MAINE - Acadia/Bar Harbor/Down East

This national park is glorious. The oldest national park on the East Coast, visitors will enjoy a variety of wonders including the unusual geological formations, nature and wildlife, scheduled events, scenic drives, hiking, biking, and boat cruises. Don't forget to look for the puffins, North America's answer to the penguin. Fishing sites abound, with approximately 20 lakes and ponds from which to choose. Public camping is available at two locations, and there are fees for camping and for entering the park. In winter there is cross country skiing, snowshoeing and limited snowmobiling.

These falls are an example of an unusual natural occurance. Their connection to a surging and retreating tidal basin makes the falls reverse during certain times of the day.

The highest point on the Atlantic coast north of Rio de Janeiro, Cadillac Mountain offers incredible views of the ocean, islands, and inland Maine's mountains. Park Loop Road takes visitors winding to the top, 1530 feet from the service.

The falls occur due to the daily flow of the tides. A tidal surge is an unusual event of greater magnitude, usually caused by storm winds or earthquakes. The reversing falls actually are rapids which are caused by large boulders in a narrow passage of water. The boulders, in addition to the narrow passageway between the shores of the mainland and Falls Island, form a bottleneck, causing a rise in the depth of water on the neap side of the falls.

This island's inhabitants are special indeed: The Atlantic Puffin is native only to the northern Atlantic coast. The birds are large, playful and colorful, often referred to as the "penguins of New England."

Placed by local residents, this monument marks the exact midpoint between the North Pole and the equator.

This river is one of dozens in Maine, but it holds the distinction of having the highest tides in the continental United States.