Schoodic Woods Campground, Indian Point Blagden Preserve and Volta Climbing Gym

My son and I camped Saturday night at Schoodic Woods Campground in Acadia National Park.  While he attended an event at Volta I hiked at the Indian Point Blagden Preserve.  On Sunday morning we returned to Volta and were joined by my daughter for a morning of climbing.

Indian Point Blagden Preserve 

Indian Point Blagden Preserve is a 110 acre preserve on Mount Desert Island owned by The Nature Conservancy.   I started my 2.25 mile hike on the Big Wood Trail, which leads through a forest of spruce, cedar and fir trees on its way to the western shore of the island.  I next took the Shore Trail which, as it's name implies, runs along the  preserve's 1,000 foot shoreline, providing great views of Western Bay.   I finished by walking back along Higgins Farm Road to the parking lot.  

This is a beautiful preserve and a great place to escape the crowds that flock to Acadia.  I saw only four other people during my hike.  

Schoodic Woods Campground 

We were amazed to find a campsite available in Acadia when we started planning this trip earlier in the week.   We camped at site H01 at Schoodic Woods.  The site is a hike in site requiring a 650' walk from the parking lot, but it was secluded and quiet.  There were hardly any mosquitoes and the cool ocean breeze made for good sleeping weather. 

Volta Climbing Gym

Volta is a 10,000 square foot climbing gym located off Route 3 in Trenton, just before reaching Mount Desert Island.  The gym opened in April 2022 and is the only commercial climbing gym north of Portland.  The gym is large, air conditioned, well laid out and staffed by friendly, knowledgeable and safety conscious staff.