Acorns rolled and crunched beneath my boots as I followed Breakneck Road deeper into the wilderness of Acadia National Park.
Boarded by towering oaks and sugar maples, the old roadway serves as a little-known walking path, with wintergreen and sweet ferns encroaching on its gravel base.
It measures about 2.5 miles long, spanning from Route 3, near Acadia’s Hulls Cove Visitor Center, to Eagle Lake Road, near park headquarters.
Threading through the woods, it passes a small waterfall, crosses Breakneck Brook and passes between two bodies of water that are together known as Breakneck Ponds.
So what’s with the name “Breakneck”? Sounds a bit ominous.
Back in the 19th century, the road was open to carriages headed to Northeast Harbor. It earned its dark name from several carriage accidents that took place on the steep hill that the road descends before crossing Breakneck Brook, according to information posted online by the Davistown Museum.
The road was built in 1777, but it has served as simply a recreational walking path since the early 1900s, according to the 2006 publication “Pathmakers: Cultural Landscape Report for the Historic Hiking Trail System of Mount Desert Island” by Margie Coffin Brown and Jim Vekasi.
In 1923, a natural spring along the road was excavated and lined with stones so that walkers would have access to fresh water.
Nowadays, the trail travels right through Acadia National Park. It isn’t marked with signs, cairns or blazes like the park’s many hiking trails, yet it’s easy to follow because of its width and rocky base.
It’s also marked as a trail on the park trail map created by Maine-based Map Adventures.
Over the years, I’d heard a few locals mention the route as a nice walking path, away from the crowds. But in all my explorations of Acadia, I hadn’t walked Breakneck Road until recently.
With my dog Juno leading the way, I walked the entire thing, out and back.
When preparing for the hike, I originally put on sneakers, but at the last minute, I switched them for waterproof boots — and I’m glad I did. Recent rain had flooded a few areas of the path.
Plus, there’s no bridge where the road crosses Breakneck Brook. The brook was shallow, but in order to cross without flooding my boots, I had to hop from rock to rock.
A short part of Breakneck Road is open to vehicles. In fact, that’s where you’ll find Davistown Museum, an eclectic tool, art and history museum.
It’s also home to Breakneck Hollow Historic Site, where an educational display offers information about the area’s past.
A small parking area for the hike — large enough to fit two or three vehicles — is located at the end of the auto portion of Breakneck Road. From there, I walked past a gate to begin my adventure with Juno.
The walk ended up being the perfect way to embrace the lingering colors of late autumn. Oaks, I’ve noticed, tend to hold onto their leaves later than most other trees. There were plenty of oaks in that forest, their leaves shades of gold and orange.
Some maple trees still had bright foliage as well. I paused to admire one with leaves ranging from yellow to peach. Another maple displayed leaves of bright crimson.
Less than half a mile into the hike, the old road passed a small waterfall pouring down a cleft in a cliff. At the base of the waterfall was a jumble of rocks that continued across the trail and beyond.
The rockslide occurred in July 2021, when a huge beaver dam collapsed upstream, dislodging rocks on both sides of the waterfall, according to a story in the Mount Desert Islander.
After crossing Breakneck Brook, the old road traveled uphill. The forest quickly transitioned from mostly hardwood to mostly softwood, with tall pine and spruce trees shading the path.
Sheep laurel and sweet ferns lined the trail, along with blueberry and huckleberry bushes. And in small clearings, small red dragonflies roamed over beds of crunchy reindeer lichen.
At Breakneck Ponds, I let Juno wade into the water as I basked in the sun. I had visited the ponds before. Nearby carriage roads lead to their shores.
But it was nice to see them from a different perspective. They’re a great place to spot wildlife, such as ducks or beavers, though I didn’t see any animals that morning.
Continuing past the ponds, the old road became a bit rough and washed out in places. Still, I followed it to its end on Eagle Lake Road, then turned around to retrace my steps.
As we walked back, I noticed the sounds of the forest — the sweet chirping of chickadees mixed with the sharp calls of blue jays and crows. With Halloween just around the corner, I was hoping for Breakneck Road to be a bit spooky. But the route was nothing but peaceful and lovely, with sunlight filtering through a canopy of golden leaves.
