Acadia National Park
Alder Trail
easyFamiliesBirdersCasual Walkers
0.6 miDistance
VariesEstimated Time
Out & BackTrail Type
What to Expect
The Alder Trail is a quiet detour from Acadia's usual granite drama — a half-mile ramble through what was once working farmland, now slowly being reclaimed by alder thickets and gnarled old apple trees. The path is grassy and flat, a genuine contrast to the park's signature boulder scrambles. You'll thread between shrubby alders with the salt smell of the ocean still in the air, then watch it fade as you move inland through a landscape that feels more Maine countryside than national park. The fruit trees are a small revelation — gnarled, unharvested, completely unexpected. There's no summit, no dramatic payoff, just a meditative stroll through ecological transition. This trail is perfect for families with small kids, travelers who want ten quiet minutes away from the carriage roads crowd, or anyone curious about the human history layered beneath Acadia's wild surface.
Trail Details
Distance0.6 miles round-trip
Difficultyeasy
Estimated TimeVaries
Trail TypeOut & Back
PetsNot allowed
SeasonYear-round
TrailheadAlder Trail
- 1
Combine this with the nearby Shore Path or Ship Harbor Trail for a fuller half-day loop — on its own, the Alder Trail is over before you've settled into a rhythm.
- 2
Visit in late summer when the old apple trees are heavy with fruit; the contrast between the salt-weathered shore and a working orchard gone wild is the whole point of this trail.
- 3
Look for wildlife at the edges where the alder thicket meets open grass — warblers and white-throated sparrows use this shrubby ecotone heavily during fall migration.
