Mountain Biking Near Acadia

[Crank]

We are thinking about heading to Acadia National Park for a summer vacation mid August. It appears the only mountain biking there is on carriage roads. The Carabassett trails Tony has mentioned are about a 3 hour drive from there. Anyone know of anything good that would be a lot closer to Acadia or Bangor?

 

[Tony S]

Just stop in the Portland area on your way, for your fix. I will set you up.

 

[Crank]

Sounds good Tony! If we go we will definitely get in touch. We are looking into lodging right now.

 

[Wilhelmson]

We'll be in Acadia with a group ranging from 6 years old to some not too in shape adults. What's a good 2 hour gravel road loop? Hills are ok, just asking what's the best ride that won't take half a day?

 

[Crank]

It shouldn't be too hard to figure out a loop when you are there. We did a mix of paved roads and carriage roads but were out for a full day. The carriage roads wind around the hills and are not at all steep... at least the ones we rode which I can't remember and which I realize is no help whatsoever They were made so that horses could easily pull a carriage up them.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

Is Acadia anywhere near Camden? https://www.pinkbike.com/news/camden-maine-east-bound-and-down-2016.html

 

[Wilhelmson]

There's a bunch of info out there, just checking in case anyone knows of a particularly enjoyable loop.

I've been trying to stay off anything too bumpy while my rib heals. Did about 10 miles on the road last night and now it hurts to sneeze. Just a bruise hopefully, I did go to the doctor and he's not too concerned.

 

[Crank]

The carriage roads in Acadia are really smooth. We climbed a "mountain" hill really near the north side of the park. Took a short, maybe 30 yard trail off the side of the carriage road and that is where my profile/icon photo came from. We rode out of the park to a small town for some lunch and ended up on a carriage road where biking was not allowed. The story we heard was that a teenage Rockefeller was out in a buggy and a cyclist spooked the horse resulting in a fatal accident. Howeve,r a couple of google searches revealed nothiing.

 

[Wilhelmson]

I can imagine the locals keep their trails quiet since they get more than 2,000,000 visitors a year. I found an area near the high school that should be fine for me with a busted rib. Sometimes its more fun to ride around and see where the trail takes you, never know what you'll find.

 

[Wilhelmson]

I found a few trails behing the high school. The area is owned by a land trust that doesn't prohibit bikes from the area on it's website. Bumpy and rooty New England woods. Some fun sections and very skinny boardwalks, a few sections are better suited for hiking. A nice change from carriage roads. It's not a very large area so it might not be worth driving across the island to ride, but if you're in that neck of the woods give it a shot. Guaranteed to get some blood on your legs.

As usual I went biking in uncharted territory at dusk so I had to keep up the pace. At first I couldn't find the right trail but a guy running who looked like Bruce Lee pointed me in the right direction. There are a few maps along the trail.