The Seal Cove Pond Boat Ramp is located on the western side of Acadia National Park’s Mount Desert Island. The ramp can be used to launch kayaks, canoes, and small fishing boats (motors are limited to 10 horsepower). I don’t believe that Seal Cove Pond is used as a drinking water source, and if that is the case, paddleboards can also be launched.
For those with motorboats, the parking lot is only big enough to hold a couple of trucks with trailers. You can’t park along the road prior to the ramp parking lot entrance because it is too narrow.
Reaching Seal Cove Pond requires traveling on dirt roads, though these are well maintained so that even cars can drive on them. Take Seal Cove Road, a turn-off from the paved Tremont Road (Hwy 102), then take the first left on what Google Maps calls Western Mountain Road, then another left on what Google calls Seal Cove Pond Road (National Park Service maps continue to list it as Western Mountain Road). This dead ends at the pond and boat ramp. If you miss the first left, you can take the next left and still make a loop to the pond. These roads are closed from November through May.
There are many dirt roads in this area, but they don’t lead too much. Other than the pond, all I saw that might be of interest to anyone was the trailhead for the West Ledge Trail that leads to the top of Bernard Mountain.
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Last updated on September 1, 2023