Jordan Pond Path
With Russ off to work for a day of training, I ventured over to visit with Mike & Annette next door. They were flipping through their copy of Best Easy Day Hikes in Acadia National Park (affiliate link) and making some plans for the day. After reading about several interesting hikes, they decided to stick to a moderate trail for the day and headed to the Jordan Pond Path. With only things like cleaning and laundry on my schedule, they only had to ask once before I hopped in the car to join them on a trip around the Jordan Pond Path.
The scenery was grand offering up views of the Bubbles (South Bubble Mountain & North Bubble Mountain) over the calm clear waters of Jordan Pond. With the contrast of the lush green vegetation, blue waters, and pink granite, I was almost certain I was watching an episode of "Joy of Painting" on PBS. Lots of happy little trees in this view. Rest in Peace, Bob Ross.
The Jordan Pond Loop is a 3.5 mile gravel path around the shores of Jordan Pond. When departing from the Jordan Pond parking lot, we approached the boat ramp and took a right. This portion of the narrow gravel path was flat and scenic. As we continued, we debated whether we should turn around or continue along the pond path around the rest of the shoreline. As we saw a few wooden bridges in the distance, we decided to continue on to check them out. The bridges cross over two streams that flow into the pond. As we continued to the western side of the Pond, the path got a lot more interesting. The gravel path started to diminish and was replaced by big boulders to traverse by going between, on top, or around. After about a quarter mile of climbing over the rocks, the gravel path returned. We passed a few people coming the other direction that told us we would be encountering a boardwalk shortly. Thinking of the large boardwalks you picture along many East Coast beaches, we were surprised when our gravel path became raised log boards for the remaining mile of our walk. The variety of terrain from flat gravel to big boulders to elevated logs made the Jordan Pond Path an exciting, yet leisurely walk. We completed the loop with a visit to the Jordan Pond House area. While this trip didn’t include afternoon tea and popovers, I am fairly certain one of our many Maine afternoons will!
