Acadia National Park is one of the most visited National Parks in the country and a hikers paradise with more than 100 miles of hiking trails.  From the ladders of the beehive trail to the easy shore path there are hikes for all ability levels. Here are my favorite hikes for families in Acadia.

The Ship Harbor Trail

Located on the quiet side of Acadia near the Bass Harbor Light, this hike is a great addition to a visit to the lighthouse. The trail is a 1.5 mile loop that follows a figure 8. The hike features a self-guided nature trail with brochures available at the trail head that offer information about the flora and fauna of the the area as well as some history.  Highlights of the trail include: 30 foot granite cliffs, watching the water rush in and out during the tidal changes, and wildlife watching. If you want pleasant panoramas it is best hiked closer to high tide. If exploration is more your speed, hiking around low tide offers the opportunity to explore tidal pools and see birds feeding on the mud flats. Keep your eye out for a Great Horned Owl.

How to Get to the Ship Harbor Trail:

From route 102 in Southwest (stop and visit our friend Peter and the Captain’s Galley for lunch) follow 102 South to the junction of route 102A. Turn right onto Route 102 A and follow it 4.7 miles to the trailhead.

The Wonderland Trail

Located along the same stretch of Route 102A as the Ship Harbor Trail, the Wonderland Trail is another flat hike with great rewards.  At just 0.6 miles it is a great walk for younger children. The hike passes through a number of different tree types.  See if you can pick out the different stands of coniferous trees, including pitch pines and spruce trees.  The trail offers nice views of the Cranberry Islands as well as good bird watching opportunities. Stop at the Little Notch Bakery in Southwest Harbor for treats and plan a picnic at the wonderful Seawall picnic area overlooking the ocean.

How to Get to the Wonderland Trail:

From route 102 in Southwest follow 102 South to the junction of route 102A. Turn right onto Route 102 A and follow it 4.3 miles to the trailhead.

Great Head and Sand Beach:

Sand beaches are rare in Maine once you get north of Portland. There are only 2 on Mount Desert Island. The Great Head and Sand Beach hike is a more strenuous hike but very doable for active families. The 1. 4 mile  hike begins at the Sand Beach parking area on the Park Loop Road (parking can be difficult here during the summer, so you may want to consider riding the free bus service offered from Bar Harbor and other points) After hiking across the length of Sand Beach you cross a small stream (there is no bridge so plan accordingly) and begin the ascent up Great Head. The ascent can be steep at times but is worth the effort. Once you reach the summit you are 145 feet above sea level and have panoramic views of Otter Cliffs and across Frenchman Bay to the Schoodic Peninsula. The stone foundation at the top of Great Head is the remnants of a tea house once belonging to J.P. Morgan’s daughter. The top of Great Head is a good spot for spotting marine life like porpoises and seals. There are numerous side trails you can explore at the top of Great Head – pay attention to the trail markers.

How to Get to the Sand Beach and Great Head Trail:

From Bar Harbor follow Route 3 South to the Sieur de Monts entrance to Acadia National Park. Follow the signs to Sand Beach, passing through the entrance station, and take the stairs down to the beach.

Gorham Mountain and Ocean Trail:

This 3.5 mile hike offers a little bit of everything.  The trail begins by hiking through diverse forest and shortly into the hike you can continue on the Gorham Mountain Trails. I prefer the detour onto the Cadillac Cliffs Trail which is more gentle and offers the opportunity to explore ancient sea caves. There are a couple of tight squeezes along the way so only take this route if you are not claustrophobic.  Once you rejoin the Gorham Mountain Trail it is a short hike to the summit of Gorham Mountain which offers great views of the coast as well as Cadillac and Dorr Mountains. From here you can continue on the Gorham Mountain tTail as it descends and intersects the Park Loop Road. Cross the Park Loop Road and turn right  onto the Ocean Trail which runs along the coast. You get to see some great coves as well as Thunder Hole.  Continue past Thunder Hole and take the detour down to Monument Cove for an up-close view of the coast before returning to your car.

