{"id":62948,"date":"2022-06-10T09:31:02","date_gmt":"2022-06-10T13:31:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.themainemag.com\/?p=62948"},"modified":"2022-06-10T10:25:25","modified_gmt":"2022-06-10T14:25:25","slug":"documenting-acadias-farthest-reaching-campground","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themainemag.com\/documenting-acadias-farthest-reaching-campground\/","title":{"rendered":"Documenting Acadia\u2019s Farthest Reaching Campground"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Duck Harbor at midtide, protected from harsh wind by Eben\u2019s Head just beyond the harbor\u2019s entrance.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On an early August morning, I waited in downtown Stonington for the mailboat to Isle au Haut with an 85-liter hiking bag and a cooler full of beer. An island six miles out to sea, Isle au Haut has a longtime reputation as a quiet summer retreat for New England\u2019s wealthy families. That\u2019s just one part of Isle au Haut\u2019s story, though; I was here for a very different reason. At the southern tip of the island\u2014far beyond where electricity and running water end\u2014is a small outpost of Acadia National Park with one of the National Park Service\u2019s most diminutive campgrounds: Duck Harbor. Gifted to the Park Service in the 1940s by one of Isle au Haut\u2019s most successful lobstering families, the protected federal land encompasses about half of the island and is managed for hiking and exploring. Duck Harbor Campground has five lean-tos, a few outhouses, a woodshed, a ranger station four miles away by foot, and a stately wharf for the mailboat to drop off day hikers and campers alike. I made my way through a field densely packed with raspberries, ferns, and the last whisper of burnt-out sweet peas to my lean-to, which was nestled into a low hill surrounded by conifers and salty wind. I set up camp and hit the trails: off to explore and capture Acadia\u2019s most far-flung outpost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The aptly
named Cliff Trail on Isle au Haut\u2019s southern tip looking out over Western Head.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A sailboat anchored in
Duck Harbor just beyond the National
Park Service\u2019s wharf.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A view of
Stonington Harbor.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The mailboat\u2019s
wheelhouse as it cruises through
Stonington\u2019s archipelago.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Camping
gear ready for the journey from
Stonington to Isle au Haut.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Despite the lean-to shelters, park rangers suggest campers still bring tents to help abate the summer bugs.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Gnocchi, mushrooms, and chicken sausage cooked over a Jetboil stove<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Unpacking camping gear in one of Duck Harbor\u2019s five lean-to
shelters.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Hikers setting off on the four-mile trek from Duck Harbor to Isle au Haut\u2019s town landing.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Stonington Harbor seen from the
mailboat on the ride back from Isle au Haut.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\t\t
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