This Maine State Park Is the Good Acadia Dupe

Maine’s rugged shoreline and forests have lengthy drawn nature lovers to Acadia Nationwide Park. However vacationers looking for an identical expertise with a bit extra respiratory room could discover Camden Hills State Park a extra preferable choice. Positioned about 80 miles south of Acadia, this 5,700-acre vacation spot dupe has most of the similar coastal views and out of doors adventures, minus the site visitors and crowded trails.

Like Acadia, Camden Hills has one thing for everybody, whatever the season. In hotter months, guests can hike, rock climb, birdwatch, or trip horseback alongside scenic trails. In autumn, the park turns into a primary spot for leaf-peeping, with hills of blazing reds, oranges, and golds. Snow transforms the park right into a winter haven for cross-country snowboarding and snowmobiling.

Formidable hikers can deal with the 8.6-mile path to Mount Megunticook, the park’s highest peak at 1,385 toes. At Mount Battie, the park’s second-highest peak, guests can hike to the summit or drive the seasonal auto highway, on clear days, even recognizing Cadillac Mountain in Acadia. Households and informal hikers could want the gentler Tablelands or Nature Path. Canines on leashes are welcome all through the park.

Simply exterior the property, the seaside city of Camden, Maine, has cozy outlets, eating places, artwork galleries, and craft breweries like Sea Canine Brewing Co. Don’t miss the historic Camden Opera Home or the Curtis Island Lighthouse. This harbor city is simple to discover on foot, with alternatives to affix lobster boat excursions and whale or puffin-watching cruises, or just stroll the picturesque waterfront.

For in a single day stays, Camden Hills has greater than 100 campsites, together with park services with scorching showers. Vacationers looking for extra consolation can select from a spread of charming bed-and-breakfasts and seaside inns. The Camden Harbour Inn, a restored Nineteenth-century mansion, boasts beautiful harbor views and award-winning delicacies at Natalie’s, certainly one of Maine’s high fine-dining locations. The Norumbega, a Victorian-era stone citadel overlooking Penobscot Bay, was just lately named the No. 1 inn within the continental U.S. by Journey + Leisure readers, with 11 distinctive Queen Anne–fashion rooms.