Acadia Kayaking

[truepatriot09]

I'll be in Bar Harbor for a few days in two weeks with my pregnant wife (about 5 mos along). We're taking our kayaks, and I know it's a huge paddling playground up there, but was wondering if there were any suggestions of a good scenic paddle that won't be overwhelming for me lady with child. Viewing the local wildlife (puffins, seals etc...) would be perfect!

Thanks in advance!
-ct

 

[coldfeet]

Hey CT,

That's a great question, I'm going there at the end of August with my family, wonder what type of responses you'll get, maybe it'll help me.

 

[king tut]

i'm heading up there for a week starting saturday. I have kayaked in echo lake before, it is very calm and several miles long. It also has some nice ledges near the beach. There is a nice parking lot off the main road about 1/2 way down the pond.

Kayaking around bar harbor is nice as well, you can check out the islands, the yachts, and the town. You can put in the kayaks on the little dirt road that leads out to bar island. It is under water part of the time due to the tide.

Bubble pond and eagle lake are very nice and have parking, but i am not 100% certain if you can kayak on those or not, i will have to check.

Last and not least is somes sound. Anywhere between there and sw harbor is very nice. Might be a little choppier water than the ponds.

One area i would also recommend is deer isle/stonington, while a bit out of the way, it is absolutely gorgeous over there for kayaking.

 

[bobandgeri]

I'd suggest going to the North Shore Paddlers Network and post the question there. They have a good webpage with forum that is as active as VFTT. Very friendly group. Oh yeah - Geri and I were founding members :>

 

[BorealChickadee]

For seals Penobscot Bay is the best I know of. The seals haul out on the ledges right off the shore just off Indian Point on the Penobscot Bay side of the island . It's also the only place on the Island to reliably see them from shore when they're out on the ledges. Loons, eagles,ospreys and of course the other wildlife you expect to see will be in the Bay also.

The ledges will be visible a couple of hours before low tide. The seals haul out as soon as the ledges appear. Go before low tide as at the end (as high tide is approaching) the seals are not always there.

 

[Artex]

Think about checking out Somes Sound. It's the only fjord on the eastern U.S. Really beautiful.

 

[GeorgeFitch]

Janan and I have paddled on all sides of Mt. Desert Island many times and it is awesome. While Bar Harbor itself isn't bad (The Porcupine Islands), we find we prefer all the other "quieter" clusters of islands to the south and west (The Cranberrys, Baker, The Gotts, Black, Placentia, and Bartlett).

Any of these can get strenuous with wind, current, and chop, and yet, at the right time (slack water, no wind) they can be perfectly easy and calm.

Haven't seen any Puffins. We see the most seals by Dawes ledge (Black Island), and Harbour Porpoises often cruise between Little Gott and Black.

Baker has beautiful wild roses on it. Low tide exposes zillions of colorful starfish dangling from the west banks of Placentia.

At slack water we had a nice paddle North from Pretty Marsh through the Bartlett Narrows and saw a bunch of porpoises there, but another year made slow progress thru the Narrows as they can develop a pretty strong current.

We have seen several bald eagles in Sommes Sound. Even this area, while protected from the open ocean, can develop quite a strong wind and chop.

There are several outfitters in downtown Bar Harbor who can perhaps suggest a good destination based on the days' weather conditions.

Have a great time.

 

[BorealChickadee]

Just adding to my other post that you won't see puffins at Acadia. The nearest puffins are Petit Manan Island. You'd have to take a whale watching tour out of Bar Harbor. I've done it and those little guys are small bobbing around in the ocean.

A better place for puffins is Machias Seal Island. You need boat and island reservations in advance. A limited number of people are allowed on the island each day and you are rotated thorugh blinds but you'll be up close and personal. August isn't the best time to go though. July is the best. Google puffins and you'll find out about these trips out of Jonesport and ???.

 

[wayward son]

acadia kayaking

I've been vacationing in acadia almost every year since the late 1980's. Both Eagle Lake and Jordan pond have places to put your boat in. The scenery from both places would be awesome! As far as I know, the only stipulation is no swimming ( public water supply ). I always wanted to kayak these lakes,but never brought the kayak along, as I knew I would be busy hiking the trails and biking the carriage roads. Thanks for putting the bug in my head! Maybe I'll do something different this year. In any event, have fun!! p.s. Both of these lakes along with Bubble Pond are not big and are perfectly safe and fun for family kayaking. On the other hand, Long Pond can get very rough, depending on weather conditions.

 

[wayward son]

acadia kayaking

Try to get ahold of a copy of the book " discover Acadia National Park " by Jerry and Marcy Monkman. It's an AMC book. Their website is www.outdoors.org . It's a guide to hiking, biking, and paddling in Acadia. It describes a number of tours for both inland and coastal kayaking. Kayak safety for both adventures is also stressed. Again, have fun! Hope to read about your trip.

 

[twigeater]

If you do kayak Somes Sound, check out Man 'o War brook or falls or whatever...and there is a fresh water spring on a little beach at low tide.