Bar Island: Fast Facts

People walking across a sand and gravel land bridge at low tide.

NPS

The Sand Bar, aka Land Bridge, is a strip of sand, pebbles, and rocks that is hidden underwater most of the time. During low tide, when the water goes out, land emerges where before there was only the sea. This line of land can be walked across, leading from the town of Bar Harbor to Bar Island.

Bar Island:

The island that the land bridge connects to is called Bar Island. Before it became a part of Acadia National Park, it was inhabited by many people over the years. Sheep grazed on the island, and people harvested clams and fished for Atlantic herring nearby. Imagine what it must have been like to live on an island you could only walk to at low tide?

Timing of exposure of the Bar:

Every day along the coasts here, there are 2 low tides and 2 high tides. The difference in the depth of the water is around 12 feet – this is taller than most basketball hoops! You can walk across the Bar without getting your feet wet from 1.5 hours on either side of low tide. For example, if low tide today was at 11:30am, you could walk across the Bar from 10am – 1pm. If you lose track of time on the island, and the tide comes in, you would have to hire a water taxi or wait 9 hours until you could walk back.

Bar Exploration:

As the water level lowers with the receding tide, many plants and animals are exposed on the shore. Visitors are encouraged to respectfully explore and study the interesting things left behind. This activity is called “tidepooling.” You can find amazing creatures such as sea stars, crabs, and snails!

Kayaking:

This is a very fun sport to explore the surrounding salt water. Kayakers paddle around Frenchman Bay and have the opportunity to see the islands up close from the water.

Island Exploration:

Walking across the ½ mile land bridge leads visitors to Bar Island, which is part of Acadia National Park. Here, you can hike another ½ mile through a forested, shady trail that spills out into an open meadow covered in wildflowers. At the top of Bar Island, hikers are greeted by a beautiful view of Bar Harbor and the mountains behind it.

Island Life:

The remainders of old buildings can be spotted here and there on the island. Many different families called this island home over the years. Members of the Rodick Family lived here over 100 years and had a farm on the island. They even continued to raise sheep here after gaining massive success in the hotel industry. A TV news reporter named Jack Perkins had a home here for 15 years also. His land became part of Acadia in 2003.