Stanwood Wildlife Sanctuary

Wow! What a gem! So beautiful. The birds are amazing and I’m so happy they have a good home and get to live out their days in the best way♥️ The trails are really nice and well marked. Dog friendly on the trails but not in the bird space! Please be respectful. Bring your bug spray lol. The gift shop is self-serve and has lots of neat stuff! Make sure to leave a donation.

I kind of just stumbled upon this place, and I am so glad that I did! It's such a beautiful area. They have gorgeous birds at the entrance to see, and then have all kinds of trails. The trails are gorgeous and extremely well kept. They're marked very clear so it's not too hard to find your way with the map. I was here for 2 hours and never saw anybody else on the trails, so it was some nice solitude away from the more popular hiking areas in Acadia. Highly recommend!

Beautiful place to visit for a quiet and peaceful walk. The birds were so well taken care of and we even saw one of the trainers playing with a vulture. Really neat nature preserve building as well! The trails were well labeled and kid friendly. Our 4 and 3 year old boys loved it.

I visited this sanctuary on a vacation to Acadia and am so glad I came across it. It was a beautiful hidden gem. The trails all throughout (including at the alternate entrance that's open after 5pm on weekdays) were so serene. And the sanctuary bird area was the absolute highlight for me. They house a number of raptors including vultures, hawks, and owls, who are being rehabilitated or cared for, and there are very sweet thoughtful signs posted throughout the area helping visitors understand how they can make the birds more comfortable (e.g., by speaking quietly, not pointing at the birds, etc.). I've never seen this kind of information posted at a sanctuary before and really loved it, I thought it was very sweet and presented in a really fun way. We actually came back another day to attend one of the guides tours, which was led by a woman who had a wealth of knowledge and really made the tour fun and interactive. She was so excited to spend time with us afterwards answering our questions and sharing her passion for the birds and the sanctuary. They also have a very sweet gift shop/museum which has some amazing taxidermy and egg/nesr exhibits. This place really seems to care for the birds who live there and is donation only (no entrance fee required). I happily donated to support such a great cause. I highly recommend you visit them if you're in the Bar Harbor/Acadia area!

Get off the beaten path taking an opportunity to learn about many bird species including several birds of prey. Stretch your legs for a longer hike or take a quick loop, either way the sounds of day to day melt away as you enter the forest.

Peaceful setting. Beautiful birds of prey you can view up close. Has a small, self serve gift shop

Amazing place. The animal caretakers are dedicated, compassionate, and professional. They know how to treat the birds with respect and care. It's really encouraging to see. The refuge has a lot of different trails; we took the perimeter trail and saw a good amount of wildlife -- birds (both wild and not), snakes, red squirrels, frogs, and scents/traces of larger wildlife too. We also saw a visitor using a wheelchair without issue in the main area. I'd 100% recommend it for all ages.

A beautiful walking trail, so peaceful and clean. The sanctuary area for the birds is great. We loved getting to see them so close, my daughter was amazed.. loved our trip here today.