Fall 2014 Volume 19 No. 2 A Magazine about Acadia National Park and Surrounding Communities Friends of Acadia Journal Fall 2014 1 PURCHASE YOUR PARK PASS! Whether driving, walking, bicycling, or riding the Island Explorer through the park, we all must pay the entrance fee. Eighty percent of all fees paid in Acadia stay in Acadia, to be used for projects that directly benefit park visitors and resources. The Acadia National Park $20 weekly pass and $40 annual pass are available seasonally at the following locations: Sand Beach Entrance Station Hulls Cove Visitor Center Bar Harbor Village Green Thompson Island Information Center Blackwoods and Seawall Campgrounds Acadia weekly passes are also available seasonally at: Cadillac Mountain Gift Shop Jordan Pond Gift Shop Some area businesses; call 207-288-3338 for an up-to-date list of locations For more information visit www.friendsofacadia.org President’s Message AcAdiA’s ExcEllEncE t the Friends of Acadia Annual Meet- remarkable relationship with the surround- ing in mid-July, Acadia National ing local communities. Acadia’s boundary APark Superintendent Sheridan Steele weaves in and out of more than a dozen shared the impressive news that Acadia had small fishing harbors, historic villages, recently earned top honors in a USA Today summer colonies, bustling sea-ports, tour- poll that asked readers to choose the best ist destinations, and offshore islands. This national park in the country. Just a few days porous, crooked boundary and Acadia’s re- later, we learned that Good Morning America lationships with its countless neighbors are conducted another poll in which Acadia complex—as is the charge to manage natu- again emerged on top—not only among ral and cultural resources across the check- national parks, but as “America’s Favorite er-board ownership—but ultimately, they Place.” We should not have been surprised are a large part of what makes the Acadia when the New York Times followed with its experience so rewarding and memorable. own feature a couple of weeks later, high- I often think about how lucky I am to live lighting Acadia’s trails on the front page of in a place that has Acadia National Park as its travel section. its backyard, and how different my home- Among FOA’s board, staff, and member- Friends of Acadia town would be if it were not for the park. ship, many people have felt pride in this I also believe, however, that the benefit is well-deserved recognition; an equal num- We hope that Acadia will mutual, and that Acadia is just as fortunate ber, however, have expressed a concern: do set the standard in terms of to have such a diverse and caring commu- we really need this kind of national press youth engagement in parks nity and thousands of engaged neighbors at a time when Acadia’s parking lots are al- and friends who give back so generously to ready overflowing and the park can feel at and thoughtfully managing the park. Indeed, this synergy has defined risk of being “loved to death”? the delicate balance between Acadia from its earliest days and continues Over the course of the summer, I had the to be its hallmark, whether described on the opportunity to visit with hundreds of park an outstanding visitor experi- front pages of our national press, or in quiet visitors and FOA supporters, and almost all ence and the need to protect trailside or kitchen table conversations. shared this same schizophrenic response Acadia’s natural and cultural Here at Friends of Acadia, we will em- to Acadia’s recent media prominence. Ev- brace the challenge of making “the best” eryone agreed with the top rankings but resources. even better. We certainly don’t need to be in they worried about how they might impact the headlines, but hope that Acadia will set Acadia’s future. They wished Acadia’s merits entire northeastern United States? Because the standard in terms of youth engagement might stay a bit more below the radar. Friends of Acadia has helped add a margin in parks and thoughtfully managing the del- This kind of modesty is not unusual among of excellence to park resources and opera- icate balance between an outstanding visitor Mainers. But it is not realistic to think that tions for nearly thirty years? experience and the need to protect Acadia’s we can keep Acadia a secret. Nor is it practi- Yes to all of the above! People feel pas- natural and cultural resources. With the cal to wish for more days of rain or fog as a sionately about Acadia, and often come support of an engaged membership and strategy to discourage more visitors; during back again and again over the years. Places creative and committed partners through- her August visit here, U.S. Secretary of the as diverse as Cadillac Mountain, Ship Har- out the park and community, it is an excit- Interior Sally Jewel spoke of a day in Acadia bor, Schoodic, and Isle au Haut stay with ing time indeed as we approach the