Be cool as a moose in Bar Harbor

Bar Harbor, ME—After spending years at various East Coast shores baking under the hot sun, visiting Bar Harbor is a cool and refreshing change of scenery. The town offers both natural beauty in the form of a national park and wildlife tours, but still manages to project a sense of eclectic local flair. People of all ages and all interests will find something fun to do here.  

Bar Harbor is located about 40 miles south of Bangor. The town rests on the northeast corner of an island called Mount Desert Island, which also is home to the beautiful Acadia National Park.  

At Acadia, you can walk, hike or bike a number of different trails. Scenic driving tours also are a fun and relaxing way to drive along Acadia’s 27 mile-long Park Loop Road. One of the park’s 17 mountains, Cadillac Mountain, is the first place the sunrise can be seen in the United States from Oct. 7 through March 6.  

If the unique natural wonders are not enough, and you long for the sand and surf of the beach, Acadia offers those as well. Be warned, though, when Bar Harbor is described as “cool,” it is meant literally. While the average summer temperatures reach the 70s to low 80s, the waters in the beaches can be very cold at about 50 degrees.  

If land adventures are not your style, try a whale or puffin-watching tour. The Bar Harbor Whale Watching Tour Co. offers three- to four-hour trips that ferry watchers out into the Gulf of Maine to look for North Atlantic puffins and whales. You also stop by some of Maine’s famous lighthouses, such as the Portland Head Light, the state’s second largest. Yes, most of these tours consist of finding a whale and chasing it around in a boat for a few hours, but who wouldn’t love to take an up close look at such a fantastic sea creature?  

Another unique aspect of Bar Harbor is its local style. Natives of Maine often refer to themselves as “Maineiacs,” and with their thick New England accent, pronounce the town as “Bah Hahbah.” Does it take a true “Maineiac” to boldly create a lobster-flavored ice cream? Of course it does. Ben and Bill’s Chocolate Emporium has a butter-flavored ice cream with chunks of frozen lobster. According to the company’s Website (www.benandbills.com), the ice cream and candy shop created the original flavor to prove to inquiring customers that all of their ice cream is indeed homemade. Though not as unusual as lobster, blueberry is another prominent Maine flavor that can be found in anything from ice cream to pies to pastries in Bar Harbor.  

Also, in a true homage to a wildlife-loving town, many places in Bar Harbor show their love for the moose. One of the popular souvenir T-shirt shops in the town is called Cool as a Moose.  

 Bar Harbor is one cool town, in all senses of the word, and an extraordinary destination. But plan to go in the summer, which is Bar Harbor’s high season. After that, many of the shops shut down.  

Visit the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce at www.barharborinfo.com for more information.  
 
 
 
 

Things to do in Bar Harbor’s off- season

By Erica Smithson

Don’t have the time to trek to Maine during the summer? No need to worry. Here are some fun things to do in the off-season.  

1. Stay at a local hotel for cheap. Many of Bar Harbor’s hotels and inns have reduced rates in the off-season. One resort with good rates off-season is the Atlantic Oakes Resort and Conference Center, where you can get a room with a king-sized bed and an ocean view for $55 a night. Visit tripadvisor.com and type in Bar Harbor for recommendations by other travelers for the best hotels to stay at in the off-season.  

2. Camp at Acadia National Park. Going to Acadia during Bar Harbor’s off-season is more highly recommended by the travel savvy than going during the summer when the park can be incredibly crowded. Visit the park in the spring when the bugs aren’t out to bite, or in the fall for nice cool weather and beautiful foliage views when hiking.  

3. Ski at Acadia. There are 45 miles of carriage roads and 41 miles of unplowed park roads that make for an ideal cross-country ski experience at Acadia National Park. Ski equipment and rentals are available in nearly every community surrounding the park. Cross-country skiing at Acadia is a unique experience because it is one of the few places in the lower 48 states where you can ski and get a view of the ocean at the same time; however, it is best to dress in layers. As the area is near coastal waters, it is subject to sudden weather changes. Also, stick to only the aforementioned roads, because the hiking trails can be too steep and uneven for skiing.    

4. Geddy’s Pub in Bar Harbor stays open year- round. It opens at 11 a.m. and serves until 9 p.m. in the winter (10 p.m. in the summer). The restaurant offers a fun and relaxed atmosphere for your family (think of it as a Maine version of TGI Friday’s). The food is standard pub fare, with a variety of fried foods and different types of sandwiches, but it also has Maine/ New England staples such as lobster rolls, clam chowder and blueberries (found here in the form of a blueberry margarita).  

5. Go antiquing. Though there are few antique shops actually in the town of Bar Harbor, there are several shopping locations in the nearby town of Ellsworth, about a 40--minute drive. Visit www.acadiamagic.com/stores.htm to see a list of the best shops in the Bar Harbor/Acadia and surrounding areas. 

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