Upcoming Events

Friday, May 17
Seal Cove Auto Museum Presents: Friday Ride Day
All Day: This season, every Friday we will be offering rides in one of our antique automobiles (weather permitting)! 207-244-9242

Saturday, May 18
ArtWaves MDI Presents: Azul Conscious Movement
5:30PM - 7PM: Azul is a conscious movement practice; a path of personal transformation that supports the awakening of consciousness. Azul recognizes that, as we transform ourselves we create the conditions for our world to transform. Azul harnesses the bodies intelligence to facilitate inner healing and evolution and utilizes movement combined with a psycho-spiritual. Click here for more info.

Monday, May 20
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Peace Crane Folding
3:30PM: The act of folding cranes brings community, respect, calmness, focus, storytelling, kindness, understanding, and togetherness. These current days are an appropriate moment to come together and spread this energy. Come and fold a crane. Come and fold many. Come one day, come every time. Spread th

Monday, May 20
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Mrs Kate Kicks Off Summer Reading Program
3:30PM: Mrs. Kate is a national touring children's performer and a Parents' Choice award winning songwriter. With puppetry, unusual instruments, and riveting storytelling, Mrs. Kate engages her audience in an unforgettable interactive experience. All are welcome at this fun event! For more information, please call the Library at 244-7065.

Tuesday, May 21
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Ocean Expert and COA Professor Sean Todd
5:30PM: Sean Todd will talk about his travels and experiences in the northern and southern polar regions of the globe. His talk will feature his work and research on the Antarctic Peninsula as well as his recent trip through the Northwest Passage and work in Newfoundland and sub-polar Labrador. Todd is the Steven K. Katona Chair in Marine Sciences at College of the Atlantic. 244-7065

Wednesday, May 22
ArtWaves Presents: Just Be
7:30-8:30PM in the Dance Studio:A mix of ecstatic dance, chant, song and meditation. A celebration of life through music, movement and breath. A place to leave the world of logic and judgment behind and touch into something beyond. Come! Let your mind rest, connect to your body and heart- and just be!

Thursday, May 23
Bass Harbor Memorial Library Presents: Are We There Yet? Traveling with Kids
6:30PM – 8PM at the Tremont Town Office. Introducing children to the world is a gift for the whole family, but it can also be intimidating. The Benches, John, Raney, Oakley, and Emery, will share stories of their most recent adventures exploring the mountains, flora and fauna, temples of Thailand, the undersea universe of the Philippians, plus a quick stop in Qatar on the way home. Click for info!

Friday, May 24
ArtWaves Presents: Art Jam!
3:30 - 5PM: Art Jams are fun and exploratory art classes geared for students from age 6 and up. Click here for registration information.

Saturday, May 25
Seal Cove Auto Museum Presents: Beers and Gears
5-7:30PM: The museum is hosting a series of monthly Beers & Gears gatherings throughout the winter. Come in from the cold to hang out with us and your friends during the dark winter afternoons! BEER - SNACKS - GAMES - OPEN MIC

Sunday, May 26
ArtWaves Presents: Fiber Group Meetup
4-7PM: Join other fiber artists in a casual setting on Sunday afternoons. Bring your own projects and supplies and knit, crochet, needle felt, weave and spin all afternoon! We'll provide the warm atmosphere, tables and chairs.

Monday May 27
ArtWaves Presents: Pysanky Eggs
9AM: We will have fun learning all about the EGGspressional art form. We will cover history, symbolism (geometric, animal, plant and color), tools of Pysnaky. All supplies provided and you will go home with 2 Pysanky Eggs. Click here for registration information.

Tuesday, May 28
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Let's Go Birding with Craig Kesselheim
5:30PM: Registration required. Please call 244-7065. Birder Craig Kesselheim is back to take you on a short walk to the pond above the town office and learn what bird watchers pay attention to. Practice identifying birds by sight, sound, habitat and behavior. You'll then return to the Library and get to know how to use binoculars and to navigate your way through a field guide and much more.

Tuesday, May 28
ArtWaves and Acadia National Park Present: Meet the Artist, Charlie Buckley
7-9PM: Join us at ArtWaves to meet Artist-in-Residence Charlie Buckley. By displaying several paintings in progress from his visit, and projected slides, Buckley hopes to describe how his approach to making art in Acadia compares with the landscape at home in Mississippi.

Thursday, May 30
Acadia Birding Festival
Continues thru June 2; click here for scheduled programs. Acadia's birding community invites you and your family to celebrate the ecological wonders of the birds of the Gulf of Maine at the Acadia Birding Festival. Explore Mount Desert Island and its birds through numerous events and venues.

Saturday, June 1
ArtWaves Presents: Barre, Buti & Bites
10AM to Noon in the Dance Studio: A morning of fun, fitness and food! This is a FREE community event - bring a water bottle, mat and a friend! Join us in welcoming back Aquene as she kicks off her summer fitness classes at ArtWaves!

Tuesday, June 4
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Call Me American - a Memoir with Abdi Nor Iftin
5:30PM: Registration required. Please call 244-7065. Call Me American is the true story of the heroic survival of Abdi Nor Iftin in war-ravaged Magadishu, Somalia and his incredible journey to America. Abdi currently lives in Portland where he works as an interpreter for Somalis who have immigrated to the state.

Tuesday, June 11
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: The Struggle for Women's Suffrage: Revisiting our History, Rededicating our Future
5:30PM: Two voting rights activists, Ann Luther and Sheila Kirby, will be at the Library for an event commemorating the 19th Amendment. 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, when women won the right to vote. Ann and Sheila will end with a brief overview of the work that remains to be done. For more information, please call the Library at 244-7065.

