Fifteen miles north of Searsport on Route 1, a lofty suspension bridge (135 feet above the water) reaches across the Penobscot River at Bucksport, separating Maine's Mid-Coast and Downeast regions. This picturesque fishing village of stark white harborside houses rests on the Downeast cusp. Farther north, wild, undeveloped forests stretch for miles, and shallow lakes are strewn with mammoth boulders deposited by Ice Age glaciers.

Bar Harbor is the ultra-commercialized exception. Tourists line up for the town's go-kart tracks, bicycle rentals, waterslides, boat tours, shops, and restaurants.

You'll need several days to explore even a sliver of Mount Desert Island (pronounced "dessert" by locals) and Acadia National Park. In autumn, the traffic subsides, and the thick, leafy forests glow fiery red, transparent yellow, and juicy orange. This is Maine in its prime. Climb the alligator back rock formations to the summit of Bubble Rock. The hike offers tiny rewards along the way, but the biggest payoff is, of course, the view from the top.

Acadia's highest peak, though, is Cadillac Mountain, where the first rays of sun hit the United States. Catch a sunrise, count the offshore islands, or watch storm clouds develop and edge closer.

The best way to traverse remote areas and hear about the park's history is a horse-and-buggy ride. Guides at Wildwood Stable "whoa" horses to point out hawks flying overhead or panoramic views of Acadia's Schoodic Point, and explain how John D. Rockefeller Jr.'s team constructed the park's broken-stone carriage roads in the early 1900s. Rides run in mid-June through early October, and fill up fast. Reservations are recommended in summer.

For off-the-beaten path exploring, ask a park ranger for recommendations. Or try Witch Hole Pond near the Hulls Cove Visitor Center. Tread delicately around this pond and kneel in the brush. Enough patience and a bit of rustling will likely yield a beaver sighting. The paddle-tailed creatures have constructed a dam and two scrappy, giant-domed dens of sticks and mud. Look for tracks or gnawed birch trees near the water.

Even if the beaver is a no-show, watching the sun drop behind the surrounding forest here is, perhaps, the most apt finale for a quintessential Maine retreat.