How to Get to the Gorham Mountain and Ocean Trail

From Bar Harbor follow Route 3 South to the Sieur de Monts entrance to Acadia National Park. Follow the signs towards Sand Beach passing through the entrance station and  continuing along the Park Loop Road. The parking areas is on the right 4.4 miles from the Sieur de Monts entrance.

Flying Mountain:

The Flying Mountain Trail can be hiked 2 ways – either as an out and back which is 0.3 miles each way, or as 1.1 mile loop. Parts of the trail are steep but given their short duration, Flying Mountain is still a good family hike. From the summit you will have great views of Somes Sound, Cadillac Mountain, and some of the coastal islands. From the summit descend to Valley Cove where you can marvel at the height of Eagle Cliff and explore the shore line. Parts of this trail are often closed in the spring due to Peregrine Falcon nesting so be sure to check with the rangers before embarking on this hike.

How to Get to the Flying Mountain Trail:

From the junction of Routes 102 and 198 follow Route 102 south for approximately 5 miles to Fernald Point Road. Follow Fernald Point Road for 0.9 miles to the parking area.

• If you are looking for a good map of Acadia, we highly recommend the Map Adventures Acadia National Park Hiking and Biking Map.
• Or if you want an all inclusive Maine Family Vacation check out our Discover Acadia Tour.

I love New Zealand and I love the bicycle tours we offer on the South Island.  The New Zealand government has embarked on an ambitious project and sketched out 18 bike tours on both the North and South Islands. Tours range from day trips to 5 day tours and offer an amazing way to see this wonderful country.

The Cycletrails New Zealand list the following description of the project.

The idea for the cycle trails started back in February 2009. The new government, under prime minister John Key, proposed to build a network of cycle trails throughout New Zealand.

The trails for both local and international tourists would showcase the best of New Zealand. Not only that, they would offer economic and social benefits in a time of global financial uncertainty. The trails would be built by New Zealand businesses, they would also offer opportunities for a range of complimentary businesses and they would take New Zealand’s tourism pull to another level.

The Government has invested $50 million dollars in making this project happen. The trails are due for completion in the summer of 2012/2013.

The Around the Mountains tour cycles through the Von Valley which one of my all time favorite rides. When the trails are completed in 2012/2013 the New Zealand Government which launch a new site with links to bike rentals, accommodations, and all other services that will enable visitors to plan their entire trip from the website.

We have always been a fan of Delorme’s state by state atlases. They show all the roads and are invaluable in helping us find the beautiful quiet roads that we use on our bike tours. When I started my company I used the Delorme Atlas to drive all of the roads along the coast before developing our original 6 Maine Bicycle Tours. Delorme  just announced All paper atlases are 50% off until Feb 10. The Delorme atlases are a must for any one who likes out door adventure.

Although not on sale the Topo USA software is a great planning tool for almost any outdoor adventure. The newest version also includes Canada so we can now have the maps we use On our Nova Scotia and Quebec Bike Tours match the rest of the maps.

Butterfield and Robinson recently announced that they will be offering E-bikes on some European departures. Are we looking at the rise of electric bike tours? For those who are unfamiliar with e-bikes they are motor assitted bicycles. They can be pedaled, they ride like a bike, look like a bike but they also have a battery powered motor that can be used on its own or in conjunction with pedaling. E bikes are both popular and controversial. For years e-bikes were very expensive and very heavy. Recently technological changes have made them  lighter and affordable.

All industries evolve sometimes for the better sometimes for the worst. I cannot help but feel e-bikes are bad for the bicycle tour and adventure travel industry. Dictionary.com defines adventure travel as:

“vacation or trip to a natural environment orremote location with the specific purpose of active physical participation and exploration ofa new experience”

I think reducing the physical activity of the trip alters the trip.  It reduces your engagement with and understanding of  the landscape. I understand the desire to cater to the aging baby boomer demographic but for now Summer Feet will commit to our course mission of providing wonderful active vacations.

