Best Tent Camping near Stonington, ME

Camping on in the Duck Harbor Campground is nearly the stuff of legends. This remote island off the coast of Maine only has 5 campsites in this part of Acadia National Park, and reservations are required. The Park’s website describes this in classic Park Service understatement, “Duck Harbor Campground is very popular. Please plan your trip in advance.” What they mean is if you don’t go online within 10 minutes of opening day, April 1st, at 10 am EST, you will miss your chance to stay here for the whole year. You won’t be the first to get denied and certainly not the last. You might however, get lucky if you’re in the area for long enough and there is a sudden cancellation. 

I believe I’m right in saying that the hype is worth it here, more than just because it’s difficult to get here and difficult to get a reservation. This is a beautiful place to camp and an amazing island to explore by bike, by kayak, and on foot.

Each of the 5 sites offers a classic lean-to structure with a campfire ring and a picnic table. But it’s not the site which makes this place so special. Sticking out into the Gulf of Maine, this is one of the most remote islands with established camping and recreational trails on the coast. It feels like another world entirely than Mount Dessert Island, where the rest of Acadia National Park is located. By comparison, MDI feels like Central Park.

There is fresh water a short walk away from the campground, and a bear proof food storage locker at each lean-to. Mosquitoes can be bad during the summer, so I would recommend bringing a bug net or small backpacking tent which you could set up in the lean-to for more protection and privacy. 

Getting to the island is possible through the daily mailboat which goes directly to Duck Harbor from Stonington, but the best way to get there is to paddle up in a sea kayak as we did!

if the tide is right, Seawall has amazing sights! I’ve taken some amazing photos here. the Campgound is directly across from the public boat landing/picnic area. it’s a really nice area. the campground itself is very laid back for a National Park. the rangers almost act as though camping is your business and they only get involved if needed. whereas at blackwoods the rangers seem to try to be as accommodating as possible. it’s cute that they compete, and definitely are different. the sites are not usually as clean as blackwoods, they leave the “leave no trace” responsibility to the campers and if the person before you didn’t clean up, you might have to. other than that it’s QUIET! you can see the stars because there are no city lights. you don’t hear cars, AND the tent sites are very private. there are fresh water spouts everywhere, and plenty of trash/recycling areas. no electrIcity on the sItes, and rv can onlybIse geberators dIrIng lImItes hours. the bathrooms flush and have running water, but there are no showers. Echo Lake is right down the road, a great place to swim in fresh water.

Blackwoods is one of only a couple of campgrounds in Acadia National Park, which doesn't allow backpacking. It's connected to the South Ridge Trail, which gives you the opportunity to hike to Cadillac Mountain directly from the campground; we did this for the sunrise on our last day, and HIGHLY recommend it! (See the last picture.)

Rangers consistently patrol the campground, even driving through a couple of times after quiet hours begin; I found this really helped keep the noise down, despite the number of campers. (The campground was sold out for the duration of our stay!)

Each campsite has a fire ring and a picnic table, and sites are spaced decently; I would've appreciated a bit more privacy and space, but I'm sure the tree cover varies based on the site. My friend, who stayed at B121, seemed to have a bit more vegetation between her site and the surrounding sites.

There are plenty of bathrooms throughout the campground, as well as taps with potable water. There is an ampitheatre which is used for nightly activities; I think it can be rented by groups, too. There are showers just outside the campground (8 quarters for 4 minutes; the water isn't always hot, though!) and you can also purchase wood at the shower facility.

One of the routes run by the FREE shuttle bus stops at Blackwoods every hour during the summer; using this shuttle, you can get to Sieur de Monts, Otter Cliff, and the Village Green, where you can connect to any other bus. This is awesome, because it means you don't have to waste half the day jockeying for parking!

Overall, I think Blackwoods Campground is a great value and a great place to camp while visiting Acadia.

We stayed for a week at one of the hike in sites, specifically the one furthest from the car/RV camping area. The sites are newer looking with nice tent pads, a bear box, and a picnic table. It’s a few minutes’ walk from the campsite to an immaculately clean vault toilet. The bathroom for the car camping area with running water, the dishwashing area, and WiFi were maybe a 2 minute walk beyond that. We had such an amazing time and spent the majority of our time on the Schoodic peninsula. We only went to the main part of the park twice the whole week. Plenty of trails, scenic views, and things to do just in Schoodic Woods. It’s also WAY less crowded than the main part of the park. Winter Harbor has a few restaurants and little shops but no big grocery/big box stores that I saw so stop on the way if you need stuff. The rangers were all very nice and helpful. I can’t wait to go back!

