Great Drives - Maine

Seacoast and a Mountain

Maine's Atlantic seacoast it s wonder of rocky cliffs, surging tides, mud flats, and stoney beaches. A day's drive beginning 47 miles south of Bangor leads you to fine coastal adventures, around the highest mountain on the Atlantic Coast of North America, and through small fishing villags where time seems to stand still. The centerpiece of this drive is Maine's only national park. A day won't be enough.

Mount Desert Island

The Acadia region of Maine stretches from Penobscot Harbor to Goldsborough Bay, with hundreds of islands, small harbors, and headlands, with rolling hills in the interior. As you drive south from Bangor, toward this scenic coastline, you'll come to Ellsworth, the commercial center of the region. You leave Ellsworth, continuing south toward the ocean, and cross to Mount Desert Island.

Here, glaciers have carved lakes and valleys out of the underlying granite. Evergreens are scattered across the island, set on small sections of land surrounded by rocky outcroppings, with small lakes dotting the landscape. This is a summer and winter destination, excellent for summer camping and exploring the coastline, and also for cross-country skiing and snowmobiling in wintertime.

There are a dozen communities on the island. Southwest Harbor offers a collection of cozy B and B inns and homes. Bar Harbor is the main recreation-oriented town, located on Maine Highway 3. You'll find modern shopping places here, along with cultural activities and a range of motels and bed and breakfast homes. Ten miles north of Bar Harbor is the campus of the University of Maine, in Orono. For more information on Bar Harbor and vicinity, write the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 158, Bar Harbor ME 04609, or call (207) 288-5103.

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