Maine and Acadia National Park Hiking Adventure

Kinda ambitious for Day 1 but considering It takes months of journaling and sometimes therapy for women to treat themselves to a solo adventure… we don’t waste a second. Your women-only adventure kicks off with THE best hike in Acadia, filled with rugged shoreline, trees bursting through granite, and chicks who do their own stunts. 

We’ll meet and fangirl at our rendezvous hotel in Portland at 7am and make our way north to Acadia National Park (3ish hour drive). Hop in the SHE-nanigan Shuttle as we mentally prepare for technical vertical rock faces and steep sloping cliffs. The climb starts challenging as we scale the famous iron rungs of the Beehive. You’ll need a strong stomach for heights as we scramble to the top for breathtaking vistas of Sand Beach, Great Head, and Frenchman Bay. We’ll go slowly and intentionally as a group, encouraging one another throughout the loop.

It’s a short descent to The Bowl, a crazy-clear mountain pond nestled just below The Beehive. From here the hike is peaceful and insanely picturesque. After we blow our phones up with photos, we’ll head to our home for the next 4 nights––a gorgeous Glampground tucked between the pines. Far away from speaker-blaring crowds, we’ll enjoy solace in our luxury tents. Enjoy all the comforts of home including en suite bathrooms, showers, coffee makers, and heat/ac!

Elevation Gain: 784’

Distance: 3.5 miles

Hiking Time: 4 hours

Transfer: 3 hours

Accommodations: Glamping

Meals: L-D

After a hearty backcountry breakfast, we’ll make our way to two small, shapely mountains at the north end of Jordan Pond. Our hike begins with a 1 mile loop around the pond before starting our trek to The Bubbles. Like the rest of Acadia, the trail is steep with jagged boulders, rocks, and vertical climbs as far as the eye can see.

We’ll utilize our new scrambling skills as we work toward not one but TWO summits with gorgeous views over Jordan Pond. We’ll enjoy plenty of glamor shots beside a large glacial erratic (rock that a glacier deposited) that hangs on the edge of the south Bubble. 

We’ll finish the loop ending at the Jordan Pond House and do a quick vibe check. If we’re feeling greedy, we can explore more trails in the park or wander around the town of Bar Harbor. If the dogs are barking, we can unwind around a campfire while eating all the carbs.

Elevation Gain: 976’

Distance: 4.6 miles

Hiking Time: 3-4 hours

Accommodations: Glamping

Meals: B-L-D

Today we trade crunchy trails for snorting potbelly seals. After breakfast, we’ll meet up with our kayaking guides/master nature interpreters in Bar Harbor. These superhumans can spot floating otters a quarter mile away and make kayaking accessible to total beginners. If you can hold a paddle and endure a wet butt, you can glide with your fellow Explorer Chicks! Keep your eyes peeled for harbor seals, porpoises, grey seals, eagles, crabs, and maybe even a few rogue seastars as we float through the quietside of Acadia.

Routes depend on the weather, wind, and changing tides, but include paddling routes through Western Bay, Blue Hill Bay, and Somes Sound. Our guides pay close attention to currents and breezes to ensure an enjoyable paddle.

After our kayaking adventure, you get the night to yourself to explore the shopping, breweries, and mind-blowing seafood of Bar Harbor.

Kayaking Distance: 5-7 miles

Kayaking Time: 4 hours

Accommodations: Glamping

Meals: B-L

After breakfast at camp, we’ll escape the crowds to explore more of the quietside of Acadia. Even though millions of visitors hike Acadia National Park each year, a short 30 minute drive west of Bar Harbor plunges us into forgotten woodlands where we can truly take our time.

First, we’ll hike Beech Mountain, a strenuous but short loop trail with a fire tower at the summit and views of Echo Lake and Long Pond. We’ll hike up a smooth, gradual incline that becomes increasingly rockier. Bust out those scrambling skills and we move over boulders and reach a granite ledge with our first view of Long Pond.

