We have a 1990 21' Class C (which just means there is a bed above the front cab of the vehicle, and it's built on a van body of some sort) RV, and thus researched campgrounds in and near the park itself. Settling on a place just outside of the park, Hadley's Point Campground, we drove the 4+ hours there from our home in Bethel. We chose the campground as it seemed a good price, and just as importantly, it was a stop along the island's shuttle bus network. This is especially great as it reduces the amount of cars driving around (imagine all the vehicles needed to get the 2+ million people around there annually!), and it allows us to park our RV and leave it.
The Shuttle Bus Network (the ISLAND EXPLORER) was convenient and easy to use. One could even bring a bike and put it in one of the 6 bike carriers on each of the buses. "Well-behaved" dogs were allowed, and we took advantage of taking our pup along to go to the park's many miles of hiking trails and carless carriage roads (GREAT fun to mountain bike!).
Some of the other highlights of our 3-night visit to Acadia, which is a VERY family friendly place
- fishing (catch and release at a small pond along one of the carriage roads)
- exploring Bar Harbor
- mountain biking
- hiking
- Thunder Hole
- Sand Beach
- taking the kids rock climbing
(phew, and that was only 3 nights at the Park!)
We were able to take our pup to "Steve" the dog sitter one day, which gave us a bit of freedom, and supported a local business. He was great with "Moxy" and we'd totally recommend him!
Lastly, my mom came along, which was great fun and allowed my husband and I to get a few bike rides in without the kids. She also got each of my boys started in knitting. The photo here shows Dylan knitting my mom's project while we were on the Shuttle Bus!
Where will we go next??
