Bar Island
4.7(35)google
4.9(15)yelp
IslandSecluded & Uncrowded
Overview
Bar Island (44°23′54″N 68°12′24″W) is a tidal island across from Bar Harbor on Mount Desert Island, Maine, United States. The uninhabited island is mostly forested in pine and birch trees and the island is now part of Acadia National Park. There are walking trails on the island.
Practical Info
Suggested Duration1.5-3 hours
Best TimeVisits must be perfectly synchronized with the same 3-hour low-tide window as the land bridge. Choose a daytime low-tide period to hike across the sandbar and tackle the island's gentle 1-mile forested trail. Reaching the island's summit lookouts at dead low tide offers exceptional, elevated photo opportunities of downtown Bar Harbor and its bustling harbor.
Getting ThereThere are no roads, car bridges, or public ferries to this uninhabited island. The sole means of transit is walking across the exposed Bar Island Land Bridge from the terminus of Bridge Street in Bar Harbor during the low-tide window (approx. a 0.5-mile hike across the gravel bar). Always carry a watch and head back at least 30 minutes before the window closes.
Travel Tips
- Managed by the NPS, Bar Island is vehicle-free, requiring parking in downtown Bar Harbor lots and walking across the sandbar; the sole 1.9-mile round-trip Bar Island Trail climbs directly to a granite overlook view.
- Failing to leave the island within the 1.5-hour post-low-tide safety window strands you on an uninhabited nature preserve for 9 hours until the next tide cycle; the island is a strict federal no-fly zone, prohibiting all drones.
- The island's dense perimeter brush vectors heavy deer tick colonies carrying Lyme disease; wandering off-trail is illegal, and hikers must rigorously tuck pants into high socks and apply high-concentration DEET protection.
Reviews
Positive
- Hiking to the island summit rewards you with gorgeous views of Bar Harbor town and Frenchman Bay, delivering a pure sense of wild tranquility.
- The primitive pine forest trails are well-maintained with clear park guide boards; the air is fresh with zero commercial updates, preserving high core value.
- Daytime brings great stroll order free of rowdy speakers or vendors; friendly dogs and hikers set a harmonious, peaceful atmosphere.
- As part of Acadia, it costs zero secondary admission, making it a budget-friendly, body-cleansing, and hardcore wilderness sanctuary.
Heads up
- The trail consists mostly of unpaved raw dirt paths, winding tree roots, and loose loose stones, completely lacking modern accessible wheelchair ramps.
- Because visits rely on the tide bridge, stays are tightly short, keeping visitors under constant countdown anxiety of getting stranded, preventing full relaxation.
- The barren island completely lacks permanent restrooms, water fountains, bins, or sun shelters, forcing guests to pack their trash long distances.
- Summer and fall afternoons bring terrifying volumes of biting ticks and mosquitoes in dense woods, punishing those without bug spray.