We loved our stay at the blueberry fields!   This is private land that the owner rents to campers.  We stayed in campsite 2, where the land is open and flat, and there was plenty of room for our rv.  There are 4 total campsites, and each  offers a slightly different view and sense of privacy.  The owner met us when we arrived.  Dogs are allowed.  It is dry camping, with no hookups, and generators are not allowed.   The owner had a picnic table set up with flower boxes in it, and there was a nice fire ring. They will sell you wood if you need it.  There was one other camper at site 1, and we could also see the owners house, but both were far enough away that we had a great sense of privacy. There was a shared porta potty available for use for all of the campsites.  The land was quiet and peaceful - it is acres of blueberry fields, which create a special sense of being in nature. The site we were at had a nice tree, which framed the site. The owner was very responsive to questions we had, and responded quickly.   The area was very quiet - at night we only heard the crickets and the wind.

You are close to Castine, Ellsworth, Blue Hill, Deer Isle and Stonington.  There are numerous hiking trails in the area that can be found on All Trails, as well as easy places to kayak from, the closest of which are the Brooksville Town Landing, or Bucks Harbor public boat launch.

Blackwoods campground is a very large, very busy, somewhat rustic campground in the heart of Acadia National Park. We camped here 3 nights in July and every site was full. The sites are fairly standard, with a picnic table and fire ring. There are bathrooms generally within a short walk from each site, but no showers. There is a private shower house just outside the campground, bring your roll of quarters with you. You can also purchase firewood just about everywhere outside the campground itself. There is a shuttle bus that runs to the campground and will take you to various other parts of the park including many trailheads. We camped in site A31 which was directly off the campground loop road, but felt more private than many of the sites located in the inner circles of the campground. We could walk a short trail from camp to the ocean. There is no WiFi, and little cell phone coverage at all within the area. Amenities are few within the campground itself, but this is an area people come to explore and take in the beauty of Acadia, not hang out at camp.

This campground is a gem! It is located on the Schoodic Peninsula which is the quieter side section of Acadia National Park but no less breathtaking. Here you get to enjoy the hiking and biking trails, amazing coastal scenery, quaint towns, and a peaceful campground in one of America’s top 10 parks without the crowds and craziness of Bar Harbor and Acadia NP located on Mt. Desert Island (which is only an hour away). I absolutely love the Schoodic Peninsula and the town of Winter Harbor which has such a “Downeast” Maine feel.

The campground opened in 2015 and has 200 sites all within a 15-minute walk to the ocean. Although most of the campsites are designated for tents, there are some available for RV’s. Sites have a decent amount of privacy so you don’t feel like you are right on top of your neighbor. Since the campground is is relatively new not all the trees have filled in from construction but they did a great job preserving trees and shrubs. It is best to reserve online as this park fills up and very rarely has a walk-up site. The ranger station will not make reservations over the phone so don’t bother calling. (Acadia NP is a “fee” park so you will need to buy a park pass.)  All sites have electric (20/30/50) and some have electric and water only reflected in cheaper prices

Fee (per site, per night):

$22 hike-in tent sites (primitive)

$30 drive up tent/small RV (20 amp)

$36 RV with electric only sites (20/30/50 amp)

$40 RV with electric and water (20/30/50 amp)

$60 group tent sites

Picnic tables are at every site but fire pits are only at RV sites as no open fires are allowed in the tent section. Tent sites are allowed to use portable camp stoves such as white gas or iso-butane cartridges. The bathrooms have flush toilets and potable water but there are no showers or laundry facilities. There are some places in the nearby town of Winter Harbor that have shower facilities of which the ranger station has information on.   A dish-washing station if located at the bathrooms which is really handy and kept clean.  There is a dump station located towards the exit of the park if you have an RV. 

Surrounding the campground are miles of biking and hiking trails that are easily accessible from your campsite. There is a six-mile loop that takes you along the beautiful rocky coast with views of lighthouses, islands, forests, and wetlands. An additional eight miles of carriage roads and four miles of hiking trails wind through the park.

The town of Winter Harbor is located two miles from the park and a ferry dock which takes you to Mt. Desert Island. The Acadia Island Explorer shuttle provides free transportation between various locations, island attractions, and towns (and is dog-friendly and can accommodate bikes). The shuttle operates from late June to mid-October and is a great way to get around if you don’t have a car or want the hassle of parking.

Located at the Schoodic Institute is the Education and Research Center which offers interesting programs and has a visitor center. The town of Corea has a great waterside restaurant where you can sit outside and eat lobster while watching the boats go in and out. J. M. Garrish Café in Winter Harbor is a great place to get a bite to eat and an ice cream Sunday.

Seawall is on the quiet side of the Island, away from the huge tourist crowds of Bar Harbor. The campground is across the street from a nice picnic area overlooking the Atlantic and the Cranberry Islands. It's a great place to watch the lobster boats as well as check out tidal pools at low tide. The campground is wooded with a large number of walk in tent sites as well as a separate area for RVs. If you reserve your site online (I highly recommend doing so if you want to camp between May and September), you can see exactly how many steps you will have to walk to get to your campsite. All sites have fire rings, picnic tables, and gravel tent pads. Some sites are more secluded than others, but the entire campground is wooded. There are nice flush toilets, and pay showers are about a mile down the road.