The crushed-stone surfaces of Acadia’s carriage roads make them ideal for cross country skiing in the wintertime. Add the park’s spectacular scenery and trail grooming by the volunteers of the Acadia Winter Trails Association, and it is no wonder that skiing is a highlight of the season for many area residents and winter visitors.
Skiing Acadia’s carriage roads is a winter highlight!
Winter trail grooming is done by volunteers of the Acadia Winter Trails Association. Volunteers operate from bases at the Hulls Cover Visitor Center and the Brown Mountain Gatehouse, setting tracks for classic and skate-style cross country skiing on routes established in the grooming agreement with the park.
But there are some requirements before grooming can begin:
Volunteers may groom the carriage roads if new snow exceeds six inches, and the roadbed is frozen (at least five days of freezing temperatures), and grooming must be done at times that are both convenient and safe.
This approach helps ensure the carriage roads remain in top-notch condition, since shallow snow depth and warmer weather/wet conditions soften the carriage roads and make them susceptible to damage. That said, when the temperature is too warm or the snow depth doesn’t reach six inches, skiers are still welcome to set their own tracks.
Acadia’s historic carriage roads were constructed with great forethought and care; using them with care helps protect them and prevents costly repairs, so visitors can fully enjoy the carriage roads for years to come.
Dedicated volunteers take on the work of grooming the carriage roads when conditions allow. Donations to Friends of Acadia help to purchase and maintain equipment, provide fuel, and train volunteers.
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Started in the late 1980s as a personal mission of several local ski enthusiasts, the Acadia Winter Trails Association (AWTA) formally partnered with Friends of Acadia and Acadia National Park in 1990. Friends of Acadia provided financial and fundraising assistance to the loyal groomers, and the park added maintenance and other support. Gradually, homemade grooming rigs (bed springs and cinder blocks) were replaced with specialized equipment.
In 2005, the family of Elizabeth R. (Leila) Bright established an equipment fund and an endowment in Leila’s memory and in honor of her love for skiing in Acadia. These provide annual grants to underwrite the purchase and maintenance of grooming equipment, safety training and equipment, fuel, volunteer and staff training and support, and other annual and capital needs of cross-country trail grooming in the park, supporting grooming activities in perpetuity.
With the additional equipment and program support, an expanded cadre of volunteers has been able to groom more ski routes—including the Aunt Betty’s Pond, Around Mountain, and Witch Hole carriage roads—sooner, taking full advantage of Mount Desert Island’s unpredictable snow season.
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Acadia National Park