Bates-style cairn and Cranberry Isles off Pemetic East Cliff Trail.
31 Triad and Pemetic East Cliff Trails (Pemetic Mountain Trail)
This is the longest way up Pemetic, first meandering over the partly wooded 698-foot Triad summit before bringing you up steep cliffs and along the ridge to the fourth-highest peak in Acadia. This hike has one of the more out-of-the-way trailheads, making it a route less traveled.
Distance: 3.6 miles out and back
Hiking time: About 2.5 to 3.5 hours
Trail surface: Wooden bridges, forest floor, rock ledges
Best season: Spring through fall
Other trail users: Hikers climbing the Pemetic South Ridge Trail
Canine compatibility: Leashed dogs permitted
Map: USGS Acadia National Park and Vicinity
Special considerations: No facilities
Finding the trailhead: From the Sieur de Monts park entrance, head south on the one-way Park Loop Road 8 miles, going under the ME 3 overpass to the next overpass, where the Day Mountain carriage road goes over the Park Loop Road. Park in the gravel pullout along the Park Loop Road just before the Day Mountain carriage road overpass. Look for a wooden sign that says Path to Carriage Road on the right (north) side. Take the path up. The Triad (Pemetic Mountain) trailhead is diagonally left across the carriage road. The Island Explorer’s Loop Road line stops at Wildwood Stables, near the Day Mountain carriage road overpass on the Park Loop Road. GPS: N44 31.56' / W68 23.48'
The Hike
From the trailhead at the carriage road, climb gradually 0.4 mile to the summit of the Triad, with its limited views south to most of the Cranberry Isles and better views north to Pemetic Mountain. Smack in the middle of Pemetic and Day Mountains, the Triad can be a peaceful perch, even on a summer weekend, as we discovered on a recent trip.
A plaque set in a rock just below the peak carries the name of one of the old memorial paths that used to crisscross this area, the Van Santvoord Trail. The memorial path is no longer marked, but the plaque keeps alive the memory of John V. Van Santvoord, a New York banker, owner of a Hudson River boat company, and chairman of a village path committee in the early 1900s.
At 0.5 mile reach the junction with the Hunters Brook Trail. Jog to the left (west) and turn right (north) to continue on the Triad Trail.
Bates-style cairn and Cranberry Isles off Pemetic East Cliff Trail.
At 0.9 mile reach the four-way intersection with the Bubble & Jordan Ponds Path (Pond Trail). Go straight (northwest) to pick up the Pemetic East Cliff Trail (Pemetic Mountain Trail).
You’ll soon start the steep climb up the rocky cliffs of Pemetic. The trail is tricky here. There are some spots where the trail goes straight up cliffs and rock faces, hard as that may be to believe at first.
At 1.2 miles attain the ridge at the junction with the Pemetic South Ridge Trail (Pemetic Southwest Trail). Bear right (north) to continue straight up the open ridge, where you get hints of the panorama to come. Reach the summit, with its 360-degree views, at 1.8 miles. Eagle Lake is visible to the north, and Jordan Pond and Penobscot Mountain are to the west. South are the Cranberry Isles, and east is Cadillac Mountain.
Return the way you came.
Miles and Directions
0.0Start at the Triad (Pemetic Mountain) trailhead, diagonally left across the Day Mountain carriage road from where a path leads up from the Park Loop Road.
0.4Summit the Triad.
0.5Reach the junction with the Hunters Brook Trail (Triad-Hunters Brook Trail). Jog to the left (west) and turn right (north) to continue toward Pemetic.
0.9Reach the junction with the Bubble & Jordan Ponds Path (Pond Trail). Go straight (northwest) to pick up the Pemetic East Cliff Trail (Pemetic Mountain Trail).
1.2Bear right (north) at the junction with the Pemetic South Ridge Trail (Pemetic Southwest Trail) and continue on the ridge toward Pemetic.
1.8Attain the Pemetic summit. Retrace your steps.
3.6Arrive back at the trailhead.