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.

Cadillac Mountain road closed 54 times in 2018 by crowds in Acadia

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Acadia National Park rangers in 2018 closed the summit road to Cadillac Mountain to incoming vehicles 54 times because of traffic congestion, possibly accenting the need for a reservation system to park at the peak. The 54 closures at Cadillac occurred between June 26 and Oct. 24. The closures came as the number of visitors […]

End of federal shutdown comes in nick of time for Acadia National Park

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An agreement to end the partial federal government shutdown came just in time for visitors and year-round staff at Acadia National Park in Maine. While the park was kept open during the 35-day-long shutdown and the closure came at the slowest time of year for the park and had little economic effect on surrounding communities, almost […]

Maine virtual race helps make new year resolutions, friends, and Stephen King connections

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Get off to a good start with 2019 new year resolutions to get fit, do good and keep up with friends – join nearly 100 virtual racers and log miles from Acadia to Katahdin no matter where in the world you are. Earn a custom medal with a star for every 20-day streak of at least 1 mile a day, with a fifth big sequined star for 100 days in a row. Help raise funds for charity. And stop by and wave a virtual hello to Stephen King.

Ready, set, go! Team Lobster vs. Moose in virtual Millinocket, MDI marathon

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In a showdown promising to be more fabled than that of the tortoise and the hare, Team Lobster vs. Team Moose face off starting today, in a virtual Mount Desert Island and Millinocket marathon to help benefit Friends of Acadia, Millinocket Memorial Library and Our Katahdin. Join in on the fun by signing up now for the Acadia to Katahdin Virtual Race, pick your team and set a personal mileage goal you feel you can meet between today and Oct. 14. Legendary coach Gary Allen will lead Team Lobster Virtual MDI, while epic Tricia Cyr of Moose Drop In of Millinocket will do the honors for Team Moose Virtual Millinocket. Read all about it here.

Hike Acadia’s 26 peaks – in real life, or virtually! – and earn this gold medal

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The Acadia to Katahdin Virtual Race Medals are in! Whether you love hiking Acadia’s 26 peaks or Katahdin, or are in training for the Mount Desert Island Marathon & Half or Millinocket Marathon & Half – or just love seeing a Google Street View photo of one of those real-life places pop up as you enter your walking, hiking or running miles in the virtual race course for the day – you, too, can earn this special medal. Made by the same company that makes the Boston and MDI Marathon medals, it features a raised profile of the Bubbles and Katahdin.

MDI Marathon named into Maine Running Hall of Fame – run it virtually now!

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Congratulations to Mount Desert Island Marathon for being named into the Maine Running Hall of Fame! Proud to co-sponsor the virtual edition of this iconic race (and that of its sister race, Millinocket Marathon & Half) with you! If you’re running the MDI Marathon on Oct. 14, or the Millinocket race on Dec. 8 – or just dreaming about doing it one day – why not join the Acadia to Katahdin Virtual Race as part of your training – or your daydreaming? The Virtual Edition of the Sea to Summit Series entry page is live now. You can log your running, hiking or walking miles anywhere in the world. You can backdate your miles to July 20, and log them through the end of the day Dec. 8, after the running of the real-life Millinocket race.