57 Flying Mountain, Valley Cove, and Valley Peak Loop

This hike takes you up Flying Mountain, by far the lowest of Acadia’s twenty-six peaks, and down to the shoreline along a cove on Somes Sound. The peak may be low, but it boasts an exceptional panorama overlooking Somes Sound, Fernald Cove, and the Cranberry Isles, with views of Acadia and Norumbega Mountains.

Distance: 3.6-mile loop

Hiking time: About 2.5 to 3.5 hours

Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous

Trail surface: Wooden bridges, granite steps, forest floor, rock ledges, gravel road

Best season: Spring through fall for Flying Mountain and Valley Peak; late summer to fall for Valley Cove to avoid peregrine falcon nesting season

Other trail users: Boaters and kayakers who let themselves off in Valley Cove for a day hike; horseback riders on the Valley Cove Fire Road; hikers climbing St. Sauveur or Acadia Mountain

Canine compatibility: Leashed dogs permitted but not recommended

Map: USGS Acadia National Park and Vicinity

Special considerations: No facilities

Finding the trailhead: From Somesville head south on ME 102 for about 4.5 miles, past the St. Sauveur Mountain parking lot. Turn left (east) onto Fernald Point Road and travel about 1 mile to the small parking area at the foot of the gravel Valley Cove Fire Road. The Flying Mountain trailhead is on the right (east) side of the parking area. The Island Explorer does not stop here. GPS: N44 29.93' / W68 31.55'

The Hike

It’s easy to see how Flying Mountain gets its name from the way the trail ascends swiftly to a bird’s-eye view. In just 0.3 mile from the parking area, you reach the 284-foot summit and its dramatic vistas.

The trail first climbs through deep woods and then up rocky ledges. Once above tree line and at the top of the rock face, you will get views to the southeast of Greening Island and the Cranberry Isles. To the northwest are the rocky cliffs of Valley Peak.

Dominating the view from the summit is the grassy peninsula known as Fernald Point. Across the Narrows at the mouth of Somes Sound is the town of Northeast Harbor; in the distance are Greening Island and the Cranberry Isles. From here you may look down on kayakers rounding Fernald Point or boaters entering and leaving Somes Sound. A ferry may blow its whistle in Northeast Harbor.

Some hikers turn around here, content with the views on Flying Mountain. But those who go on will be rewarded with scenes of Somes Sound; Valley Cove; and Norumbega, Acadia, Penobscot, and Sargent Mountains.

Just beyond the summit of Flying Mountain, at 0.4 mile, you get the first glimpse of the northern reaches of Somes Sound, as well as of Acadia Mountain to the north and Norumbega Mountain on the other side of the sound to the northeast. The ridge of Sargent and Penobscot Mountains is just beyond that of Norumbega.

Indian pipe on the Valley Cove Trail turns black late in the season.

There’s a spur to an overlook to the right (east) before the trail begins its steep descent toward Valley Cove.

At the shore of the cove the trail turns left (west) and hugs the coastline, providing up-close views of Valley Cove and the cliffs rising above the shore.

At about 0.9 mile you reach the junction with the gravel Valley Cove Fire Road, which is closed to motor vehicles, and the end of the Flying Mountain Trail. If the Valley Cove Trail is closed for peregrine falcon nesting season, you can turn left (south) onto the fire road and loop back to the parking area in another 0.5 mile. (In 2000, for the first time in decades, pere­grine falcon chicks hatched along the cliffs here.)

If the 1.1-mile Valley Cove Trail is open and you’re prepared for a long and rigorous loop, including a 500-foot elevation gain in about 0.5 mile along a section of the Valley Peak Trail on the return, continue northwest along the base of the cliffs, hugging the shore. (The Valley Cove Trail was once considered part of the Flying Mountain Trail, but it’s back to its historic name under the park service’s restoration efforts.)

You may see or hear peregrine falcons or ospreys along this section of the hike. One late summer day a short, chirping whistle echoed from the cliffs at Valley Cove. We looked up to see the flapping wings of an osprey, one of the largest birds of prey in North America.

The Valley Cove Trail soon crosses huge boulders and rock slabs. Pink granite steps take you over some of the biggest slabs. At one spot that’s particularly treacherous when wet, you need to carefully make your way over a rock slab to reach the top of a series of stone steps. Remarkably, the steps are held against the side of a cliff only with iron rods.

Beyond the cove, another series of stone steps takes you up and over rocky cliffs. The trail then flattens out. A long series of log bridges takes you across a boggy area. You soon cross a cool brook meandering into Somes Sound and climb a rocky ledge that offers views of St. Sauveur Mountain and a last glimpse of the sound.

At 2.0 miles reach a major intersection where trails diverge to Acadia Mountain, Valley Peak, St. Sauveur Mountain, and Man o’ War Brook Fire Road. The Valley Cove Trail officially ends here.

Turn left (southwest) onto the Valley Peak Trail to loop back over the cliffs and Valley Peak. You may see Indian pipe flowering in the rich woods before the trail takes you steeply up about 500 feet of elevation in 0.5 mile. Giant moosewood with its distinctive striped bark and large maple leaf, wild blueberry bushes, and low-lying juniper line the route as it rises from dark forest to exposed ledges.

As the trail levels off atop the cliffs, you reach the junction at 2.8 miles with a 0.1-mile spur to St. Sauveur Mountain. Stay straight (south) to continue on the Valley Peak Trail. Some of the best views are here—down to Valley Cove where you earlier skirted the shore; south to Southwest Harbor and the Cranberry Isles; and east across Somes Sound to Sargent, Penobscot, Parkman, Bald, and Norumbega Mountains. Although the vistas are grand, the trail is so low in elevation that it echoes with the sounds of motorboats and people talking below, especially during summer.

At 3.1 miles reach the 530-foot summit of Valley Peak with its limited views and a junction with the St. Sauveur Trail. Continue south on the Valley Peak Trail, descending steeply to Valley Cove Fire Road at 3.5 miles.

Turn right onto the gravel road, which is closed to motor vehicles, and return to the parking area at 3.6 miles.

Miles and Directions

0.0Start at the Flying Mountain trailhead, on the east side of the parking area at the foot of Valley Cove Fire Road.

0.3Reach the summit of Flying Mountain.

0.9Reach the junction with the Valley Cove Fire Road and the Valley Cove Trail. Stay straight (northwest) to continue on the Valley Cove Trail along the cove.

2.0Reach a major trail junction and the end of the Valley Cove Trail. Turn left (southwest) onto the Valley Peak Trail to loop back.

2.8Reach the junction with a 0.1-mile spur to St. Sauveur Mountain. Stay straight (south) to continue on the Valley Peak Trail.

3.1Reach the summit of Valley Peak and a junction with the St. Sauveur Mountain Trail. Continue south on the Valley Peak Trail to descend steeply to the Valley Cove Fire Road.

3.5Turn right onto Valley Cove Fire Road.

3.6Arrive back the parking area at the foot of Valley Cove Fire Road.