Baker Island Light

Baker Island Light and the lighthouse keepers cottage is located in the Cranberry Isles of Acadia National Park.

Baker Island Light is located on Baker Island (one of the Cranberry Islands), which is part of Acadia National Park.  The island lies about 4 miles southeast of Mount Desert Island  and the main section of Acadia National Park. The Baker Island Light Station marks the southwestern entrance to Frenchman's Bay.  The 43 foot tall lighthouse is on the eastern coast and was established in 1828 per the order of  President John Quincy Adams, to  alert mariners of the treacherous shoals around the Cranberry Islands and the sandbar that connects Baker Island to Little Cranberry Island. The present lighthouse was built in 1855 replacing the original structure.

This stately lighthouse is a pleasant place to visit and well worth the trouble of getting private transportation there. Reaching the lighthouse is difficult as there is no ferry that stops on the island. The National Park Service provides summer tours of Baker Island from Northeast Harbor. A narrated tour boat out of Northeast Harbor passes by the island, but to actually land there you have to hire a private boat.  Landing is difficult, as there's no dock. However, the lighthouse itself is closed to the public. Visitors do come to the island and if you can get there, you will experience a true "off the beaten path" Maine Adventure in a unique and pleasant setting.

 
Construction material: Brick. Height of tower: 43 feet; Height of focal plane: 105 feet

Earlier optic: Fourth-order Fresnel

Other buildings still standing: 1855 keeper's house, 1895 oil house, 1905 fuel house, two storage buildings

NOTE: As of late 2002, the lighthouse is no longer an active aid to navigation  as it has been replaced by a lighted buoy offshore. This was done because the view of the lighthouse was blocked by the surrounding trees.


 Check with local ferry services for their schedules.

Beal & Bunker Mail Boat and Ferry Service
    (207) 244-3575
The Cranberry Cove Boating Co.
    (207) 244-5882 or (207) 460-3977
The Delight Water Taxi and Custom Cruises
    (207) 244-5724
Great Harbor Tours, Ltd. - Daily Tours, Charters and Water Taxi
    Cell Phone: (207) 460-5200   Home Phone: (207) 244-9160

Also the  Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company offers a tour of this lighthouse and 4 others in the Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island area.

Click here for technical data regarding the lighthouse