Ship Harbor Trail in Acadia National Park is a beautiful hike through the forest to some tide pools. The trailhead for this park is a very short distance from Wonderland Trailhead making these two walks an ideal pairing. Plan for low tide if you want to check out the tide pools along the trail.
Ship Harbor Trail is shaped like a figure eight. The parking area is small, so the lot fills up quickly during the busy season. Unfortunately, traffic volume is even higher at low tide because that is the best time to check out the tide pools. Luckily, this hike is on the quieter side of Acadia National Park.
Start down the hill for about 75 yards until you come to a junction. This is the bottom of the figure eight. We turned to the left and stayed left, which took us through the thick forest for the first half of the hike. Of course, we came to a second junction where the trails crossed in the middle of the eight, but we went left there, too. The first loop is ADA compliant, so it is possible to push wheels here. As you loop around to the other side, the rocky shoreline meets the trail. You can stay just inside the treeline on the trail, but most people go down to the shore (not beach, there is no sand).
If you’ve timed it right, you can see crabs, hermit crabs, an occasional starfish and millions of shells of all sizes in the tide pools. Of course, the rocks are slippery and sometimes sharp, so be careful. Worse, too much tramping can harm the delicate plant and animal life, so tread carefully.
After exploring the rocks and tide pools, you can jump back onto the trail up in the trees. The trail follows along the rocks and the harbor for most of the way back to the trailhead. We were glad that we saved this scenic side for the second half of the hike. But if you’d like to start with the water side, keep right on all your first turns.
The Ship Harbor Trail in Acadia runs a total distance of 1.3 miles, but some people only do the first loop, which makes it considerably shorter and is good for wheels. We actually enjoyed the forest side as much as the tide pool side, so we recommend doing both. Just down the road is the Wonderland Trail, and we enjoyed the tide pools there a little bit more, though we thought the Ship Harbor Hike was a better walk. Also, don’t miss the Bass Harbor Lighthouse that is on the quieter side of Acadia, as well.
