Summer has arrived and Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island are in full swing. Come and explore Acadia National Park and see all that we have to offer!
Upcoming Events
Independence Day Celebration - July 4, 2008
Our Independence Day Celebration is presented by Ocean Properties, which operates the Bar Harbor Club Spa and Dining Room, the Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company offering a 4th of July Fireworks Cruise, the Harborside Hotel and Marina and the Bar Harbor Regency.
Independence Day in Bar Harbor will be Red, White, Blue... AND GREEN! The Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce is working to make July 4th a “green event”. The Chamber’s Sustainable Tourism Committee develops earth-friendly initiatives throughout the year. Bangor Hydro has signed on as the Green Partner Sponsor.
Bangor Hydro shares a commitment to protect our natural resources and the partnership is a natural fit. SYSCO will donate all the compostable and recyclable materials used by MDI Rotary at their Pancake Breakfast and Seafood Festival and Gott Disposal will compost the generated waste, with the goal of making them zero waste events. The Chamber is also promoting reusable shopping totes made from 80% recycled cotton and 20% recycled bottles with a special 4th of July logo:
Spread the word that Bar Harbor is an environmentally friendly destination!
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
6am Blueberry Pancake Breakfast
MDI Rotary Club, Bar Harbor Athletic Field, Park Street. Blueberry or plain pancakes, sausage, juice, milk and coffee. A fun morning feast for the whole family!
9:00am-3:00pm Craft Fair/Marketplace
The Island Arts Association will be hold a Craft Fair/Marketplace at the YMCA, 21 Park Street, Bar Harbor, Maine. We will have a wonderful selection of Maine crafts, including jewelry, quilts, photographs, pottery, and porcelain dolls. Please join us for a joint fund raiser for the YMCA and the YWCA. Please call Kathy Norwood 207-288-5246 for additional information.
10am Independence Day Parade
The community shows off its patriotism and good humor. Parade route winds through downtown Bar Harbor from Main St to Cottage Street to Holland Ave to Mt Desert St to Ledgelawn Ave. This year's theme is “Salute to Liberty”. Grand Marshall is the current Cadillac Award Winner, Dick Cough.
Sponsored by the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce and
Machias Savings Bank
11am Seafood Festival
MDI Rotary Club, Bar Harbor Athletic Field, Park Street. Enjoy lobster, mussels, corn, strawberry shortcake and more!
After the Parade, MDI YMCA Annual Lobster Races!
Bar Harbor Athletic Field, Park Street. Watch local businesses put their lobsters to the test in a high-speed crustacean contest where guts and determination will reign supreme. Proceeds benefit the MDI YMCA Scholarship Program. For more information contact Don Ashmall, 207-288-3511 x108 or development@mdiymca.org.
3:00pm FUSION
The comedy juggling group, FUSION, will present their unique style of performing at the Criterion Theatre and Arts Center. FUSION is a combination of high-energy style fused with hilarious comedy and off beat antics. They will perform several rarely seen trio juggling routines, and will also feature everything from complex juggling patterns and full-body contortion to “laugh ‘til you cry” comedy and plenty of audience participation. For ticket information call 207-288-3441 or www.criteriontheatre.com. Sponsored by Bar Harbor Bank & Trust
7:30-8:30pm Bar Harbor Town Band
Free concert on the Bar Harbor Village Green, Main & Mt. Desert Streets. For over 100 years the Town Band, comprised of amateur musicians from around the region, has entertained thousands of locals and visitors.
9:15pm (approx.) Fireworks Over Frenchman Bay
Enjoy the spectacular display on the waterfront, downtown Bar Harbor.
Sponsored by the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce,
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust
and
Bar Harbor Inn
Native American Festival and Basketmakers Market - July 5, 2008
From 10am-4pm at College of the Atlantic, 105 Eden Street (Route 3). An annual event co-hosted by the Abbe Museum, the Maine Indian Basketmakers Alliance and College of the Atlantic. Features a wide variety of authentic Wabanaki Indian baskets, carvings, beadwork and dolls for sale. Enjoy a day of Native music, dance, food and silent auction. Admission is free. For more information call 207-288-3519, visit www.abbemuseum.org or email info@abbemuseum.org.
42nd Bar Harbor Music Festival - July 2-27, 2008
The Bar Harbor Music Festival, founded by violinist Francis Fortier in 1967, has gained national recognition for its unique work. It remains one of the few music festivals in the United States whose guiding mission is to provide essential performance opportunities for outstanding up-and-coming talent. During the past 41 years, the Bar Harbor Music Festival has advanced the careers of over 1,750 aspiring instrumentalists, singers, and composers. The Festival's outreach programs, such as the admission-free outdoor concerts in Acadia National Park and artist-in-residence programs in American schools and colleges, have provided a vital public cultural service, while winning new audiences for classical music and fostering music education. Its annual summer festival in Bar Harbor, coupled with its Touring Program, has reached audiences totaling over one million. For more information on each event or to purchase tickets, call 207-288-5744, visit www.barharbormusicfestival.org or email info@barharbormusicfestival.org.
Schedule of Events
July 2 8:15pm Opening Night with Brass Venture, Bar Harbor Congregational Church, 29 Mt Desert St.
July 6 4:00pm Tea Concert: "Shades of Spain" featuring Adele Karam, soprano and Cara Chowning, pianist with guest bassist, Allan Santos. Tea served during intermission. Balance Rock Inn, 21 Albert Meadow.
