Granite edging stones, known as "Rockefeller's Teeth," add drama to the landscape of the Around Mountain Carriage Road while providing a safety barrier for wayward travelers. (JTL)

ROAD AS LANDSCAPE

Both the Carriage and Motor roads of Acadia were developed as a scenic and experiential landscape. Great sensitivity to the island's natural attributes assured that the experience of traveling along these routes would provide a different perspective from that normally encountered while driving. Subtle design techniques such as alignment of the routes, sloping and planting of roadside edges, and placement of pullouts for scenic vistas were utilized, along with a variety of other solutions. Olmsted and Farrand were employed to prepare much of the landscape work on Mount Desert Island. Both designers manipulated stream courses and planted trees, singly or in stands, to provide a more fluid route, showcase the natural beauties of an area, and restore sites disturbed by construction. Studies were made to determine sight lines from roadways and, at Otter Cliffs, the route is bifurcated and terraced to allow unobstructed views from both lanes of traffic and the foot path. This concept also provided a safety barrier between vehicles and pedestrians, where many drivers are distracted from the road by the impressive vista.

Park Loop Road near Bubble Rock. (JTL)

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