Part of one of Acadia National Park’s most popular trails will now be accessible to people with disabilities.
In the last month and a half, trail crews repaired and improved a 500 foot stretch of Ocean Path, which hugs the eastern edge of Mount Desert Island from Sand Beach to Otter Point and is known for its sweeping coastal vistas.
It’s the latest investment centered around improving accessibility in Acadia. In March, the park began construction on a pedestrian path at the top of Cadillac Mountain between the east and west parking lots along Summit Road. Prior to then, the park built the new Hemlock Path boardwalk in the Great Meadow.
Acadia is already renowned for its 45-mile network of accessible carriage roads, but park officials and partners have been working to expand visitor accessibility in other parts of the park.
The 2.2 mile Ocean Path, which is sandwiched between the coast and Park Loop Road, was already accessible from Sand Beach to Thunder Hole — roughly .7 miles — where the trail already has been rehabbed with a mix of concrete and packed gravel, according to the park service.
Past Thunder Hole, one of Acadia’s top year-round destinations, the trail is uneven with rocky gravel, impassable by wheelchairs and mobility scooters.
Now, after six weeks of trail work in collaboration with the Appalachian Mountain Club, park crews have improved a 500 foot stretch at the southern end of Ocean Path, west of Otter Point Overlook. The latest repairs make much of the trail accessible to all, except for the granite staircases that extend the path past Otter Cliffs.
Crews applied compacted rock material to ensure the trail would survive for years to come, according to Friends of Acadia, a local conservation nonprofit.
Friends of Acadia, through its Acadia Trails Forever endowment, funded much of the work, according to the group.
“We’re grateful for the skilled work of the Appalachian Mountain Club trail crew in rehabilitating this section of the Ocean Path,” said Stephanie Clement, the group’s vice president of conservation. “The trail is popular at all times of year, and these improvements help keep it in good shape while making Otter Point’s beautiful coastal views more accessible.”