The beehive loop hike at Acadia National Park is a short & steep hike with a few exciting (scary) sections where iron rungs are used to climb up the side of the mountain. This loop is only about a mile and half long with a 650 foot ascent and it should take just about an hour to complete.
Some people think this is hike is terrifying while others think it’s easy. Personally, I think it was easier than I expected, and I think kids would love it (my 9 year old nephew did!), but there are many exposed areas with steep drops, so you do need to be careful.
Below is a description of the hike, along with maps, photos and a video I recorded on my GoPro, to help you plan and prepare.
You’ll start your hike up the Beehive at The Bowl trailhead across the street from the parking lot for Sand Beach. You’ll need to show/purchase an Acadia National Park pass at the gate on Park Loop Road on your way to Sand Beach.
Click here to download a PDF map of Acadia National Park
This is a VERY busy parking lot in the summer and the fall, so I suggest parking at the visitor center and taking the free Island Explorer shuttle to the Sand Beach parking lot. (Acadia National Park pass is required to use the shuttles)
You’ll want to ascend the beehive only, doing the loop counter-clockwise, as descending the beehive would be dangerous and you would cause congestion on the very narrow trail. Don’t be that guy/girl.
If you want to hike longer than a mile and a half, you can extend the hike and make it a very nice 3.5 mile loop hike by going on the Gorham Mountain & Ocean Path Trail instead of returning to the trail head on the Bowl Trail after going up the beehive and past “The Bowl” pond.
Shortly after beginning your hike on The Bowl trail, you’ll reach an intersection where you’ll turn right to continue on the Beehive Trail. You’ll soon begin to steeply ascend the side of the mountain on very narrow sections of the trail and there are just a few sections where you’ll climb up on iron rungs.
I was too focused on not falling off the side of the mountain to take any pictures of these sections, but it wasn’t as scary or difficult as I anticipated and I was surprised how quickly I reached the summit.
Below are video frames from the GoPro I had recording during the hike:
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Walking on Beehive’s narrow cliffside path -
View of Acadia’s Sand Beach and Great Head -
Climbing Beehive’s Iron Rungs -
Climbing Beehive’s Iron Rungs
From the large flat rock summit you’ll enjoy a terrific view of Sand Beach, Great Head peninsula and Frenchman’s Bay. This is a nice spot to take a break after your steep ascent. The hard part is over!
From the summit, you’ll now gradually descend the other side of the beehive down to a small pond called The Bowl. This is a very nice & scenic area where you’ll enjoy the shade after being exposed to full sun on your ascent.
The beehive trail will end here at the trail junction of South Ridge Trail and The Bowl Trail. Take a left on the Bowl trail to make your way back to the trail head, unless you want to climb up Champlain Mountain and back.
After about a quarter mile is another trail junction for Gorham Mountain Trail. Continue straight here unless you want to do the Gorham Mountain to Ocean Path loop, which could also bring you back to the Sand Beach parking lot after walking along Acadia’s iconic ocean cliffs.
Here’s a GoPro video of when I did the beehive loop hike with my sister and nine year old nephew in August 2018.