Beehive Loop (Acadia) Hiking Guide
The Beehive is the rounded granite knob that rises straight up behind Sand Beach, and the trail up its face is one of Acadia's famous rung-and-ladder routes. It is short, but it climbs a cliff with iron rungs, narrow ledges and drops with no railing. For many visitors it is the introduction to this style of hiking before trying the Precipice.
Permit: Acadia requires an entrance pass year-round: $35 per private vehicle or $20 per person on foot or bike (age 16+), each valid 7 days, or a $70 Acadia annual pass. Non-US residents 16 and over pay an extra $100 per person unless entering on an annual or America the Beautiful pass. No separate permit is needed for the Beehive.
Short but Exposed
NPS describes a 1.4-mile loop that climbs a 450-foot cliff face; AllTrails measures 1.6 miles with about 510 feet of gain and rates it hard. Plan on 1 to 3 hours depending on the line at the rungs. The upper face is steep granite staircases, iron rungs and exposed edges with steep drop-offs and no railings. The reward is a view straight down onto Sand Beach and out to Thunder Hole and the Gulf of Maine.
Go Up, Not Down
Park at Sand Beach; the loop starts on the Bowl Trail, which meets the Park Loop Road by the Sand Beach entrance. Take the Beehive Trail up the face, then continue over the top to the Bowl, a small pond, and come down the gentler Bowl Trail. AllTrails advises hiking it only in this counterclockwise direction, so you climb the rungs instead of down-climbing them.
Rain Changes Everything
The park warns that this trail is very dangerous in bad weather and that granite gets extremely slippery in rain. If it has been raining, wait for the rock to dry. Skip it entirely if anyone in your group is uneasy with heights; the Bowl Trail and Gorham Mountain offer the same coast without the cliff.
No Dogs on the Rungs
Acadia welcomes leashed pets on most trails, but the Beehive is on the short list where they are banned outright, along with the Precipice and other ladder routes. The nearby Gorham Mountain Loop and Ocean Path both allow dogs on a six-foot leash. Note that Sand Beach itself is closed to pets from June 15 to September 8.
Parking at Sand Beach
You pass the Park Loop Road entrance station on the way in, and every car needs a pass; a week for a carload is $35. Parking is in the Sand Beach lot or the right-hand lane of the Loop Road, and the park says to expect congestion from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in summer. The Island Explorer's Sand Beach, Loop Road and Blackwoods routes all stop at Sand Beach in season, which spares you the lot.
Hiking tips for Beehive Loop (Acadia)
- Climb the Beehive face and descend by the Bowl Trail; do not try to go down the rungs.
- Wait out wet weather; the granite gets extremely slick in rain.
- Arrive before 9 a.m. or ride the Island Explorer to beat the Sand Beach parking crush.
- Keep both hands free; stow poles and cameras before the rungs.
- Leave the dog behind for this one, or swap to Gorham Mountain where pets are allowed.
Nearby trails to explore
- Gorham Mountain Loop
- Great Head Trail
- Precipice Loop (Acadia)
Hike this trail with TrailMates
The Beehive's rungs are more fun with someone cheering from the ledge above. Use TrailMates to find hikers heading to the Beehive in Acadia. Download the TrailMates app to connect.