Bar Harbor/Acadia in mid November

I%26#39;ve been to the area multiple times, but never later than mid October. We were thinking of possibly making a trip up there in mid November this year. Can anyone provide a snapshot of what it will be like? I assume a lot will have closed, but roughly what percentage of stuff is still open (downtown lodging, restaurants, etc)? Also, what can we expect in the park? Are all the leaves gone by then? Weather? Thanks for your help.

Bar Harbor/Acadia in mid November

As you probably know (or have guessed), things begin shutting down the last week of October or the first week of November. By mid-November I estimate that perhaps 30 to 40% of the lodging and eating establishments remain open. Many of the restaurants that do remain open do so at reduced hours, i.e., they go to a four or five-day schedule, usually centered on later in the week or the weekend. The dining picture changes from year to year; if you do plan to come then, this forum should be able to give you more information by the end of October

If you are interested in a B%26amp;B (which I think is your best bet that time of year), I would check at:

http://www.sleepbarharbor.com

Many of the B%26amp;Bs listed there post their availability, so you should be able to see which ones remain open.

The Hulls Cove visitor center of the park usually closes at the end of October. The Loop Road and the Cadillac Summit road remain open until about the first of December, weather permitting.

Most of the leaves will be gone. It is an excellent time to see the rocks, ridges, and mountain sides that form the park. I have some November photos posted on my Picasaweb site, see:

http://tinyurl.com/2w873s

and then browse through the various autumn and winter albums. The Witch Hole Pond Walk album is from this past November; the early photos in the Winter 2008-2009 are also from November.

The weather is variable, as you might guess. In mid November we have days in which it is comfortable to hike in a sweatshirt or light fleece. The best summary is at:

www.wunderground.com/tripplanner/index.asp

enter the zipcode for this area (04609) and the range of dates that interest you.

Bar Harbor/Acadia in mid November

Being able to see into the woods is the biggest benefit of hiking in November. It%26#39;s a good time to find abandoned paths and also ruins, left from the 1947 fire.

All the big hotels, out on route 3 as you come into Bar Harbor, will be closed. The Bar Harbor Inn sometimes stays open into November. The Harborside closes down. The Quimby House might be open. Among the B%26amp;Bs that stay open are Saltair, Aysgarth Station, Canterbury Cottage, Greycote.

Don%26#39;t know what your favorite restaurants are but Maggie%26#39;s, Cafe This Way, Poor Boys are all closed. Sometimes it%26#39;s hard to find a place open for breakfast, although Jordan%26#39;s often doesn%26#39;t close until January. Geddy%26#39;s and the Thirsty Whale are the most reliably open restaurants for lunch and dinner. Red Sky, over in Southwest Harbor stays open until January 1. Town Hill Bistro is usually open three or four days a week. McKay%26#39;s is also usually open for dinner.

Among the stores that stay open are Cadillac Mountain Sports, Sherman%26#39;s Books, the drug store, the grocery store, the coffee shop on Cottage Street, the bakery on Rodick Street, the Rock Shop, the pet stores, and a few others.

The weather is usually good well into November -- not all that different from late October. The Park should be wide open unless the road to the top of Cadillac gets ice or snow-covered. Even then, there is good access into the Park all winter long, even if most of the Loop Road is closed to car traffic.

People from other parts of Maine often come on November weekends to take advantage of the hiking in Acadia, free from the crowds of tourists.