Road work will lead to some disruptions on a section of Acadia National Park's carriage roads this summer/NPS

Hikers, bikers, and horseback riders may experience reduced access temporarily to Eagle Lake Carriage Road in Acadia National Park in Maine this summer during a project to rehabilitate the carriage road while preserving its historic character. 

Construction began recently on a short access route between the carriage road and a staging area at the south end of Liscomb Pit Road in Bar Harbor. Once work begins this spring on the carriage road itself, the entire loop is expected to close, and individual segments around the lake will then reopen as they become available. A short connector between Intersections #6 and #9, located along state Route 233, will remain open as much as possible. 

The work is currently planned for completion by mid-September. Closure updates will be posted routinely on the park’s Current Conditions webpage. The Island Explorer bus system and Bike Express will not provide service to Eagle Lake in 2021. 

Last September, Harold MacQuinn, Inc. of Hancock, Maine, received a contract for the project, which was delayed from 2020. The work includes, but is not limited to:  

• Rehabilitation of the existing 6-mile carriage road surface and subgrade.  
• Rehabilitation of existing drainage features including roadside ditches, stone-lined drainage channels, and select culverts.  
• Reconstruction of several sections of dry-laid stone masonry retaining walls.  
• Stabilization of stone slope protection walls between the carriage road and areas with steeper slopes.  

Upon completion, this project will cure $1.3 million in deferred maintenance, and all 45 miles of historic carriage roads in the park will have undergone this type of improvement. Friends of Acadia has been raising money and providing support for the initiative since 1991.