eventually the coast and trail start curving
right, and the view shifts from the vast Atlantic Ocean to a narrow inlet
called Carrying Place Cove. This cove
gets its name because it leads to a narrow boggy isthmus that ancient people used as a canoe portage. The portage
avoids dangerous currents between Quoddy Head and Canada’s Campobello Island;
these currents form the largest whirlpool in the Western Hemisphere.
 |
| Carrying Place Cove |
Near 2 miles into the hike, you reach a signed trail intersection that
overlooks the best view of Carrying Place Cove.
The Coastal Trail continues straight through this intersection and soon
comes out at South Lubec Road. Our loop
turns right on the Thompson Trail to begin its return route and its journey to
the lighthouse.
The Thompson Trail climbs on a gradual to moderate grade as it heads
through the center of Quoddy Head and over some of the highest land on this
peninsula. Some more wet areas will need
to be negotiated, but a nice double-plank boardwalk carries you over the
wettest areas. The forest is very dense
with a combination of spruce and birch trees.
 |
| Hiking the Thompson Trail |
At 3.2 miles, you reach the signed east end of the Thompson Trail where
the Inland Trail goes right and the Bog Trail goes left. We will eventually take the Inland Trail back
to the hiker parking lot, but first turn left to hike the short Bog Trail. A large number of ferns crowd the understory
in this area.
Quickly you reach the wooden boardwalk that forms a short loop through
the sunny bog. You might be surprised to
find a peat bog at 130 feet of elevation in the middle of a rocky peninsula
surrounded by ocean, but this bog is a special place. Only plants that can tolerate subarctic and
acidic conditions live here, and the collection includes black spruce,
leatherleaf, sheep laurel, Labrador tea, pitcher plant, and black
crowberry. Interpretive signs help you
identify the unusual array of plants that live in the bog.
 |
| Bog boardwalk |
After completing the short loop through the bog, head east on the
Inland Trail. Where the Coastal and
Inland Trails briefly come together, make your steps easier by staying on the
Inland Trail unless you want to experience the Coastal Trail’s views again. At 3.8 miles, you return to the parking lot
to close the first loop.
To continue this hike, walk across
the parking lot and pick up the gravel trail that heads east to the
lighthouse. Only a few hundred feet
later, you reach West Quoddy Head Light.
The brick red and white striped tower stands 49 feet high, and wooden
structures that were the former keeper’s quarters, oil house, and service
building stand adjacent to the tower.
The tower is closed to visitors, but the location and history make this
area a very interesting spot.
 |
| West Quoddy Head Light |
The second of the two loops that
make up this hike consists of the Coast Guard Trail, and its signed trailhead
is located on the right side of the lighthouse access road just uphill from the
light. Unlike the trails you hiked on
the first loop, the Coast Guard Trail has a smooth gravel treadway and only
gradual to moderate grades. The
fantastic ocean views are replaced by fantastic views across the Quoddy Narrows
to Canada’s Campobello Island.
 |
| View across Cobscook Bay |
At 4.3 miles, you reach a developed
viewpoint that looks north and northeast.
The town of Lubec appears across Cobscook Bay, as does the FDR Memorial
Bridge that connects Lubec and Campobello Island. Continuing around the Coast Guard Trail
brings you out at the main entrance road.
Walk down the road to the hiker parking lot to complete this hike. The night after my hike, I had a great
night’s stay in Lubec at the Inn on the Wharf, an old sardine factory that now
experiences a second life as an inn. My
room had a great northward view over Johnson Bay, and I enjoyed a beautiful
sunset from a lounge chair outside my room.
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| Sunset over Johnson Bay |
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