Atlantic Coast Section 1

Bar Harbor is located on Mount Desert Island near Acadia National Park. On Mount Desert Island, you'll find some rugged hills and a considerable amount of recreational traffic in the summer months and during the fall color season. On the mainland, US 1 carries heavy summer traffic; crossing it can be difficult during the peak vacation months of July and August, and also in autumn. During this time cyclists should not use US 1 to bypass the reccommended routing. West of Freeport, the route heads inland on somewhat hilly, less-trafficked roads to avoid Portland, Maine, before looping back to the coast at Kennebunk. Roads between Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Exeter are secondary roads without shoulders, and carry moderate levels of traffic. The route follows very quiet rural county roads from Exeter to the outskirts of Nashua, though traffic increases in and near towns. The 33-mile Boston Spur begins in Littleton, and provides access to the city center on a combination of quiet streets, busy thoroughfares, and a bike path along the Charles River. The terrain of southern Massachusetts and northern Connecticut is hillier. The majority of the route in Connecticut is quiet rural county roads except of the section into Windsor Locks, which has typical urban congestion.