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.

Located on "the quiet side" of Mt Desert Island, Seawall is my preferred campground for experiencing all that Acadia National Park has to offer. While it is an extra 20 minutes drivetime to get to the main area of Acadia that contains Cadillac Mountain, Thunder Hole, and other major attractions, it is more than worth it. Even during peak tourist season, the south side of the island maintains the quintessential quiet new england beach town feel with gorgeous rocky coastline, cool breezes, and about 1/10th of the foot and vehicle traffic you can expect in Bar Harbor. The area also has it's fair share of Acadia attractions including Beech Mountain overlooking Echo Lake, Gilley Field, Seal Harbour, and Acadia Mountain. If you dont mind a quick wait for a parking spot, Bass Harbour Lighthouse at sunset is breathtaking.

The campground itself is a pristine treasure for the early to bed early to rise adventurer. You won't find a speck of litter or waste anywhere on the deceptively large grounds. Loop A is the preferred spot as it is right near the entrance, making getting in and out as easy as pulling out of your driveway, if your driveway led to a picturesque stretch of rocky beach looking out to the seemingly endless Atlantic Ocean. If you're lucky like I was, you can catch some great photos of the local bald eagle population soaking up the early morning sun.

You won't see many campfires around, or hear any partying, or run into many of your fellow campers as it stays quiet here 24/7. You will catch the occasional friendly rabbit or deer strolling through and hear coyote packs howling at night. Personally, I could sleep all night listening to those sounds. The only thing that did keep me up at night was the spectacular starscape overhead. The light pollution on the Southside was virtually nonexistent.

Aanyway, I could go on for days about Seawall Campground. If you fall into the Introvert category like me, or are looking for a safer family camping experience (also me), dont even bother looking anywhere else. This place is just an ideal setting for your next Acadia adventure.

We stayed four nights at Seawall and were rather impressed with the size and quality of both the campground area but also the bathrooms. We stayed in loop D, a tent loop, and it was very well organized and easy to navigate. D24 was our camp site and was perfect. Slightly larger and set back a bit from the other campsites, it offered a bit more privacy and a wee bit more room. The campground was full 3 of the 4 nights we stayed and while most sites were hidden with trees, the noise was definitely there. It was great to see the families adventuring out, assisted by the larger size of the sites and the well groomed, short walk in trails and wheelbarrow for moving your items. The fact that the closest showers were around 10 minutes away and cost a decent amount was a little disappointing but livable. They also had lovely ranger led activities that seemed like a great selling point as well. The ease of biking across the street to the seawall picnic area was great as it is on the water but the distance to Bar Harbor and the main area of the park was a bit inconvenient even though the buses did offer service. All in all, rather impressed for such a campground and well worth a stay.

Stayed at site 8 in the first loop. We only stayed here 1 night because the campground that we had planned to stay at for the week could not accommodate us on the 1st night that we were on the island, but Seawall had a few spots still available and I wanted to check out the tidal pools near this area anyway. It's a great campground, and I'm sure we could have been happy spending the week here as well, though I would say this campground is further away than I would have liked to most of the island's trails, which are on the east side of MDE (maybe 20-40 minutes depending on where you're trying to get to and if it's easy to access via the Park Loop Road). Facilities were great, and one pro of staying at a NP campground is easy access to the ranger programs - the ranger also gave us the pointer to check out another ranger 'program' to observe the nesting peregrine falcons via telescope from the Precipice Trail parking lot, which was awesome. Around 2 miles away from this campground is probably the best place on the island to explore in the tidal pools, and I've posted our fav photos from that adventure as well.

Since the campground is closing this fall to renovate I will focus mostly on what the park has to offer. Our family of four plus one pet was impressed with the transportation system provided by Acadia in partnership with L.L Bean. Free buses are pet-friendly which allowed for maximum exploration. Activities within walking distance from the campground included hiking, beach combing, and picnicking. Waking up to see the beautifully painted sky over the ocean at sunrise is well worth it! Rock climbing and various boat excursions were also available. Southwest Harbor neighbors the campground and has adorable coffee houses and restaurants. Also, be sure to seek out one of Ms. Frances' blueberry pies from the Quietside Cafe. Hoping renovations keep walk-in woodsy sites, but update bathrooms and maybe include showers, although a clean pay facility exists a mile towards Southwest Harbor. All together, the gorgeous geography, National Park Service and kind neighboring towns made tent-camping in Acadia an outstanding and affordable experience. This will not be our last visit!