A Google search for Weekend Bike Tours returns 2.6 million results which seems like a lot until you realize that googling “bike tours” returns 37 million results. Are weekend bike tours less popular? It depends who you ask. They are hugely popular with participants but not very popular with tour operators. Here is a summary of companies that offer weekend bike tours in the US.

Summer Feet Cycling

We consider ourselves the leader in the weekend bike tour business. We currently offer 5 tours all along the coast of Maine. Our tours often fill quickly because Portland is only an hour flight from NYC, Philadelphia, and Washington DC. Our tours all visit one location and spend 3 days cycling from a central hub. We offer weekend bicycle tours in Acadia National Park, Camden, Boothbay, Portland, and the Kennebunks.

Exploring Acadia – An Acadia Weekend features the best cycling in Acadia National Park including the Park Loop Road, the Carriage Roads, and the Schoodic Peninsula.

Sailboats and Summer Folk – A Camden Weekend Bike Tour visits the charming town of Camden, cycles around Islesboro Island, and features a sunset sail on a classic wooden sailboat.

Island Hopping – a Portland Weekend Bicycle Tour explores the wonderful city of Portland and the Islands of Casco Bay.

Beaches and Backroads – A Weekend in the Kennebunks cycles through Maine’s famous beach communities of Kennebunk and Kennebunkport.

Sunsets and Swing Bridges – A Boothbay Weekend offers a little more challenging tour of the Boothbay Peninsula.

POMG of Vermont offers weekend tours in Vermont

Dorset Weekend this 2 day tour stays at the oldest continuously operating inn in the country

Henry Farm Weekend follows colonial era dirt roads to charming towns

Echo Lake Weekend visits the town of Woodstock, which has no above ground power and phone lines because the Rockefeller’s thought they ruined the view and visits  Happy Acres Farm a working maple syrup farm where you can taste the different grades of maple syrup in the farms kitchen.

Vermont 100/200 offers guests the opportunity to ride back to back centuries that take you from Southern Vermont to the Canadian Border.

Undiscovered Country offers weekend trips in California

The Carmel Valley and The Monterey Coast features the famous 17 mile drive and the charming towns of Carmel and Monterrey. They offer a shuttle to/from San Jose making it real easy for folks from the bay area to join.

Kiss of Death which doesn’t sound like that much fun to me but offers serious cyclists a chance to challenge themselves. The climbs include many of the hills featured in the popular “Death Ride” without the crowds.

Solvang Santa Barbara Tour features the beautiful area and its up and coming wines. With a much more moderate climate than Napa it makes for a great wine and cycling getaway.

Sonoma Wine Country and Coast features the quieter side of the famous Napa and Sonoma wine regions.

Staying in California Wine Country Bike Tours offers a one day guided wine country tour with the option to add several days of self-guided cycling.

Switching to mountain biking Magpie Cycling Adventures offers several 3 days tours in the Moab Area.

They have what they describe as a challenging 3 day tour of the White Rim Trail around Canyonlands National Park and a 3 day Lockahart Basin tour near Moab that they run as group departure.

Looking to ride rail trails? Then check out Wilderness Voyageurs 3 day ride along the  C & O Canal. This is a shorter version of a 6 day tour that allows you to ride from Pittsburgh to Washington D.C.

TREK Travel offers weekend tours to a number of locations

Wine Country Weekend featuring the Russian River, Dry Creek, and Alexander Valleys.

Vermont Weekend that features Northern Vermont around the Stowe Mountain Ski area.

New Mexico Long Weekend visits Taos and Santa Fe and allows ample time for gallery browsing or serious cycling.

Moab Road and MTB Long Weekend offers guests the opportunity to enjoy both road and mountain biking in this wonderful cycling mecca

Zion Weekend offers a 4 day hike and bike exploration of Zion National Park

If you do not have time for a week long vacation, a weekend bike tour lets you maximize your fun.

