Our rental is nestled in a secluded area, yet conveniently close to attractions in the Bar Harbor town area as well as a wide variety of nearby stores and restaurants of Ellsworth. Come visit and enjoy the open layout and expansive design of our rental home! The cathedral ceilings and floor-to-ceiling picture windows of our home allow an open view the cycles of tides in the ocean bay, garden, and wildlife from almost every room, This gives you a unique experience to watch the ever-changing landscape of the tidal bay as the tide ebbs and flows from the bay. You might spot the eagles, ospreys, and seals feeding as the incoming tides brings in their food. At low tide when the water recedes from the bay, the herons and gulls feed in the exposed mudflats. The house is secluded from the road with a nearly quarter mile-long paved driveway, and the houses on the shoreline are barely visible from your rental home. Watch the sunrise and sunsets while relaxing on the back deck or stroll through the garden paths and steps to the waters edge to get closer to the wildlife.
There is a professional quality, full-sized billiard table located in our expansive recreation room that can be used with for a fee during your stay. A ping pong top can be placed on the pool table for you by our staff if you choose to play ping pong instead using the pool table. You can choose one or the other, not both. Please contact us about the fees at the time of your booking of this rental if you are interested in either of these options.
All rooms of the house have central air conditioning/heating vents, and most rooms have ceiling fans. The upstairs 2 bedrooms will get warm with daytime solar heating, but the temp cools down quickly at night. The AC units' lowest setting is 72 degrees, which comfortably dehumidifies and cools the entire house, It is best to leave the 2nd floor bedroom doors open as much as possible during day and keep the room fans running to help circulate in the fresh air. Closing the window shades to block the solar heating also helps.
There is a bedroom with a queen bed on the first floor. On the second floor there is one bedroom with a queen bed and a second bedroom with two twin beds. The full bathrooms on each floor are located down the hallway from the bedrooms. The bedrooms do not have “ensuite” attached bathrooms. Bath robes are provided. There is a second floor TV room and an open loft area for stretching and exercising. The kitchen is well supplied with cooking utensils and pots and pans. The dining room is situated in a spacious room with a full view of the landscape through picture windows.
Please be aware that this spacious rental home has certain areas, rooms and furnishings that are NOT included in your rental. These areas serve our maintenance staff’s needs, as well as storage areas for rental equipment and supplies. These rooms are well marked and locked. They include the rooms off the rec/pool room, the basement, the garage, the utility rooms attached to the garage, and the garden shed. We do NOT allow renters to use of our electric piano, the 2 gas fireplace inserts, or the jacuzzi tub in the 2nd floor bathroom.
Base rental rates quoted include up to four guests. There is an added daily charge for each additional guest after the initial 4. The maximum number of guests is 6. The driveway cameras are for security and safety purposes only.
Off the back deck, there is a roomy screened-in gazebo with a large dining table and seating for 6 guests with views of the bay. It has overhead lighting and an electric power outlet. There is a propane gas grill in the gazebo for your use. On the large back deck and patio area are fully reclining lounge chairs as well as swivel deck chairs and patio tables.
Explore the pristine tidal inlets and the larger bay by kayaks if you can bring them with you, or you can rent them. You can only kayak when the tide is coming in and during high tide, as the bay's mud flats are exposed during low tide. Thus there is a limited time in the day in which to kayak, weather permitting. Therefore, you should check out the tides charts and weather before committing to a kayak rental. There is a kayak rental company about a mile from our driveway with free delivery. Please inform us if you are thinking about kayaking off our shoreline, as we have important information about the tides, water, and shoreline safety. The rental home is located on the shoreline of Taunton Bay which is a ocean tidal bay, and thus the ocean water comes in and goes out twice daily with the tides. Be aware that the rocks and shoreline areas are wet and slippery at all times, and especially when the tides goes out. Walking down to the shoreline involves the obvious risks of slipping and falling, and injuries. We urge renters to exercise caution and restraint to be safe. Children must be monitored at all times by adult renters.
Mount Desert Island is where the town of Bar Harbor and Acadia National park are located. The island is accessed by way of a causeway which is about a 14 mile drive from your rental. Acadia National Park's Hull's Cove Visitor center is 22 miles from your rental, about a 35 min drive depending on traffic. The scenic Park Loop Road for cars and the famous carriage trails for bicycles and walking begin at the Visitor Center. There is an area-wide free shuttle bus system called Island Hopper, which stops at the Visitor Center. The town of Bar Harbor with all of its restaurants, whale watching tours, and craft stores is only a couple of miles further from Hulls Cove. Bangor Intl Airport is 39 miles from your rental; about a 50 min drive, depending on traffic, which can be heavy and slow during the busy summer/fall seasons. Bar Harbor airport is 13 miles away; about a 20 minute drive.
Acadia National Park also includes a recently enlarged sister park on Schoodic Peninsula, 23 miles away from your rental house and in the opposite direction from Acadia National Park’s Mt. Desert Island location. The Schoodic section of Acadia National Park is a less crowded than on Mt. Desert Island featuring 7.5 miles of hiking trails and 8.3 miles of biking/carriage roads. There is a 6 mile one-way paved loop road that goes around the entire park along the ocean shoreline with spectacular ocean views, just like the loop road on Mount Desert Island. Your rental is thus conveniently located half way in between these two National Park destinations!
The house is well situated away from the traffic and pedestrian congestion and noisy distractions and 6 am Lobster boat engine noise that can come with renting on Mount Desert Island. Our rental allows you to experience the quiet side of Maine with the convenience of stores nearby in Ellsworth. BUT IF your family and guests wants to be nearer to the center of Bar Harbor's bustling activity, ice cream shops, numerous restaurant offerings, craft stores and touring outfits, then perhaps our rental home is not ideal for your needs. The rental is about 24 miles (35 min drive) from the town of Bar Harbor, so this needs to be factored into your plans. Our rental is conveniently close to the Ellsworth/Hancock town areas (5-7 miles) and these towns offer you a variety of restaurants, such as Mexican, Asian, Italian, as well as fast-food places. Hannaford's, Shaw's, a Super Walmart, pharmacies, and other merchandise stores in Ellsworth are only a few miles drive from your rental. There are local lobster pounds and fresh farm produce farm stands are within 3-5 miles and many more lobster restaurants are located on the drive onto Mount Desert Island.
In addition to Schoodic part of Acadia National Park, there are nearby terrific day hikes just a few miles from our rental home, such as Tunk Mountain and Schoodic Mountain that offer nearly 360-degree views of the ocean and inland. Nearby Tunk lake offers good fishing. The Sunrise Trail allows for dirt bike and ATV use and runs near your rental also. The Frenchman's Bay Community Forest is about 1 mile from the rental on your way to Rt 1 with 6 miles of walking trails. You'll find light houses as well as other state parks further north to the Canadian Border. The Roosevelt's historical family retreat, Campobello, is located just over the Canadian border from the town of Lubec, ME. As the entry way into the Bay of Fundy, the town of Lubec is an artistic and historical place to visit and is 78 miles away or about an hour and a half drive, an easy one-day excursion from the rental. So you see, there are a lot of things to see and do near your rental, as well as within a 2 hr drive range!