Last updated August 3, 2026
There's a walk near Bar Harbor that feels like a small trick of nature: for a few hours around low tide, a gravel bar surfaces out of the water and you can stroll from the edge of town straight across to Bar Island. A few hours later it's gone, back under the sea, as if it were never there.
It is one of the most-loved short outings in the area, and one of the easiest to get wrong. This is how it works.
The window
Roughly an hour and a half either side of low tide
The land bridge is exposed and walkable for about 90 minutes before and 90 minutes after low tide — call it a three-hour window in total. Outside that, the bar is under water and the crossing is closed by the sea, not by a gate.
That window is guidance, not a guarantee. A high spring tide, a strong onshore wind, or a storm surge can shorten it or make the footing sloppy at the edges. Treat the posted low-tide time as the middle of your window and give yourself margin on both ends — especially on the way back.
Today's tide, from the house
The same Bar Harbor readings that govern the crossing
This week on the shore
Low tide is the invitation
The shore roughly doubles at low water. Head down on a falling tide and aim for the hour either side of low — that's when the ledges and pools are open.
Predicted tides for Bar Harbor (NOAA station 8413320), the reference station for this stretch of coast — a few minutes different at Smiths Ledge. Heights are feet above mean lower-low water; a minus figure means extra shore to explore. See the full NOAA predictions →
Find the low tide for the day you want to go. Your safe crossing window is roughly the 90 minutes before it and the 90 minutes after. If low tide falls at an awkward hour — before breakfast or after dark — that's simply not your day for it, and there will be a better one within the week.
Getting there
The bar starts at the north end of Bridge Street in Bar Harbor, a short walk from the town pier — so most people combine it with a morning in town. From Eagles Nest it's the same run you'd make for Bar Harbor: about half an hour, across the bridge. See getting here & drive times for the honest peak-season version of that drive.
Once across, there's a short wooded trail to a small summit with a view back over Bar Harbor and Frenchman Bay — worth the twenty minutes if the window allows it.
The part people underestimate
Read this before you cross
The tide here runs big — around ten feet — and it comes back faster than it looks. Every year, people linger on the island, lose track of the time, and find the bar has closed behind them. When that happens you do not wade it; the current over the covered bar is dangerous. You wait for the next low tide, or you arrange a boat to come and get you — and a pickup off the island is expensive and not always quick.
So the rule is simple and worth keeping: cross early in your window, set an alarm for well before the tide turns, and start back with time to spare. Bring shoes you don't mind getting muddy, keep an eye on children near the water's edge, and don't let a good view on the island talk you into cutting the return close.
Common questions
Can you walk to Bar Island from Bar Harbor?
Yes — a natural gravel land bridge is exposed at low tide, and you can walk across from the north end of Bridge Street in Bar Harbor. It is only passable for a few hours around low tide; the rest of the time it is underwater.
When can you walk to Bar Island?
For roughly 90 minutes before and 90 minutes after low tide — about a three-hour window. Check the day's low-tide time, treat it as the middle of your window, and give yourself margin, especially for the walk back.
What happens if you get stuck on Bar Island?
If the tide covers the bar while you're on the island, do not try to wade across — the current is dangerous. You either wait for the next low tide to walk back, or arrange a boat to pick you up, which is costly and not always quick. The way to avoid it is to start back well before the tide turns.
How far is Bar Island from Eagles Nest?
The crossing starts in Bar Harbor, about a 30-minute drive from Eagles Nest in Trenton, across the bridge onto Mount Desert Island. Most people fold it into a morning in town, planned around the low-tide window.
Is the Bar Island walk safe for kids?
Within the window it's an easy, flat walk that children usually love — it feels like an adventure. The cautions are the ordinary coastal ones: watch footing on the wet bar, keep small children close to the water's edge, and, above all, keep the family moving back with time to spare before the tide returns.