Bicycling is the perfect way to immerse yourself in the sights, sounds, and smells of DownEast Acadia... just imagine your journey through the rose-perfumed, sea-salted breeze with the subtle wash of waves and mewling of gulls!
DownEast Acadia boasts a variety of bicycling adventures, both ready-made and build-your-own! Visitors can bring along their own mountain, fat, hybrid or road bikes, or gear up with rentals and accessories at bicycle shops in Bar Harbor, Southwest Harbor, Blue Hill, Winter Harbor. If you are going further DownEast, you'll need to bring your own bike or rent one before heading beyond Ellsworth or Winter Harbor.
The Mount Desert and Acadia options include miles of paved roads, carriage roads, and old fire roads.
The Schoodic Peninsula offers both paved road and trail riding.
Bring your Fat Bike or mountain bike along to explore the Down East Sunrise Trail, a multi-use gravel trail running 87 miles from Ellsworth to Pembroke (connect from there to the absolutely stunning paved Sipayak Trail!).
The newly developed Bold Coast Scenic Bikeway winds along 211 miles of the coastline, through 24 Bold Coast communities and scores of new adventures to be had!
Eastport offers some great little day trips to beaches and other area attractions.
Both the East Coast Greenway and US Bike Route 1 extend through the entire region - from Florida to Calais!
The Machias River Corridor Public Lands offers gorgeous and remote gravel biking with campsites all along the way.
Remember, Safety First
Bicyclists:
- Wear a properly-fitted bicycle helmet (mandatory for bicyclists under the age of 16).
- Obey the rules of the road and follow all traffic laws, signs, and signals, just like cars.
- Signal turns and ride in designated bike lanes and on shoulders, when practicable.
- Ride at a safe speed.
- Be prepared to stop, but be cautious of making sudden stops on loose gravel.
- Stay to the right. Warn other users before passing on the left.
- Carry and drink plenty of water.
Contact the Bicycle Coalition of Maine or the Maine Department of Transportation for more bicycle safety and bicycle trip planning information.
Motorists:
- Drive cautiously around bicyclists.
- Motorists must give bicyclists 3 feet of clearance when passing (Maine law).
