Leave Behind Your Grind

Next time you visit Mount Desert Isle Maine, leave behind Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor for a day. Sneak across the water and drop into a place you’ll remember forever. It’s not a shop or a bakery. It’s not one of the attractions programmed into your GPS system. It’s a beach.

Fine Sand Beach is tucked away on Swans Island. It requires a ferry ride, a winding drive on a forgotten gravel road and a short hike through the woods.

Overlooking Toothacher Cove, the beach is quiet and pristine. We walked the waterline in bare feet as the mid-day sun threw our shadows and chilly ocean water lapped at our toes. The tide left behind a bleached and weathered lobster buoy striped in bands of red-an authentic souvenir (not like the kitschy versions sold at Maine’s roadside tourist traps). We littered the beach with giggles and footprints. Our visit included exploration of the immediate area, a delicious picnic and conversations about nothing in particular. There was something therapeutic about the sound of water on the move, slowly washing away the daily grind we packed in.

It’s a lovely gem, but if you go, beware! You won’t find some things you might expect at a beach. No crowds. No faint smell of coconut sunscreen. No parking lots. No tire tracks from that dude’s Jeep. No used up fire pits. No horse muffins. And no litter, except for echoes of laughter we left behind (sorry ‘bout that) and maybe an old washed up buoy.

Getting there: From Bar Harbor Maine, drive to the southern tip of Mount Desert Isle and catch the ferry to Swans Island (it leaves just north of the Bass Harbor Lighthouse). Once you land, drive off the ferry and go .5 miles, turn right at the intersection, go 2.3 miles and turn right after Oddfellows Hall. Go .5 miles to Carrying Place (a local landmark), continue north on the paved road and take the second gravel road .7 miles. Park at the bottom of the hill. Follow the path leading from the left (south) and go .5 miles to the beach. It’s 4.5 miles from the ferry landing to the beach.

When to go: Summer months are optimal. Be prepared for quick changes in weather conditions and dress in lightweight layers.

Tips: 1. Show up early for the last return ferry so you don’t get stuck on the island without accommodations.
2. If you pack it in, pack it out (except for your daily grind-go ahead and leave it on the beach).
3. On your way out of Desert Isle, pick up one last Bar Harbor Bar ice cream bar as you gas up. Wow, they are addictive.