Do you know that Bar Harbor is located on an island? The Mount Desert Island to be exact. Before a toll bridge was built to connect the island to the mainland in 1837, all transportation occurred by water.
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By the 1860s, visitors could take a direct steamboat from Boston to Mount Desert Island. When a railway was built to reach Hancock in 1884, visitors still preferred to take a ferry to Bar Harbor rather than ride a carriage. Up until the early 1900s, most visitors preferred to come to Mount Desert Island by boat.
Source: Southwest Harbor Public Library Digital Archive.
Today we have cheaper and faster means of transportation than using boats to get to places. Surprisingly it is not the case if you choose to visit the Schoodic Peninsula side of Acadia National Park from Bar Harbor. The car journey around the coastline is more that 40 miles long and takes more than an hour to complete. On the contrary, a $15 boat ride from Bar Harbor over to the Winter Harbor takes only 45 minutes. While on the boat, you can feast your eyes on islands (including Porcupine Islands) and mountains, search for lighthouses and wildlife. The Island Explorer ‘free’ shuttle at Winter Harbor will take you into Acadia National Park. And if your remember to bring a picnic lunch, you can have an offbeat budget adventure.
The Bar Harbor Ferry runs from May 27 to October 10, 2022. Call 207-288-4585 or visit Bar Harbor Ferry website to reserve your tickets.
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Source: Southwest Harbor Public Library Digital Archive.
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