Downeast/Acadia Regions

The jewel of this region is Maine’s only National Park, Acadia.

From Penobscot Bay all the way Downeast, around the eastern nose of Maine and up along the Canadian border, the scenery is wild, rocky and dramatic. The farther inland you go, the more wilderness you will encounter. Though the crowds in Acadia can be daunting, there are always places on Mount Desert Island where you can stand alone on the top of a mountain and gaze at the island-dotted ocean. This is a region to visit to get a taste of the outdoors, from the gentle recreation in Acadia to the rugged fishing and canoeing farther Downeast.
Deer Isle makes a nice contrast to Mount Desert - Blue Hill, Castine and Stonington are small towns that attract artists, boatbuilders and fisherman.

Acadia

Acadia National Park takes up most of Mount Desert Island. Visitors can begin at one of the several Visitor Centers to the Park. Bar Harbor is the largest town, and in summer is packed with gift shops, restaurants, movie theaters and hotels. A ferry - a high-speed catamaran called The Cat - to Nova Scotia leaves from here as well. In winter, however, it’s like a ghost town. Many shops and hotels close and the population dwindles. Northeast Harbor and Southwest Harbor may be small towns but they offer lots of services, from upscale restaurants to trendy galleries.

This is a region for gentle outdoor pursuits. Activities are endless here, from mountain biking on the carriage trails, hiking along beaches or mountains, boating and camping. All the services surrounding these activities make it easy to rent gear, take small children along and go for short or long distances.

The farther north and east you travel past the Acadia region, the more tourism thins out. The scenery becomes more dramatic. Eastport, at the most easterly point on the Eastern seaboard, still retains the feeling of “old Maine,” with its sparse, small towns and rusting fishing fleets. You’re a long way - 200 miles - from Portland here.

Machias is blueberry country; there’s an annual wild blueberry festival in August. Helen’s Diner, in downtown Machias, is famous for its pies. The Cutler coast has remote hiking trails, part of the Maine Public Reserve Lands system. From Lubec, you can visit Campobello Island, where Franklin Roosevelt spent summers. The island, officially Roosevelt Campobello International Park, is under joint U.S. - Canada jurisdiction. It’s officially in New Brunswick, so it’s on Atlantic time - an hour ahead of Maine’s Eastern time.

Also near Lubec is West Quoddy Head and Quoddy Head State Park, with its distinctive barbershop-pole striped lighthouse and the cliff-edge trails. Cobscook Bay is remote, heartbreakingly beautiful, and homeland to Maine’s Passamaquoddy tribe, whose reservation is open for visitation at various times. Calais is a major border crossing to New Brunswick, Canada, as is St. Croix. This is also the starting point for many serious canoe enthusiasts, who paddle the St. Croix River from Vanceboro to Kellyland.

The coast doesn’t own all the attractions here; fishermen and paddlers journey have journeyed here for decades. Grand Lake Stream is a hub for fisherman, who fan out onto the countless lakes nearby. Canoeists dream of trips down the St. Croix as well as the Machias River, one of Maine’s rare unobstructed rivers in an area of great ecological value.