Unfortunately, I did not have Portland Maine’s best burger yesterday. Yesterday was one of those awful January thaw days, where everything is gray, damp, and cold, and you end up pouting at your office window watching all the snow disappear. I needed to get out of the house and away from the grayness of the day.

I found myself at The Grill Room – one of the many great Portland restaurants. The Grill Room features local sustainable meats and a killer  wedge salad. It is also the only place I know where I can get Anchor Steam on tap. I will always have a soft spot for Anchor as it was the 1st craft beer I ever tasted. Lured by the wafting scent of french fries from  the gentleman sitting next to me at the bar, I opted for the $17.00 burger.

Damn, was I disappointed. The beef was nice but it did not wow me. In addition, the burger was served on focaccia, really guys? Can we finally acknowledge that most focaccia is way overrated? And in the hierarchy of breads it is way down on the list, “The Cleveland Browns of bread” would be an apt description. The sins kept coming. My focaccia was generously slathered on both pieces with mayo.  Ok, since it was on a $17.00 burger I am sure it should be called aioli. Call it whatever you want, I hate the stuff. Had the restaurant listed mayoli or whatever you want to call it on their menu, I would have asked that it be held.

What is it about mayo that people feel they can add it to sandwiches without disclosure?  You order a pizza and nobody puts a layer of mayo under the cheese without telling you. Most diners would be shocked to order a meal and find the chef added an ingredient without telling you. I am sorry sir, we always make our Coq au Vin with Cheetos and orange soda but do need feel the need to disclose it on our menu.  The all mighty mayonnaise lobby always get a pass.

My vote for best high end burger in Portland goes to: The .5 Bar at 555, the beef is incredibly flavorful, they make  a roll special for it, and it is to die for. Honorary mention has to go the mini burger on the bar menu at Grace and the burger at the The Salt Exchange.

Check out our new Maine Multi-sport tour. Multi-sport tours are not new to Maine but we feel have put an exciting and a little more hard-core edge to them.

Our new Boats, Bikes, and Boots is an entirely non-motorized traverse of the Maine Coast. Starting in Port Clyde participants will bike to Camden, Sail across Penobscot Bay, Kayak across Blue Hill bay to Mount Desert island, and hike through Acadia National Park to Bar Harbor. Although the days are hardcore, the evenings will still feature Maine’s premier inns and fantastic food. Here is the itinerary.

Pick Up / Drop Off

Portland, Maine (PWM)

Day 1 – Arrival and Orientation

Leaders will collect you in Portland, Maine and transfer you to Clark Island. Once settled into our inn, we will fit bikes, enjoy a warm up ride and get an overview of the week’s adventures that await us.

• Day’s Activity: Warm Up Ride of 15 miles
• Lodging: The Craignair Inn

Day 2 – The Adventure Begins

We begin our ride exploring the quiet peninsula of Spruce Point before cycling to Birch Point State Park and the spectacular Owls Head Light as it stands guard over Penobscot Bay.  Our ride then takes us to the eclectic village of Rockland, home to the Farnsworth Museum of Art, which features an extensive collection of the art of the Wyeth Family, The Island Institute dedicated to preserving Maine’s Island communities, and a number of charming shops and galleries.  We finish our day in the picturesque town of Camden on the shores of the Penobscot Bay.

• Day’s Activity: Cycling 30 or 54 miles
• Lodging: the Inns at Blackberry Common

Day 3 – Set Sail for Castine

Today you will race with the wind as we sail across Penobscot Bay, one of the great cruising grounds in the world. Your day-long adventure will allow you to discover the joys of sailing, and discover the rock bound coast from a new perspective. In the evening we will offer a refresher course for any one who wants to improve their paddling skills before tomorrow’s kayak excursion.

