Granite, Fire, and Fog: The Natural and Cultural History of Acadia

Acadia National Park, on Maine’s Mount Desert Island, is among the most popular national parks in the United States.

From the road, visitors can experience magnificent vistas of summit and sea, but on a more intimate scale, equally compelling views abound along Acadia’s hiking trails.

Tom Wessels, an ecologist, naturalist, and avid hiker, attributes the park’\u2019s popularity―and its unusual beauty―to the unique way in which earth, air, fire, and water―in the form of glacially scoured granite, winter winds, fire, and ocean fog―have converged to create a landscape that can be found nowhere else.

In this beautifully illustrated book, Wessels invites readers to investigate the remarkable natural history of Mount Desert Island, along with the unique cultural story it gave rise to.