Katahdin and Acadia holiday gift ideas for that special someone

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Making your list, checking it twice, and looking for special Katahdin or Acadia National Park holiday gift ideas for someone nice? How about a discounted Acadia National Park annual pass, a 2020 moose calendar by a Millinocket wildlife photographer or an Acadia to Katahdin Virtual Race entry with a special lobster and moose finisher’s medal? Whether you start your holiday shopping on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday or Giving Tuesday, here’s a special selection to help raise funds for charity, support local business and bring memories of Maine home for the holidays.

9 peregrine falcon chicks fledge at Acadia, Precipice Trail now open to hikers

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peregrine falcon chicks

Nine peregrine falcon chicks fledged at three nests at Acadia National Park in 2019, helping clear the way for the popular Precipice Trail to open. Four of the chicks fledged from the Precipice on the east face of Champlain, while three fledged from Jordan Cliffs and two from Valley Cove. That is more than last year, bringing the total up to about 150 chicks that have fledged in the last 28 years.

‘MegOMoose,’ ‘mustang,’ other virtual racers lining up in Acadia to aid charity

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Ready, set, go! With fun names like “MuddyMom,” “SlowCrawl,” “BunnyButt” and “TheOtherButt,” virtual racers from around Maine and the rest of the country are heading out of the starting gate of the Acadia to Katahdin Virtual Race today, to help raise funds for charity in Millinocket and Acadia. Join the fun no matter where in the world you log your walking, hiking or running miles. Everyone is a winner, whether you opt for a lobster- or moose-themed medal, or get an emailed milestone postcard after virtually climbing the 26 peaks of Acadia.

Virtual race marks 100th anniversary of Acadia peaks, Millinocket library

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Virtually climb 26 Acadia peaks, run the MDI and Millinocket Marathons and scale Maine’s highest mountain in a new Acadia to Katahdin Virtual Race that begins Aug. 2, to help raise funds for Friends of Acadia, Millinocket Memorial Library and Our Katahdin. The race celebrates the 100th anniversary of Acadia becoming the first eastern national park and the related effort of renaming mountains, such as Cadillac, as well as of the Millinocket library. Get a chance to earn a lobster or moose-themed medal, keep up with family and friends who join and log miles no matter where they are in the world, and see a virtual tour of parts of Maine you may not have seen in real life yet. Sign up now: https://racery.com/r/acadia-virtual-races/

Acadia deluged with hiking accidents, traffic on busiest day ever over July 4 weekend

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The day after July 4 was hot and sunny and attracted so many people to Acadia National Park that it set a single day record for visits – and overwhelmed park staff with rescues of injured hikers and shutdowns of Cadillac summit and other areas because of heavy traffic. Among those rescued: A woman who suffered a heat stroke on Dorr South Ridge Trail and had to be airlifted by helicopter, and a man hiking down Cadillac West Face Trail who slid 40 feet and fell off a 15- to 20-foot cliff.

Gary Stellpflug leads highly skilled Acadia hiking trails crew

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If you’ve ever marveled at Acadia National Park’s hiking trails, here’s a chief reason they look so good: Gary Stellpflug, the Acadia trails foreman. In this Q&A with Stellpflug, find out what he revealed during a National Trails Day hike on the Valley Trail, and his updates of trail work throughout the park. There’s no better way to celebrate Acadia’s 103rd anniversary of being founded as a national monument on July 8, 1916, than to appreciate the work of the Acadia trails crew and volunteers.

Cadillac crowds root of problem for Acadia plants

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The ferns, flowers, shrubs and grasses of Cadillac Mountain have a tough enough time surviving the elements, but the biggest threat of all may be the pounding of constant foot traffic on Acadia National Park’s busiest and highest summit. Consulting botanist Jill E. Weber gives us a tour of the research plots atop the peak, explaining the multi-year project to bring back the greenery on Cadillac, after limited success in earlier years with physical barriers, ropes and signs.

New center, buses, map aid Acadia National Park visitors this summer

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Benefits for Acadia National Park visitors this summer season: Hulls Cove Visitor Center reopens after $1.2M remodel; new colorful carriage road map names carriage road bridges and loop options; Island Explorer kicks off its 21st year of service today with 21 new propane-powered buses; and Route 3 one-way detour in Bar Harbor ends. A round-up of news you can use as you make plans for your next visit.

Acadia National Park visitors face roadblocks to buying pass

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Visitors to Acadia National Park this spring and summer are finding it can be hard to get there from here. Two major places for buying a park pass are currently closed, with the Hulls Cove Visitor Center not reopening until the end of June as a $1.2 million renovation is taking longer than planned, and the Cadillac Mountain Gift Shop still getting cleaned up from winter damage. Heading into the park, visitors will face a long detour during Route 3 construction and a new paid parking system in Bar Harbor. Here’s a survival guide for where to buy a park pass, how to navigate the construction and parking and otherwise successfully get there from here.

Top 6 Acadia carriage road loop hikes for end of mud season

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What better way to celebrate the end of mud season, than to hike the Acadia carriage roads, which recently opened to pedestrians, but not yet to bicyclists or horses? This special guide to the top 6 Acadia carriage road loop hikes of between 3 to 6 miles features interactive maps, elevation profiles and photos of some of the carriage road bridges and other sights to see. Thanks to reader Caroline, who posed this question as part of our “Ask Acadia on My Mind!” series.