Fresh Water Beaches - Acadia & Bar Harbor ME Area

Swan Lake State Park on scenic Swan Lake offers fresh-water swimming area with lifeguard supervision, picnic sites with grills and walking trails. Toilets and changing facilities are also available for use. For a fee, a private group shelter equipped with volleyball, horseshoes and a handicapped accessible toilet are available. Other activities are fishing, canoeing, and hunting.
Fees: Day-use fees are $2 to $7, depending of age and state residence.
Hours: Open Memorial Day to Labor Day, daily, 9 a.m. to sunset

This small, freshwater, inland lake on the “quiet side” of Mount Desert Island offers swimming from a beach in water that can reach 70 degrees ( in contrast to cooler ocean water). Families and kids like the sloping sand beach, which stays shallow far from the shore. Lifeguards are on duty from Memorial to Labor Day weekends. The beach is accessible by wheelchair. The Beech Mountain Hiking Trails are nearby; one leads to an overlook on the cliffs above. The lake has a parking area, and the free Island Explorer Shuttle Bus has a pickup and drop-off point here during normal season months.

The Penobscot River Corridor is within Maine’s undeveloped forests and part of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail. 67 miles of river and 70 miles of lake frontage provides ample places for canoe trips, fishing expeditions, and whitewater rafting. Major access points in the area are at Millinocket or Greenville. Trips to this remote region require careful planning; cell phone service in the region is spotty or non-existent.
Penobscot River Corridor Map (PDF)