Bold Coast Scenic Bikeway
The Bold Coast Scenic Bikeway is a 211-mile route on quiet rural roads that extends from West Gouldsboro, at the top of the Schoodic Peninsula, to Calais, the eastern-most border city linking to mainland Canada.
The Bold Coast offers excellent bicycling opportunities for riders of all abilities who enjoy on-road, off-road, trail, or gravel road riding. Low-traffic rural roads and quiet villages provide single and multi-day riding opportunities for cyclists of varying levels and interests, and many sections are family-friendly. Regardless of the type of bike you ride, endless bicycling adventures await you along the Bold Coast.
“Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride.”
— John F. Kennedy
On-Road Riding
The low-trafficked, low-speed rural roads crisscrossing the region are ideal for exploring by bike. The Bold Coast Scenic Bikeway is a 211-mile, on-road trail that winds along the rugged Atlantic coastline through 23 Bold Coast communities. The trail runs from West Gouldsboro, at the top of the Schoodic Peninsula, to the international border city, Calais. Two other trails also have a terminus in Calais, and stretch south all the way to Florida: the East Coast Greenway and US Bike Route 1.
These three interconnected, mapped on-road trails make it easy to plan single- and multi-day riding opportunities throughout the Bold Coast region and beyond. Cyclists carrying valid passports can cross the international border into New Brunswick, Canada from Calais into St. Stephen and from Lubec onto Campobello Island, home to Roosevelt Campobello International Park.
For cyclists interested in doing a point-to-point ride, arrangements can be made for one-way shuttle transport with Sunrise Canoe and Kayak or for bus service with West Bus Service, with scheduled stops in other Bold Coast towns and in Bangor.
Off-Road Riding
For those who prefer off-road riding, the region offers a variety of marked single and double track trails and gravel roads well suited for mountain, gravel and fat bikes.
- Down East Sunrise Trail is an 87-mile multi-use gravel trail from Ellsworth to Pembroke, with numerous access points and primitive campsites along the route.
- Sipayik Trail is a paved, 1.8-mile trail that hugs the coast of Passamaquoddy Bay.
- Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge allows biking on over 50 miles of gravel roads outside of the designated Wilderness areas.
- Machias River Corridor Public Lands offer gravel biking for families and adventurers, with campsites, lodges, and crystal-clear lakes scattered along the way. When in the wild on gravel roads, yield to the occasional logging truck and make sure you are riding on public access roads.
- Sentier Trail, just across the bay in New Brunswick, Canada offers endless options for off-road bicycling routes (don’t forget your passport!)
Family friendly rides
The Bold Coast Scenic Bikeway offers several sections suitable for family riding.
- Schoodic Peninsula, the eastern-most section of Acadia National Park, offers a family-friendly paved road and gravel trails for biking within the national parklands. has a 6-mile, two-lane, one-way paved road providing spectacular on-road riding for children and those less comfortable sharing roads with vehicles – and is an absolute do-not-miss experience even for the most skilled riders. In addition to excellent road riding, Schoodic also offers more than 8 miles of off-road, hard-packed gravel bike paths that unfold across a wooded landscape, and wind past coves frequented by seals.
- Sipayik Trail is a paved, 1.8-mile trail that hugs the coast of Passamaquoddy Bay from Perry to Pleasant Point provides ideal riding for bicyclists of all abilities.
- Lubec offers family-friendly biking to West Quoddy Head State Park, the easternmost point of the US, and to Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada (with a passport).
- Historic Eastport is a great spot for relaxed family rides to beaches, hiking trails, pier-side fishing, outdoor events, shops, restaurants, galleries, theater, and ice cream.
Planning Tools
To help you plan your trip we provide information on drive time and distances to and around the region. Plus info on other commercial transportation options.
Once you arrive in DownEast Acadia, you will want to access local sources of visitor information, state laws, recreation rules, and road conditions.
To help you pack or plan your day, check out the current weather in the region or learn about year-round averages of temperature and precipitation.
Paid for by Maine Office of Tourism with support from our member organizations. | ©2023, DownEast Acadia Regional Tourism | Design and Development: Thalo Blue Destination Marketing