Hiking the Bubbles
Trail Name: North and South Bubble
Location: Acadia National Park
Distance: 1.5 miles
Elevation Gain: 495 ft
Difficulty: Easy
Pets: Allowed
The Bubbles are one of Acadia National Park’s most popular hiking spots. They’re easily accessible, family-friendly, and provide great views of Jordan Pond. South Bubble is very well-known for bring a go-to photo spot in Acadia. Hikers (and photographers) love to take pictures on top of the large boulder that looks like it could topple over at any minute!
Due to it’s popularity, finding parking for the Bubbles can be frustrating. The parking lot is located on the western side of the Park Loop Road. After the Jordan Pond parking lot, the next parking lot you come to on the left is a great option for parking. It isn’t the official parking lot for the Bubbles, but you may have better luck finding a spot here and walking the 0.1 miles to the trailhead. Or you can try your luck at getting a spot at the actual Bubbles parking lot, which tends to always be congested with traffic.
Personally, I would recommend either taking the Island Explorer bus to and from the trailhead (which are currently not operating due to COVID-19. but hopefully will be operating in 2021 or 2022) or hiking very, VERY early in the morning or later in the afternoon. If you arrive at either parking lot before 7:00a.m., you should be able to find a parking spot. If you arrive and there are no spots, then you will need to either sacrifice your least favorite finger to the parking lot gods or hike the Jordan Pond to South Bubble Trail. For some, hiking to the Bubbles from Jordan Pond may be preferable, as it adds a bit more distance to your hike.
The trailhead is conveniently located right near the middle of the parking lot. Immediately after the trailhead, the trail will gradually incline as you make your way towards South Bubble. These trails (especially South Bubble) are ideal for all ages and hiking abilities, due to their smooth terrain. The trails are also very highly trafficked, which has made them level and wide.
About 0.3 miles in, you will come to a fork in the trail with a small sign signaling where you can go left (towards South Bubble) or straight (towards North Bubble). We decided to summit South Bubble first, due to it’s lower elevation. From this point, the summit of South Bubble is only about 0.3 miles away. On a clear day, the summit has beautiful views of Jordan Pond, Pemetic Mountain (another one of my favorite hikes!), Penobscot Mountain, Seal Harbor, and surrounding islands.
To get to North Bubble, return to the fork in the trail and go straight instead of left. This trail is a tad bit more difficult than South Bubble, and similarly short in length. The summit of North Bubble is only about 0.2 miles from the sign. There are a couple of small outlooks along the way that you could use to escape the crowd and enjoy a snack or a meal. Besides that, the outlooks not really worth the extra effort.
The summit of North Bubble faces more towards Penobscot Mountain, also providing great views of Jordan Pond. For some reason, a lot less people take the time to summit North Bubble, so we found it to be a lot quieter than South Bubble. One thing I really love about this summit is that it sits lower than the mountains on either side of it, which makes for some great photos.
To get back to the parking lot, follow the trail back the way you came, veering straight when you come to the fork in the trail. Don’t be surprised if there are a bunch of people waiting for your parking spot when you get back to your car, as parking is quite competitive. Next time, I think i’ll start a bidding war for my parking spot. What could be more fun?!
Happy hiking, friends!