park’s nearly forty years ago, eating lobster in a tiny you long after you are there. Our love for centennial in 2016. We appreciate your in- tent in the pouring rain, as among her most this place is profound, often personal, and terest and hope that the following pages will memorable national park experiences! as varied as the many different trails in Aca- inspire even greater involvement. ❧ Why does Acadia rate so high among so dia. However, I believe that the reasons be- many different audiences? Because it is a hind Acadia’s sweep of this summer’s popu- family-friendly park? Because its staff is ab- larity contests run still deeper. solutely committed to the park and its visi- What makes Acadia absolutely unique tors? Because it is within a day’s drive of the in my (admittedly biased) experience is its —David MacDonald Friends of Acadia Journal Fall 2014 1 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Edward L. Samek, Chair John Fassak, Vice Chair Michael Cook, Treasurer Emily Beck, Secretary Fred Benson Brownie Carson Gail Clark Hannah Sistare Clark Andrew Davis Bill Eacho Nathaniel Fenton Chris Fogg Fall 2014 Jill Goldthwait Volume 19 No. 2 C. Boyden Gray Anne Green Cookie Horner A Magazine about Acadia National Park and Surrounding Communities Jan Kärst Jack Kelley Rob Leary Story Litchfield Meredith Moriarty Lili Pew Donna Reis Jack Russell Hank Schmelzer Nonie Sullivan Christiaan van Heerden Julie Veilleux Bill Zoellick HONORARY TRUSTEES Eleanor Ames Robert and Anne Bass Curtis and Patricia Blake Robert and Sylvia Blake Frederic A. Bourke Jr. Tristram and Ruth Colket Gail Cook FEATURE ARTICLES Shelby and Gale Davis Dianna Emory 8 Acadia Quest: Uniquely Acadia Paige Steele Frances Fitzgerald Sheldon Goldthwait Exploring the places that make Acadia so special Neva Goodwin Paul and Eileen Growald 9 Friends of Acadia Celebrates Stephanie Clement John and Polly Guth Five Million Island Explorer Riders Paul Haertel Many records and milestones in 2014 Lee Judd Debby Lash Linda Lewis 11 Old Roads to New Trails Julia Walker Thomas Liz Martinez Inaugurating a new connector in Otter Creek and Aimee Beal Church Gerrish and Phoebe Milliken George J. and Heather Mitchell Joseph Murphy 12 Preserving a Resilient Acadia Abe Miller-Rushing, Becky Cole-Will, Janneke Neilson A watershed-based approach and David Manski Nancy Nimick Jack Perkins 15 A Ten-Bridge Summer Mark Munsell Nancy Pyne Nathaniel P. Reed A special assignment for a dedicated volunteer Ann R. Roberts David Rockefeller 16 Migration Is for the Birds Rich MacDonald Jeannine Ross Watch for feathered friends in Acadia this fall Howard Solomon Erwin Soule Diana Davis Spencer 32 Why I’m a Friend of Acadia Susannah Jones Julia Merck Utsch Living on Beauty EMERITUS TRUSTEES W. Kent Olson A CTIVITIES AND DEPARTMENTS Charles R. Tyson Jr. 1 President’s Message Acadia’s Excellence FRIENDS OF ACADIA STAFF 3 Superintendent’s View Fostering Stewardship and Promoting Science Literacy Mary Boëchat, Development Officer Sharon Broom, Development Officer 5 Special Person Doug Monteith Aimee Beal Church, Communications & Outreach Coordinator 7 Where in Acadia? Stephanie Clement, Conservation Director 20 Updates Lisa Horsch Clark, Director of Development Sarah Curts, Accounting & Administrative Associate 27 Advocacy Corner Working Together for National Parks Shawn Keeley, Senior Development Officer 28 Reviews David R. MacDonald, President & CEO Reflection and Foresight Diana R. McDowell, Director of Finance & Administration 31 Chairman’s Letter Mike Staggs, Office Manager Paige Steele, Conservation Projects Manager 2 Fall 2014 Friends of Acadia Journal Superintendent’s View Fostering Stewardship and Promoting Science Literacy n my work as superintendent of Acadia dents to the scientific process, learning re- National Park, one of my key goals is search methods, and sharing the inspiring Ito engage youth of all ages in Acadia interconnections of Acadia’s ecological and National Park and to inspire many of them cultural components. At the same time, a to become park rangers or conservationists constant goal for park ranger-educators is or just ordinary citizens who have positive fostering a learning environment that al- memories about nature and national parks. lows students to explore nature and devel- One important way to engage today’s youth op their own sense of wonder. is through educational activities, intern- Each year the program hosts Maine stu- ships, and special initiatives aimed at young dents (including some who have never seen people. Acadia, like all national parks, is an the ocean), and through the combined ef- outdoor classroom for experiencing living fort of partners Friends of Acadia and Sc- things in their natural environments and hoodic Institute, we are able to provide a reflecting on the human history that has world-class educational experience with shaped our landscape.