Visitor behavior and resource impacts at Cadillac Mountain, Acadia National Park

Rex Turner; Wilbur LaPage

Treesearch

Visitor behavior and resource impacts at Cadillac Mountain, Acadia National Park

Informally Refereed

Authors:

Rex Turner, Wilbur LaPage

Year:

2002

Type:

General Technical Report

Station:

Northern Research Station

Source:

In: Todd, Sharon, comp., ed. 2002. Proceedings of the 2001 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-289. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station. 175-179.

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Abstract

The summit of Cadillac Mt., located in Maine's Acadia National Park, can be reached via three hiking trails and a scenic auto road. This site attracts over an estimated two million visitors per year. Most of this visitation is concentrated from Memorial Day to Labor Day. The sensitive sub-alpine nature of the site, coupled with high visitation rates, has created a scenario where significant vegetation and soil damage occurs. Additionally, Acadia National Park has experienced chronic problems at this site stemming from visitors altering, destroying, or constructing cairns (piles of rocks built by trail crews to mark trails and guide hikers).

Parent Publication

Proceedings of the 2001 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium

Citation

Turner, Rex; LaPage, Wilbur. 2002. Visitor behavior and resource impacts at Cadillac Mountain, Acadia National Park. In: Todd, Sharon, comp., ed. 2002. Proceedings of the 2001 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-289. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station. 175-179.