St. Sauveur & Flying Mountains (Acadia National Park)

St. Sauveur & Flying Mountains (Acadia National Park)

Hike Type: Figure 8-ish Loop
Distance: 3.5 miles
Elevation: 968 feet
Time: 2 hours
Hiking Challenges: Acadia Ascents; Summit Beer Society

The Hike

Hike #3 of the day! I was debating whether or not to do this one since I was tired and had a whole bonus day, but I figured I'd drive over and see how I felt. When I got there, I was immediately turned off by the cars spilling out onto the road, but I still (somehow) convinced myself to do it, and I'm glad that I did! The skies were moody, wind was blowing, and it was showtime!

From the parking lot there are two trailheads - one for Flying Mountain Trail and one for Valley Cove Trail fire road (which was unlabeled for what I could tell). I initially took a dozen steps up the Flying Mountain Trail by mistake, realized, and then started the hike I had actually planned. There were these gorgeous orange flowers that looked like dandelions if they were dipped in tang. I was then immediately irritated by the sheer volume of people coming down the Valley Cove Trail. Thankfully, I was immediately sent back to my voluntary solitary confinement when I turned off onto the Valley Peak Trail. Only one other person was heading up the steep trail to Valley Peak, which got the blood pumping but was a short trail. Just after a slightly obstructed (still beautiful) view, the trail hits a junction with one direction going left to St. Sauveur Mountain and one right to Valley Peak and the remainder of the Valley Peak Trail - I took the trail on the left to ultimately make a loop.

The trail slowly gained elevation to the summit of St. Sauveur Mountain, which was a wooded peak. At this point the weather was escalated, but stable, so I pulled over for a classic sit, snack, and summit beverage (this time, a nip of Pink Whitney I got as a gift on the last day of school). The weather was so dreadfully humid that I was an advanced level of sweaty, which is a lot coming from me. After St. Sauveur, I continued the loop and saw some incredible views of the Somes Sound from the Valley Peak Trail. Rain started to spit on and off, so I picked up the pace on this section. I would definitely like to revisit this trail someday to really spend time to take in the views - I imagine the sunrise here would be gorgeous.

The trail ends just after the sign for Valley Peak (another one that does not count towards the hiking list), and then I retraced my steps down the steep trail back to the Valley Cove Trail fire road. I hiked the rest of the fire road, which was relatively featureless minus a few obstructed views of Valley peak, but filled with people. The trail ends at the Somes Sound where there is access to the shoreline where many families were playing. I continued onto the Flying Mountain Trail that had a moderate-easy ascent to the first view, and then meandered over the ridge to the main view from the summit. The view provided a beautiful vista of the Somes Sound and surrounding communities - but the rain was again starting to spit so I took the hint and started to wrap up. 

The hike back down was gentle and scenic, and due to the weather there were significantly less people climbing up. The spitting rain turned into a drizzle once I hit the parking lot, and became a full rain by the time I made it back to my car - great timing! This was a beautiful hike, but the lower half around Flying Mountain was dreadfully popular with families (understandably), so I probably would not do it again outside of sunrise hour. This put a cap on my hiking day, but I still had a few hours until check-in at the motel, so I decided to take the hour-long drive to Schoodic Point. The ocean was in a mood and the waves were crashing - it was perfect! I parked the car, stared into the void for a while, cleaned my car from the inside, and got outside to walk around (safely, of course) when there was a break in the rain. There was one family that went down towards the water - I had to look away I was so stressed! My day ended with an issue with Hotels.com - they never sent my confirmation to the motel. Thankfully, the motel owner was lovely and got me space. I had one room for the first night, and then a different room for nights two and three. It wasn't perfect, but so kind of her to make it work. Off to bed I went!

Step-By-Step

• Park at Flying Mountain Trailhead.
• Start hike on Valley Cove Trail fire road.
• Turn left onto Valley Peak Trail.
• At next junction, turn left onto St. Sauveur Mountain Trail.
• At next junction, continue on St. Sauveur Mountain Trail to summit St. S Mountain.
• Turn around back to the previous junction, turn left onto Valley Peak Trail.
• Hike back to original junction with St. Sauveur Mountain Trail and descend via Valley Peak Trail.
• Turn left back onto Valley Cove Trail fire road.
• At Somes Sound, turn right onto Flying Mountain Trail.
• Hike Flying Mountain Trail back to parking area.

