Harbor at Stonington, Maine

Unless you have your own boat, visiting the Isle au Haut unit of Acadia National Park requires taking a public ferry from Stonington, Maine, a small town west of Mount Desert Island. Stonington is located at the southern end of Deer Isle, which is connected to the mainland by a bridge. The ferry is operated by Isle au Haut Boat Services and located at 37 Seabreeze Avenue.

The northern half of Isle au Haut is still privately owned, so there are full-time and summer residents who also use the ferry. Stops are made at the Isle au Haut town dock year-round, but only at Duck Harbor, the National Park Service dock and destination for most day trippers, from mid-June through Columbus Day. Furthermore, of the multiple ferries that depart each day during the summer, all stop at the town dock, while only two stop at Duck Harbor. Tourists are perfectly welcome to access Acadia National Park from the town, but this puts you at the north end of the park, whereas the Duck Harbor dock is located in the south-central area. The decision depends on where you want to hike, and if you are camping (the campground is at Duck Harbor). It is four to five miles between the docks, depending on your route.

Tickets are sold on a first-come, first-served basis. Since no reservations are accepted and I didn’t want to miss out on getting a seat for my late August visit, I arrived two hours early for a 10 AM departure and got the first ticket. It wasn’t until around 9 AM that people started rolling in, and while the trip didn’t sell out, there were a lot of passengers. I was told that tickets are usually easy to get, but that they do sell out a few days during August, the busiest month of the season. I can guarantee you a ticket if you arrive two hours in advance, but that is a little extreme. The ferry employee I spoke with recommends arriving an hour early, which as mentioned, is when people start showing up.

Only the first ferry to Duck Harbor (10 AM at the time of this writing) is practical for day trippers to the island, for the second ferry, which departs from Stonington at 2:30 PM, arrives at Duck Harbor at 3:15 PM and then departs 45 minutes later, and that’s the last boat for the day. Thus, the second boat is only practical for those camping overnight. Since nearly all day trippers will be on the 10 AM ferry, and residents may purchase tickets for this time as well, if any departure were to sell out, it would be the 10 AM trip.

The typical day tripper gets about four hours on Isle au Haut when departing on the 10 AM ferry to Duck Harbor. If you want a longer stay, you can always get off at the town dock. Based on the current summer schedule (which remains pretty much the same from year to year), the first Isle au Haut town ferry departs at 7 AM and arrives around 8 AM, and the last boat back to Stonington leaves at 6:15 PM, giving visitors ten hours on the island. If you work your way down to Duck Harbor, you’d need to be there by 4 PM to catch the last boat from there. Of course, before making your travel plans, be sure to visit the Isle au Haut Boat Services website to get the current schedule.

Visitors are allowed to bring their bikes, canoes, and kayaks on the ferry for an extra charge, but you must arrive and depart from the town site. You can’t load / unload these items at Duck Harbor. Those without a bike can rent one from the ferry service for the same price as bringing your own. There are five miles of paved roads and seven miles of dirt roads open to bikers. No bikes are allowed on the hiking trails. Contact Isle au Haut Boat Services for the current rates.

If you miss the last Duck Harbor ferry back to Stonington, your only option is to run five miles to the town dock before the last ferry departs from there—not possible for many people. It takes about 2 to 2.5 hours to walk the distance. The Ranger said that those who get stuck must sleep on the floor at the Ranger station in town, but I don’t know if this is true or something he just said to scare everyone into arriving on time for the last departure. I also assume that you could hire a private boat to take you back, but who knows how much that would cost.

The ferry ticket does not include an entrance pass into Acadia National Park, which is required year-round. You can purchase a pass online in advance at Recreation.gov or at the park at the Hulls Cove Visitor Center, Park Loop Road Fee Station, Thompson Island Visitor Center, Blackwoods Campground, Schoodic Woods Campground, and the Seawall Campground. Passes are not sold at Isle au Haut, so if that is your only park destination, the practical way to get a pass is online.