• Day’s Activity: Day Sail of the Penobscot Bay
• Lodging: The Castine Inn

Day 4 – Across the Peninsula and Across the Bay

An early start has you pedaling across the Blue Hill Peninsula to the town of Blue Hill. From here it is time to trade your bikes for a kayak. Next stop Acadia. We will spend the day paddling across Blue Hill Bay and land on Mt Desert Island, home to Acadia National Park.

• Day’s Activity: Sea Kayak 12 miles
• Lodging: tonight’s lodging is yet to be determined

Day 5 – Traversing Acadia National Park

Grab your boots and your day pack as today we will hike from inn to inn through the splendor of Acadia National Park. Our hike will take us through old forests, along burbling streams, and to the summits of several mountains before we descend into the town of Bar Harbor and our hotel featuring several ocean front hot tubs.

• Day’s Activity: Hike 11-13 miles
• Lodging: The Harborside

Day 6 – To The Summit

Choose your poison. Today’s goal is the summit of Cadillac Mountain, the highest peak on the Eastern Seaboard. You can hike, you can bike, or you can do both. In the evening we enjoy a farewell dinner at a local favorite.

• Day’s Activity: Your Choice!  Hike or Bike or Both
• Lodging: The Harborside

Day 7 – Relax and Savor the Accomplishment

Enjoy a leisurely morning before it’s time to shuttle back to Portland.  The plan is to leave Bar Harbor around 10:00am, stop in Belfast, Maine for lunch and some exploration, and then continue on to Portland.  You can expect to be back in the Portland area by 3:00pm.

Nothing to do with bicycles, just and interesting observation about how social media has altered my brain. Sleepily at 6 this morning, I engaged in my daily ritual of making coffee. Alas, I forgot to take the top off my coffee grinder and dumped beans all over the counter.  Beyond the normal Homeric, Doh! my first  thought was, hey this would make a good Facebook post. So I grabbed my phone and took a picture which I immediately posted.  Now fully caffeinated, I am both bemused and horrified that I have started to view the events in my life through the prism of Facebook and their potential to be status updates.  I am also thinking it is time for an adventure. If the most minor domestic snafu’s are the best  things I have to offer the world of social media it is definitely time to mix things up. What do you think? has social media altered your brain?

The United States offers a myriad of opportunities for bicycle tours. This is the first of a multi-part series discussing the various cycling regions in the US. Today’s post will focus on New England Bicycle Tours.

The six states in the Northeast corner of the United States offer some of the best cycling in the country. I feel uniquely qualified to discuss New England Cycling since it is the home of Summer Feet Cycling.

Maine:

Maine has more coastline than California and offers some wonderful cycling. We offer guided Maine Bike Tours and well as Self-Guided Bike Tours. In Maine Acadia National Park is a premier cycling destination. The over 50 miles of carriage roads offer car free cycling through the interior of the park, and the park loop road offers great coastal cycling as well as the opportunity to cycle up Cadillac Mountain the highest point on the eastern seaboard and the 1st place to see the sunrise in North America.

We also offer half day Portland bicycle tours featuring 5 lighthouses

Massachusettes:

Cape Cod and the Islands. The two Famous islands off the coast offer a very different cycling story. Martha’s Vineyard offers great cycling with bike paths around much of the island while Nantucket is too small for much cycling.  On Cape Cod, there is a wonderful rail trail that runs Wellfleet to South Dennis. There is also ferry service from Boston to Provincetown making the ride of Cape easily accessible from Boston.

Western Mass know as the Berkshires offers some great cycling and can easily be combined with cycling in Southern Vermont.

Vermont

Vermont has a great reputation for cycling, although Maine is a much more bicycle friendly state. The Northeast Kingdom offers wonderful mountain biking and the rest of the state offers wonderful cycling if you do not mind climbing. It is best to avoid Route 100 as it is the main North- South road in the state. There are various bike companies offering tours in Vermont, our favorite is POMG Bike Tours of Vermont.