Trail Descriptions from Maine Mountain Guide

Valley Cove Trail

        "Valley Cove Trail starts on the shore of Somes Sound at Valley Cove at the end of the Valley Cove fire road, 0.5 mi. from the Flying Mtn. trailhead parking area on Fernald Point Rd. From the fire road, Valley Cove Trail leads left, while Flying Mtn. Trail goes right. Valley Cove Trail follows the shoreline under the ledge walls of Eagle Cliff high above, traversing a rugged rock slide via a long series of rock staircases. The trail ends at the jct. of Acadia Mountain. Trail and Valley Peak Trail in 1.1 mi., a short distance south of the Man O'War Brook fire road."

Valley Peak Trail

        "This trail leaves the west side of the Valley Cove fire road (no vehicle access) a short distance north of the Flying Mtn. trailhead parking area on Fernald Point Rd. The trail rises steeply northwest through shady woods over Valley Peak (the south shoulder of St. Sauveur Mtn.). At 0.4 mi., St. Sauveur Trail departs left. Stay right on Valley Peak Trail to skirt the top of Eagle Cliff, with outstanding views of Valley Cove below and the mountains east of Somes Sound. At 0.8 mi., a spur path on the left leads to the summit of St. Sauveur Mtn. Valley Peak Trail continues straight, steeply descending the northeast shoulder of the mountain to end at a jct. with Acadia Mtn. Trail and Valley Cove Trail near Man O'War Brook and the east end of the Man O'War fire road at 1.5 mi."

St. Sauveur Mountain Trail

        "This trail offers an easy route to the summit of St. Sauveur Mtn. from the northwest. Parking for this trail is the same as for Acadia Mtn. Trail"

        "Start 0.1 mi. up the Acadia Mtn. Trail and go right at the fork. St. Sauveur Mtn. Trail runs south through a softwood forest and over open slopes, rising continually to a jct. at 0.9 mi., where Ledge Trail enters on the right. The summit of St. Sauveur Mtn. is at 1.1 mi. St. Sauveur Mtn. Trail continues past the summit to a jct. Here, a spur to Valley Peak Trail leaves left, while St. Sauveur Mtn. Trail continues right, descending the south ridge of the mountain. At 1.5 mi., the trail ends at its jct. with the lower end of Valley Peak Trail. Ahead, it is 0.4 mi. to the Valley Cove fire road via Valley Peak Trail. At the fire road, turn right to reach the Flying Mtn. trailhead parking lot at Fernald Point Rd."

St. Sauveur Mountain

        "This mountain overlooking Valley Cove on Somes Sound can be climbed from ME 102 in the west or from Fernald Cove Rd. in the south. The 500-ft. Eagle Cliff, home to nesting peregrine falcons, forms the precipitous east face of the peak."

Flying Mountain Trail

        "From the jct. of ME 102 and ME 3/198 in Somesville, drive south on Me 102 for 5.4 mi. to Fernald Point Rd. in Southwest Harbor. Turn left (west) on Fernald Point Rd. and drive 0.9 mi. to the trailhead parking lot on the left. This scenic trail leaves the parking area on Fernald Point Rd. in Southwest Harbor. The trail rises quickly through spruce woods, reaching ridgeline of the mountain north before descending to the shore of Valley Cove on Somes Sound. The trail follows the cove to the left to end at the jct. of Valley cove Trail and the Valley Cove fire road at 0.9 mi. For an easy return to the parking area, follow the fire road south for 0.5 mi."

Flying Mountain

        "A short climb to the open summit of Flying Mtn. offers a fine panorama of Somes Sound, Southwest Harbor, and the islands to the south, including the Cranberry Isles and Greening, Sutton, Baker, and Bear islands."

Photo Album