Acadia National Park's Historic Carriage Roads
Rustic Wooded Byways Welcome Cyclists, Hikers and Nature Lovers
© Kat Long
Sep 2, 2009
Acadia National Park on Mt. Desert Island, Maine features a unique system of carriage roads for the enjoyment of hikers, bicyclists, cross-country skiers and nature lovers. Begun in 1913 by the philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr. for horse-drawn carriages, the roads were originally used by day-trippers from the nearby resort town of Bar Harbor who enjoyed afternoon drives through the quiet woods. Today, visitors to Acadia may rent horse-drawn carriages or bicycles and experience the historic roads for themselves.
Building the Carriage Roads
In building the carriage road system, Rockefeller combined his interests in nature, philanthropy and engineering into one state-of-the-art project. An avid outdoorsman who spent the summer season amidst Bar Harbor’s wealthy society, Rockefeller wanted to explore the nearby woods and coastal wilderness of Mt. Desert Island without the distraction of motor vehicles.
Rockefeller designed the system to have as little impact on the natural scenery as possible. Rather than level hillsides, he chose to build roads according to the contours of the landscape. Laborers constructed the 16-foot-wide “broken-stone” roads with ample drainage to counteract spring’s melting snows. Seventeen stone bridges, each with a unique design, cross streams and valleys, and the paths are well marked with wooden signage.
The result is an easily-traveled collection of pathways that skirt the placid lakes, ponds and pine forests of Acadia, allowing modern visitors to experience the natural beauty of Maine’s coast that can‘t be seen from the Park Loop Road.
Locations and Scenic Highlights on the Carriage Roads
The roads wind through all of Acadia, but the greatest concentration of intersecting paths is slightly south of the Jordan Pond House. The nearby Wildwood Stables offers horses and carriages for rent, so visitors can experience the carriage roads as they were originally meant to be enjoyed. The carriage roads in this area lead from Jordan Pond north to Eagle Lake, west to the Upper Hadlock and Lower Hadlock Ponds, and northwest to a forested area and southeast to the Seal Harbor area. Most roads also cross hiking paths.
At the park’s entrance near Hull’s Cove Visitor Center, a carriage road also leads to the bubbling Duck Brook and Witch Hole Pond, a charming pool edged with water lilies and pine shrubs that is inaccessible via car. It’s well worth the short hike through woods on the fern-lined carriage road for a glimpse of this unspoiled mountain lake.
Carriage road maps and information are available at the Hulls Cove Visitor Center and at the starting points of some roads within the park. Any visit to Acadia National Park should include a foray on these historic and beautiful byways.
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