July 11 8:15pm 42nd Annual Recital with Francis Fortier, violinist and Christopher Johnson, pianist. Bar Harbor Congregational Church, 29 Mt Desert St.
July 12 8:15pm Christopher Johnson, pianist. Bar Harbor Congregational Church, 29 Mt Desert St.
July 13 8:15pm POPS Concert: "Passion's Prism" featuring Amy Mahoney, Soprano. Pre-concert dinner at 6pm, optional. Parkside Restaurant, 185 Main St.
July 15 5:30pm "New Composers" Forum: Reflections on 25 Years. Admission free (voluntary contribution.) Bar Harbor Congregational Church, 29 Mt Desert St.
July 16 8:15pm 25th Anniversary "New Composers" Concert: Reflections on 25 Years. Featuring the New Piano Quartet. Bar Harbor Congregational Church, 29 Mt Desert St.
July 18 8:15pm Opera Theatre: Carmen by Georges Bizet featuring Fenlon Lamb as Carmen. Criterion Theatre and Arts Center, 35 Cottage St.
July 20 8:15pm Jazz Night with the Wolverine Jazz Band, returning by popular demand. Pre-concert dinner at 6pm, optional. Jackson Laboratory Commons, 610 Main St.
July 23 8:00pm 36th Annual Acadia National Park Outdoor Concert with the Bar Harbor Festival String Orchestra. Admission is free (voluntary contribution.) Blackwoods Campground Amphitheatre, Route 3, Otter Creek.
July 25 8:15pm 4th Annual Bob Noonan Memorial Concert with the Bar Harbor Festival String Orchestra. Bar Harbor Congregational Church, 29 Mt Desert St.
July 27 8:15pm Festival Gala with the Bar Harbor Festival String Orchestra. Pre-concert dinner at 6pm, optional. Bar Harbor Club, 111 West St.
33rd Annual Directions Maine Craft Guild Show - August 1-3, 2008
A carefully juried group of 70 leading Maine craft professionals will present their work for sale at this year's show. The entire spectrum of Maine made crafts will be represented including artist designed gold and silver jewelry, unique clothing in natural fibers, fine handmade furniture, blown glass, woodenware, wood engravings, metal work, leather bags, pottery, baskets and more. See these professional artisans demonstrate their craft. Free Craft Demonstrations each day in spinning wool, felt making, metal formed hollowware, forming clay vessels on the potters wheel, stone carving and so much more will take place throughout the weekend. DIRECTIONS: Maine Crafts Guild is a statewide craft organization that has served professional craftspeople of Maine since its beginnings in 1975. The group is devoted to the idea of "Crafts that Transcend the Ordinary." An annual board of jurors reviews the exhibitors. Each year a few new exhibitors meet the requirements to be recommended for membership in DIRECTIONS. Work exhibited must be totally designed and handmade by the artisan. These exhibitors are all Maine residents and are outstanding members of the crafts community who have dedicated themselves to understanding a specific medium as a form of expression, as well as, a way of life. Hours are Friday evening from 5-9pm, Sat and Sun from 10am-5pm. Location: MDI High School, Route 233, 5 miles from downtown Bar Harbor. Admission $5 - Children free. For more information visit www.mainecraftsguild.com or email feinarts@yahoo.com.
Bar Harbor Food & Wine Classic - September 5-14, 2008
A celebration of wine, food and song…Excite your senses and savor the experience at one of New England’s premier wine festivals. Events include:
Friday September 7: Kick-Off Grand Tasting Reception at the Bar Harbor Club 7-9:30pm
Join us for the last hurrah of summer with an elegant evening of wine, jazz and food on the grounds of the historic Bar Harbor Club to kick-off the opening of the 2nd annual Bar Harbor Food and Wine Classic. The Grand Tasting will feature celebrity Maine chefs at cooking stations, dozens of wines and winery representatives, cheese makers and local wine retailers, all along the banks of beautiful Frenchman's Bay. Originally built in the 1930's, the Bar Harbor Club was once a private playground for the town's wealthiest summer residents. Now meticulously restored, the Tudor-styled building and terraced lawns are more glamorous than ever providing a unique seaside venue. Tickets for the Grand Tasting are limited and will sell quickly. Avoid disappointment; order your tickets online today. $49.95 plus tax and gratuity.
Saturday September 8: Grand Vintner's Dinner of Italian Wine with Reception at 6pm featuring Passed Chef's Canapés and Four Course Dinner at 7pm
Join us for an amazing dinner, with the winemaker, as he leads us through each wine, in the intimate and luxurious setting of the historic Bar Harbor Club. Executive Chef Ryan Phillips will prepare four courses especially for the evening's wines to best bring out their flavors. A meet and greet wine reception with canapés precedes the dinner. Truly a most special evening for enjoying wines of distinction and the superb cuisine of the Bar Harbor Club $79.95 plus tax and gratuity.
September 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12: Flight Nights in the Enoteca Wine Bar Monday - Friday 5-7pm
Each night features a different flight of wine with complimentary chef's canapés prepared right in front of you, a guest wine professional to talk about the wines and live jazz. No reservations are taken; just join in the good wine, good food and good time in the Enoteca Wine Bar at the Bella Vita Restaurant at the Harborside Hotel. Flights range from $10-13 for 3 glasses of wine (2oz. each) Reservations not required.
For more information visit www.barharborfoodandwineclassic.com.