The Last Sunset of the Year From Pemetic Mountain
I always like going for a hike on New Year’s Eve to watch the last sunset of the year. It’s a good excuse to get out the door and go hiking and I enjoy watching the last light of the calendar year drop below the horizon.
This year I was visiting family on Mount Desert Island and thus had Acadia National Park at my doorstep for my New Year’s hike. I’ve had sunset from Pemetic Mountain on my bucket list for a while now so I set out from the Jordan Pond parking lot at 3pm. The first third of a mile of this hike is right along the shores of Jordan Pond with the classic view of the Bubbles. A recent warm-up had melted most of the ice off the pond but some melting pieces were still clinging to the rocks along the shoreline.
December 2024
Shortly after crossing the Park Loop Road I found this small waterfall cascade running through the woods. This is one of the things I love about Acadia National Park. It’s not well known for waterfalls but after a period of snow melt or a big rain you can find them all over the place.
At this point I realized that I was probably running late for sunset and started running up the last mile or so of trail. Pemetic Mountain was classic Acadia: granite ledges and rock hopping marked by the iconic Bates Cairns.
The sun was close to the horizon and the rocks were starting to glow orange I tagged the summit and then backtracked to a set of grassy rocks I’d spotted on the hike up.
December 2024
There were countless great spots along the summit ridge for photography with lots of cracked granite with lichen coverage in the foreground. The background of the islands and bays of the Gulf of Maine was beautiful in the glowing light of sunset.
I was able to get most of the way down the mountain by the fading light of 2024 and clicked on my headlamp for the last section back through the woods and along Jordan Pond. Pemetic Mountain is definitely a great spot for sunset or sunrise photography and this was another successful New Year’s Eve hike.
Have questions about sunset hikes or want to know more about planning photography trips to Acadia? I’d love to hear from you – feel free to reach out through my contact page.