Jordan Pond loop, Acadia National Park

There aren’t too many paths in the park that are flat and relatively easy. Jordan Pond loop is one of them! It’s about 3.3 miles around the pond (which you can’t swim in, since it supplies public drinking water), with views of the surrounding hills: Penobscot, Pemetic, and the Bubbles frame the clear water of the pond. But only parts of it, closer to the Jordan Pond House, are wheelchair accessible.

Starting from the Jordan Pond House, you can do the loop in either direction. The east side of the pond has an epic boardwalk! It must be at least half a mile long or longer, with periodic wider parts where you can step aside to let others by. There is a section of the trail on this side that is a touch hairier than the rest, where you’re making your way around fallen boulders, before you round the tip of the pond and return down the west side on a wide, flat path.

Directions: You can access the Jordan Pond House and its trails all year round, since the park plows the entry road to the pond. AMC’s Maine Mountain Guide discourages hikers trying to park right at the Jordan Pond House in the midst of tourist season, and instead to take the Island Explorer bus.