Thursday, October 1
Land and stop
The nonstop gets in early afternoon and Bangor is an hour out. Groceries are already at the house. Nothing else is asked of this day.
Midday
CLT to Bangor, then the drive
About two and a half hours in the air, rental car at BGR, then an hour to the island on Route 3.
3:00
Straight to the house, no grocery stop
Instacart delivers to Bar Harbor from Hannaford and Shaw's, to rentals as well as homes. I will put the order in for a delivery window before you land, so it is on the counter when you walk in.
Send me the list, or I will build one and you can cut what you don't want.
4:00
Open
Deck, balcony, fire pit, and a garden at the end of a quiet road. Nowhere to be.
5:00
Dinner at Side Street Cafe
Fifteen minutes into town. Family run, open year round, kids' menu, lobster mac, and fast out of the kitchen.
The one to keep in your back pocket all weekend.
Evening
The fire pit by the deck
Yours for the stay. There is a second one at the far end of the property that belongs to the owners, so stick to the near one.
No TV in the house, by design. There are games, puzzles and books instead.
Friday, October 2
The ocean day
The one everybody pictures when they picture Acadia. All of it takes a stroller and none of it has to be finished.
7:30
Breakfast at 2 Cats
Opens at seven, closes at one. Before nine you walk straight in. Big plates, a patio, and an unhurried room.
8:45
To Hulls Cove Visitor Center
Ten minutes from the house. Bathrooms, maps, and the start of the Park Loop Road.
9:15
Park Loop Road to Sand Beach
Twenty minutes of coastline the whole way down. Sand Beach in October is empty and cold and completely fine to just stand on.
The loop runs one way through this stretch, so you cannot double back. Stop when you see it.
10:15
Ocean Path toward Thunder Hole
Crushed gravel, flat, right along the cliffs, benches the whole way. Thunder Hole is about fifteen minutes on foot. The full path is four miles round trip and there is no reason to do four miles.
Thunder Hole only roars an hour or two before high tide. I am pulling the tide chart for your dates and will tell you which morning.
11:30
Otter Cliff and Otter Point
Two minutes further along the loop. Best view on the road for the least effort. Pull off, look, get back in.
12:15
Back to the house, open until three
Half an hour from Otter Point. Lunch from the kitchen, and the afternoon is yours to do nothing with.
3:30
Bar Harbor Shore Path and the Village Green
Flat gravel path along the water, about a mile, straight out of downtown. No park gates, no planning. Ice cream after, and the Park Street playground is right there.
5:00
Dinner at Geddy's
Loud, nautical, quick out of the kitchen even when full. Pizza, burgers, seafood, and something on every wall to look at.
Evening
The soaking tub
It is the reason to have picked this house. Tomorrow is the birthday.
Saturday, October 3
Scarlett turns one
Photos in the morning, popovers on a lawn in the middle of a national park at lunch. A first birthday you will still be describing in ten years, and it asks almost nothing of you.
7:30
Breakfast at the house
Gas stove, full oven, real kitchen. Pancakes in pajamas with a candle in one of them, and no table to wait for.
9:00
To Sieur de Monts
About twenty minutes. Bathrooms across the lot from the trailhead.
9:30
Family photos on Jesup Path
A wide wooden boardwalk through wetland and white birches, flat the whole way, benches built into it. Morning light through the birches is the reason to shoot here, and there is nothing to climb over with a stroller.
Aquadro is booked that weekend. I have three other island photographers I am reaching out to, all of whom shoot families in the park. I will come back with one, not a list.
10:30
Wild Gardens of Acadia
Same parking lot. Small, flat, fifteen minutes, every native plant on the island labeled. Somewhere to walk it off before getting back in the car.
10:50
Sieur de Monts to Jordan Pond
About twenty five minutes down the loop. Park before eleven fifteen.
11:15
Jordan Pond House, on the lawn
Popovers, lobster stew, ice cream, and the Bubbles across the water. The lawn is first come and cannot be reserved, which is exactly why you get there before noon.
Open through October 26, so your dates are well inside the season. Walk a few minutes out along the east side of the pond after, then back the same way.
1:15
Back to the house, open until four
Half an hour from Jordan Pond. Nothing scheduled after this until dinner.
4:00
Cake on the deck
Small and at home. She is one, and the lawn at Jordan Pond was the party.
Tell me what she should be eating and I will have it ordered in with the groceries.
5:00
Dinner at West Street Cafe
Lobster rolls for you two, grilled cheese and pasta alongside, Maine blueberry pie after. Near the water without being a scene.
If Andrew wants the sunrise
Cadillac Mountain is one of the first places in the country to see the sun come up, and the summit road needs a six dollar timed reservation booked ahead. It is about a twenty minute drive from the house.
Say the word and I will get the slot and have him back before anyone is up.
Sunday, October 4
One last thing, then out
The flight leaves early afternoon and Bangor is an hour. Room for one thing, and it should be an easy one.
8:00
Breakfast at Jordan's on Cottage Street
A town fixture, quick, blueberry everything. Or finish what is in the fridge and skip the stop entirely.
9:00
Last walk on the Shore Path
Flat, straight along the water, right from town. A last look at the bay with nothing to organise.
10:00
Load the car
The Route 3 stretch off the island backs up on Sunday mornings in season, so leave with more room than seems necessary.
10:45
Drive to Bangor
An hour, then the nonstop home. No connection.
Trails, ranked for a stroller
Jesup Path
Best one · 1.5 miles · boardwalk
Flat wooden boardwalk, wide, benches, white birches. Bathrooms across the lot at Sieur de Monts. If you only do one walk all weekend, this is it, which is why the photos are here.
Ocean Path
The views · up to 4 miles · crushed gravel
Flat and stroller friendly with the whole coastline beside you. Do a piece and turn around. Thunder Hole is the natural stopping point.
Bar Harbor Shore Path
In town · 1 mile · flat gravel
Starts downtown, runs along the water, ends near ice cream. No park driving, which some afternoons is the entire point.
Ship Harbor
Tide pools · 1.3 miles · first loop only
Tide pools, a restroom at the trailhead, twenty parking spots. The first loop takes a stroller, the rest does not. Forty minutes each way on the quiet side, so it swaps in for a morning rather than squeezing into one.
Jordan Pond Path
Half of it · 3.3 mile loop
The east side is smooth and lovely. The west side is bog bridges and will not take wheels. Walk out from the restaurant and come back the same way.
Where to eat
Side Street Cafe
Dinner · open year round
Family run, kids' menu, lobster mac, coloring sheets on request. Large portions, fast service, the safest night in town.
2 Cats
Breakfast · 7am to 1pm daily
The local breakfast. Big plates, a patio, smaller portions alongside. Before nine or wait.
Geddy's
Dinner · loud and fast
Pizza, burgers, seafood, nautical clutter everywhere. Food arrives quickly even at full capacity.
West Street Cafe
Dinner · near the water
Lobster rolls with a real kids' menu alongside, and blueberry pie. The nicest of the easy options.
Jordan Pond House
Lunch · in the park · through October 26
Popovers on the lawn. Indoor tables can be reserved, the lawn cannot, so early beats booked.
Jordan's Restaurant
Breakfast · Cottage Street
Quick, blueberry everything, a town institution. The right last morning before a flight.
Cafe This Way
Spare · breakfast and dinner
Kids' menu, gluten free options, retro room. Good if 2 Cats has a line.