Hiking Champlain Mountain
This was the first hike my husband and I did together in Acadia National Park, and it has since remained our favorite. The trail has everything: lake and ocean views, man-made granite and stone pathways, blueberries (in August), and fantastic views of the surrounding islands.
It is important to know that the trail for Champlain Mountain is one-way and you can either begin or end at Sand Beach, which is very busy during peak season. I prefer to end at Sand Beach, due to how busy it can be in the morning and also because the Beehive Loop attracts a lot of crowds. I like to have some solitude during my hiking, so for that and all of the other reasons I mentioned, I will be writing about my experience starting at the Beachcroft trailhead and ending at Sand Beach.
Let’s talk parking. Parking anywhere in Acadia can be stressful, so I prefer to park my car at the Hulls Cove Visitor Center parking lot and take the island explorer shuttle. I’m a huge advocate for taking local transportation when you’re on vacation, because it really helps you immerse yourself in the experience. Once you get on the shuttle, you’re going to want to get off at Sieur de Monts, home to Wild Gardens of Acadia as well as the Abbe Museum and the Nature Center.
Finding the trailhead was kind of tricky, so we had the rangers that worked in the Nature Center help point us in the right direction. It turns out that you actually have to turn left while walking towards the nature center, go across the lawn, and then look for the trailhead marker on the other side of the service road going towards the Abbe Museum. Basically, you’ll begin walking on the Wild Gardens Path that leads to the Tarn, where you will turn left and cross route 3 to come to the Beachcroft trailhead.
From there, beautiful granite steps and stone pathways will bring you up the mountain, where you’ll have views of Dorr Mountain and the Tarn. The trail dips a little and then you’ll be faced with more granite stairs and rock scrambles before summiting. Due to the steepness and rock scrambling, this trail may be difficult with young kids.
The descent over the south ridge is filled with pines and eventually brings you to a picturesque pond called The Bowl, a great place to stop and rest. Eventually, this trail connects with The Bowl trail, which will lead you right to sand beach in just under a mile. We mistakenly took the Beehive trail instead of The Bowl trail, which ended up with us having to turn around, due to the amount of people that were ascending the Beehive Loop. Don’t be rebels like us, take the bowl trail!