After a quick rest and photo break, we’ll climb over more rocky terrain and take some stone stairs to the final stretch of the summit. If the weather’s clear, we can see for miles and even climb up the first landing of the fire tower.

We’ll climb down, finish the loop, and check out Bass Harbor Lighthouse if we can snag parking. Then we finish out the day with an easy breezy coastal hike along Ship Harbor Trail leaving plenty of time to explore the cute postcard town of Southwest Harbor. We’ll even squeeze in a shoot with the most photogenic bridge in Maine, the Somesville Bridge, which would make Lorelei Gilmore faint from cuteness. 

Elevation Gain: 492’/65’

Distance: 1.8 miles/1.4 miles

Hiking Time: 2-3 hours

Transfer: 1 hour

Accommodations: Glamping

Meals: B-L-D

Today we leave behind Acadia National Park to go deeper Downeast, but not before lacing up our boots! Our hike today is a section of the Bold Coast Trail that follows along steep drop-offs overlooking the Bay of Maine. Get your fill of stunning shoreline cliffs before we make our way to Lubec, Maine.

If we have time before the local brewery closes, we’ll stop in for craft beers. Enjoy some time on your own or with your new friends as you treat yourself to dinner and rest your legs in a darling seaside town.

After everyone is full and buzzing, we do some cheeky time traveling across the Canadian border into New Brunswick. We’ll flash our passports and check in to our historic cottage inside Roosevelt Campobello International Park. This is the only park in the world that is jointly managed, staffed, and owned by two countries. Most importantly, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt’s magnificent summer home is immaculately preserved here.

Channel your inner diplomat as we stay in the upper bedrooms of a working museum. The Hubbard Cottage was known as the “party house” back in the day, and we’ll have our run it by nightfall. Spoiler: This isn’t a public offering. Explorer Chick did some super sleuthing to work out a private sleepover just for us!

Sprawl out in the stunning parlor. Enjoy sunset views from the beautiful 9-foot oval picture window that was imported from Europe. Or gossip on the wrap-around porch on just *how open* Roosevelt’s marriage was. This former first lady and the 32nd U.S. president were wildly unorthodox, sustaining friendships with the working class and dining with poor, first-generation Americans in the White House. *Swoon*

Elevation Gain: 219’

Distance: 2.7 miles

Hiking Time: 2 hours

Transfer: 2.25 hours

Accommodations: Historical Park Lodge

Meals: B-L

We’ll jump out of our warm beds extra early this morning to catch the sunrise at the West Quoddy Lighthouse. This is the easternmost point in the US and you will NOT be disappointed by the sun rays bouncing off the candy-striped beacon. After enjoying our visual feast, we’ll head back to Canada for a yummy breakfast spread.

Theme of today: party like a rusticator. These 19th century tourists savored fresh salt air, beautiful scenery, and slow living. First, we’ll hike along the shoreline of the Bay of Fundy, home of the highest tides in the world! Keep your eyes peeled for more wildlife including grey and harbor seals, bald eagles, and maybe even a whale spout. 

In the afternoon, we’ll gather at the Wells-Shober cottage for afternoon Tea with Eleanor. Learn about the longest serving First Lady of the United States (12 years!) while local historians spill all the hot tea. Eleanor was the first Chairperson of the United Nations Human Rights Commission and perhaps the most quoted women in history. Never have we wanted ghosts to be more real––come haunt our girls’ night, Eleanor!

After our tea time, we’ll tour the Roosevelt Cottage and explore more of the island. Our last supper will be an East Coast special at the Adams Lodge.

Accommodations: Historical Park Lodge

Meals: B-L-D

It’s a day of Big Feelings as we air-hug our girl Eleanor and real-hug one another before saying our farewells. We’ll enjoy an easy morning with a lovely breakfast spread before hopping back in the SHE-naningan Shuttle for our drive back to Portland, Maine.  

Transfer: 4.5 hours

Meals: B