Sieur de Monts is the quiet doorway to the Acadia you came for, a shaded corner of Mount Desert Island with a spring, a nature centre and a small botanical garden. The name comes from Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Monts, the French nobleman who led the expedition that landed on these coasts in 1604 with Samuel de Champlain. The spring was developed by George Dorr, one of the park's founders, who spent decades assembling land and gifting it to the nation. Acadia became the first national park east of the Mississippi in 1916, under the name Lafayette, and took its current name in 1929.
Mount Desert is an island of pink granite, rounded by glaciers and cut with long freshwater lakes and fjord-like inlets. Spruce and fir crowd down to the sea, and the air smells of resin and salt. The Park Loop Road, a twenty-seven mile route that winds around the island, passes right by here, with some sections running one-way, and it is generally smooth and slow, with a modest speed limit and plenty of cyclists and walkers. Think of it as a leisurely tour rather than a performance.
Bar Harbor, the main town, is a short way off and has fuel, food and plenty of lobster. Ellsworth, on the mainland about twenty-six kilometres away, is a bigger town with more shops and gas stations. The park charges an entrance fee, and in the high season some of the busiest places, such as the road up Cadillac Mountain, need a timed reservation, so check the official site beforehand. Summer is crowded, so aim for early morning or late afternoon, or visit in September and October, when the crowds thin and the light turns clear and golden.
Carry a jacket, even in July, because sea fog can roll in without warning and chill the whole island. Carriage roads built by John D. Rockefeller Jr. wind through the woods here, closed to motor vehicles, which gives the place a hush that surprises first-time visitors.