New Hampshire:

New Hampshire offers some stunning and challenging cycling, including the the annual Race up Mt Washington.  the best cycling in New Hampshire is in the White Mountains near Conway and along the Connecticut River Valley in the Western part of the state. Bike the Whites is a group of inns who have put together a nice little self-guided tour.

Rhode Island:

Given it’s small stature Rhode Island is not a hot bed for organized bike touring  but does offer good cycling, particularly in the Narragansett  area. The State has a good bike bike map highlighting bike paths and better roads for ridding.

Connecticut:

From a cyclists perspective Connecticut can be divided into 3 zones. The Metro New York area in Southern Connecticut includes the NYC suburbs like Greenwich, and Darien all the way up to New Haven, The Northern Costal Region including Mystic and Lyme and the Northwestern Corner.  The best ridding is probably in the Northwest near Litchfield and into Southern Massachusettes.

After watching a whole bunch of cruise commercials and being enticed by all the images of active people, I found myself scanning the Royal Caribbean website to check out what type of adventures that cruise line offers. On the Caribbean cruise I viewed Royal Caribbean listed the following highlights;

• Hike Jamaica’s Dunn’s River Falls or mountain bike in Costa Rica’s rain forest
• Snorkel with stingrays or go horseback riding on the beach
• Dive 800 feet below sea level in a research submarine
• Discover the inhabitants of a coral reef on a glass-bottomed boat
• Visit Labadee®, one of Royal Caribbean’s exclusive and private destinations
• Commune with ancient civilizations by climbing mysterious Mayan pyramids

Outside of the rather strange offer to bend the time space continuum to allow their guests to commune with ancient civilizations,  many of the highlights are similar to the highlights that might be featured on an adventure travel itinerary. Which raises the question, is the adventuring of cruises good or bad for the Adventure Travel Industry?

I  can see arguments for both sides of this question. I believe that anything gets people outside being active is good for the person . I hope that if people have a  positive experience cycling, hiking, climbing, kayaking it will inspire them to do it again and maybe incorporate more active elements into their next vacation or even make adventure the centerpiece of their next vacation. Heck, 13 million people took cruises in 2010, we get all of them on a bicycle for even half a day and we have the beginning of a movement.

After staring at the computer screen for 20 minutes, not counting the obligatory check of FB, I realized that was all I had on the the subject and that my mind, freshly back from communing with ancient civilizations to get their take on the issue, (the were not much help as all they wanted to do was play Angry Birds on my iphone), I had a lot to say about why big cruise lines are bad for the Adventure Travel industry.

It has absolutely nothing to do with competition. I don’t stay awake at night because worrying about the Love Boat crushing my business like ice at the frozen Daiquiri bar. 26 million people can take cruises and it will not affect my business.

The biggest threat the major cruise lines make to the adventure travel industry is success. The better their Costa Rica and Belize itineraries sell the larger the threat becomes. Spend an afternoon in Bar Harbor, Maine when there are 3 cruise ships in town and cruisers outnumber locals 3 to 1 and you quickly see how cruise ships totally dominate the landscape.  Once cruise lines start dropping 2500 passengers a day in rain forrests and at coral reefs their footprint will be forever altered. The more their guests enjoy adventure and activity the more areas the cruise lines are going to push into that business.

Of course the cruise industry will argue that they are having a positive impact in the millions of dollars for every port they visit and that they creating prosperity. Once businesses get hooked on the crack that is the easy money that is selling t-shirts to cruise passengers all the sustainable methadone in the world will not save them.

Cruise lines,and by cruise lines I mean the big boys Carnival, Royal Caribbean et al, not the smaller responsible adventure based companies,have no soul.If Hunter Thompson were alive he would probably being getting ready to write fear and loathing on the Enchantment of the Seas. It is the soul and the passion of the participants and the tour operators that make for the best adventure trips.  Can Royal Caribbean save adventure travel, no but they certainly can destroy an area’s ability to be a draw to true adventure travelers.