National Park Service Announces the Grand Opening of Schoodic Woods Campground

The National Park Service (NPS) invites the public to attend the grand opening of Schoodic Woods Campground at 3 pm on Tuesday, September 2.  A ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at the campground ranger station with remarks by The Honorable Angus S. King, Jr., United States Senator; Sheridan Steele, Superintendent, Acadia National Park; and Mark Berry, President and CEO, Schoodic Institute.  The campground will be open for self-guided tours starting at 3:30 pm, and the event will conclude with a presentation at the amphitheater on the Schoodic Institute starting at 4:30 pm.

Limited parking will be available at the campground, which is located on Schoodic Loop Road about one mile south of State Route 186 in Winter Harbor.  Satellite parking will be available at the Masonic Lodge and Winter Harbor Town Office on School Street in Winter Harbor.  The Island Explorer will provide free, continuous shuttle service between the satellite parking and campground from 2:30 to 6:30 pm.  The first bus will leave Winter Harbor at 2:30 pm, and the last bus will leave the campground at 6:30 pm.

The opening of Schoodic Woods campground is the culmination of a decade-long effort to protect a 1,600-acre tract of land abutting Acadia National Park, which was threatened by the development of a resort that was to include a hotel, golf course, sports center, and luxury villas.  In 2011, an anonymous buyer (operating as Schoodic Woods, LLC) purchased the land along with another 1,600 acres north of State Route 186.  Over the past two years, Schoodic Woods, LLC constructed the campground along with 8.5 miles of bike paths and 4 miles of hiking trails on the lower half of its property.  In 2013, Schoodic Woods, LLC generously donated a conservation easement over 1,400 of the abutting 1,600 acres to the United States of America that allows the NPS to operate the new facilities and protect the land as part of Acadia National Park.

The campground consists of 94 sites:  33 RV sites with water and power hook-ups, 50 car/tent sites with power hook-ups, 9 hike-in sites, and 2 group sites with a shared picnic shelter.  Other visitor facilities at the campground include a ranger station, 100-seat amphitheater, and 100-space day use parking area.  Camping will be available on a first-come, first-served basis beginning on Monday, September 1.

For more information, please contact John Kelly, Management Specialist, at 207-288-8703 or [email protected].