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Campground near Acadia National Park’s Schoodic District

By Thomas Tash

Acadia East Campground near Acadia National Park

Campground near Acadia National Park’s Schoodic District

December 19, 2018by Thomas Tash

With the new year just around the corner, now is a great time to start planning your 2019 camping trip to Acadia National Park. As the first fully designated national park in the east, and the only one northeast of Shenandoah National Park in Virginia and Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio, Acadia National Park attracts more than 3 million visitors each year to its craggy coastline and breathtaking oceanside mountain peaks.

As one of the top outdoor recreation destinations for people all across the heavily-populated northeast, it’s becoming increasingly more difficult for people who want to get away from it all, to get away from it all.

Acadia National Park’s annual visitation has risen steadily for the last decade, at around 3.3 million visitors. Considering that at 47,000 acres, Acadia is already one of the smaller national parks in the country, it’s incredible to think that nearly all of its visitors pack into the main section of the park on Mount Desert Island. 

Located about 40 minutes east of Mount Desert Island is the Schoodic Peninsula, home to just over 2,300 acres of land protected within Acadia’s boundaries. This section of Acadia National Park has also seen visitation grow year over year, but is still well behind its island counterpart, at around a quarter million visitors in 2018.

If you’re looking for solitude on the trails, on the granite cliffs, or at your campsite, look to the Schoodic section of the part to deliver. Camping options are fewer and farther between near this part of the park. Inside the park boundaries, the National Park Service operates the Schoodic Woods Campground, a popular tent and RV campground near the park entrance. The Schoodic Woods Campground, like all campgrounds in and around Acadia begin filling up early. Maine’s short summer season makes it nearly impossible to find accommodations last minute; most require reservations months in advance.

For those that have missed their opportunity to stay in the park, or are perhaps looking for a more remote, backcountry-style campground, there’s Acadia East Campground, located a few minutes north of the park entrance at the top of the Schoodic Peninsula at 574 Route 1 in Gouldsboro, Maine.

Acadia East Campground is a small, self-serve, commercial campground that focuses on the basics. 

  • Acadia East Campground is a dog-friendly camping area, with plenty of room for your four-legged friends to explore. We do ask that you know your pup and keep them on a leash around other guests, or if they might chase wildlife.
  • Acadia East Campground has assigned parking for each campsite, however you can not drive up to your site. Our campsites are located along a main trail from the parking area, ranging from 50 feet to 250 feet from the parking area.
  • We do have a clean, well-maintained vaulted privy restroom with motion light.
  • Each site has a fire pit and 5-gallon bucket of water, as well as a picnic table.
  • Our campground features an information center loaded with maps and things to do in the area.

For more information on what to do when visiting Acadia National Park’s Schoodic District, watch our videos on YouTube and Facebook.

Book you camping trip at Acadia East Campground today! https://acadiaeastcampground.com/ 

Thomas Tash

Tom Tash is the Founder and Co-Owner of Acadia East Campground and Pocket Parks Campgrounds. Tom began his career in Outdoor Recreation at the University of Maine at Machias before joining the City of Portland Recreation Department and becoming the Recreation Director for the Town of Bridgton. Tom became deeply invested in the national parks as the Marketing Director for a national park travel guide company. He co-founded Acadia East Campground in 2017/18.

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