Saturday, June 15
At Home Rowing Regatta Fundraiser
8AM - 2PM: Join us for a day on the water! The At Home Rowing Regatta will have three different courses (5 miles, 2.4 miles and 1 mile) and is open to any age and any rowing skill level. There are only 50 spots for boats so load one up with friends and family and come spend the day with us! Registration is $35 per person and we accept any human powered boat. For info call: 374-5852

Sunday, June 16
Sips Presents: Italian Wine Dinner
6-8PM: Join us on Sunday June 16th at 6pm for an Italian Wine Dinner. Contact Sips at 207-244-4550 to make your reservations. Cibo, Vino, Mangiamo! Buon Appetito!

Tuesday, June 18
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: The Geological Evolution of Mount Desert Island with Duane and Ruth Braun
5:30PM: Registration required. Please call 244-7065. Have you ever wondered about the geological origin of Mount Desert Island? How it was put together? What effect the glaciers had on the current landscape? The Brauns are back by popular demand to take us on a geologic history tour! Their talk will begin around a billion years ago!

Wednesday, June 19
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Free Monthly AED / Hands Only CPR
5-7PM: Pre-registration required - call 244-7065. The Library is offering a free Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) and Hands Only Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) class. The course will be taught by volunteer Patricia Buccello, an American Heart Association certified instructor and local paramedic. This class is not for CPR certification.

Sunday, June 23
Bass Harbor Boat Races-Pancake Breakfast & BBQ Lunch
7:30 AM – 1 PM at the Bernard Town Dock: Fill up for a day of fun on the water with a pancake breakfast and BBQ lunch sponsored by the Bass Harbor Memorial Library. For more info, call (207) 244-3798.

Tuesday, June 25
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: MDI Plastics Project
5:30PM: It's widely known that single use plastic packaging is a problem we can no longer ignore: it makes up a quarter of the 8 million tons of plastic waste that flows into our oceans each year. Four SWH eighth-grade girls jumpstarted their town's effort, causing SWH to be the lead MDI town to put a ban on the distribution of single-use plastic bags by local retailers. Come hear their story!

Tuesday, July 2
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Journeying to the Coyote Center with Geri Vistein
5:30PM: oin Carnivore Biologist Geri Vistein as she shares with you an inspiring and informative film about the future Coyote Center here in Maine. In order to give you a glimpse of what is to come, she will illustrate some of the creative work she has been doing with communities already. A lively discussion will follow. For more information, please call the Library at 244-7065.

Thursday, July 4
Acadia Chamber Presents: Fourth of July Fireworks
9PM: The fireworks will be held on July 4th and shot from the Acadia Fuel barge which will be placed in the middle of Southwest Harbor providing unobstructed views from Manset to the Coast Guard base. (Rain date: July 6th) This event is sponsored by the visitors, residents and businesses of the Southwest Harbor area.

Tuesday, July 9
MDI Historical Society's Annual Strawberry Festival
1-3PM at the Somesville Firehouse. Strawberry shortcake made with ripe Maine strawberries and freshly whipped cream! A limited supply of fresh strawberries will be available for sale by the quart. This event is hosted by the Seal Cove Auto Museum and the Mount Desert Island Historical Society. Additional sponsorship was provided by Hannaford Supermarkets and the Southwest Food Mart IGA.

Friday, July 12
The 23rd Annual Hospice Regatta of Maine
Continues thru July 14: Regatta Races, Race Viewing aboard the Maine Seacoast Mission’s Sunbeam with champagne lunch, Rendezvous cocktail party at Morris Yachts’ boatyard in Northeast Harbor, musical entertainment, fabulous hors d’oeuvres, specialty drinks, and Fun! Click here for more information.

Friday, July 12
Harbor House Presents: 2019 Annual Harbor House Flamingo Festival
Continues thru July 15. The annual Harbor House Flamingo Festival is whimsical, lighthearted and decidedly pink, this fun filled family festival truly has something for everyone. Click here for more information.

Saturday, July 12
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Dawson's Fall with Roxana Robinson
5:30PM at the MDI High School: The Jesup Memorial, Northeast Harbor, and Southwest Harbor Public Libraries are thrilled to announce their first island-wide author event with critically acclaimed author Roxana Robinson at the Mount Desert Island High School. Robinson will be speaking about her newest book Dawson's Fall. For more information, please call the Library at 244-7065.

Monday, July 15
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: The Schooner Maggie B: A Southern Ocean Circumnavigation
5:30PM: In 2005, Frank Blair built a 63-foot wooden schooner and, with an all-volunteer crew, set off on her two-year maiden voyage on a Southern Ocean circumnavigation, around the great capes. Join this blue-water sailor as he tells of his adventures during his voyage around the world! 244-7065

Tuesday, July 16
ArtWaves Presents: Little Cranberry Island Workshop
8-4 July 16 & 17: Little Cranberry Island is a working harbor full of lobster boats and unmatched views of the Great Harbor and its many Islands. Emphasis will be on honing observation skills, massing the main shapes for strong composition and perceiving the landscape abstractly. Participants bring own painting gear. For more info and to register, click here.

Saturday, July 20
Bar Harbor Garden Club's Tour: Fine Island Gardens
10AM - 4PM, rain or shine: View some of the finest gardens on MDI. Advance tickets are $30 ($35 on the day of the tour.) Click here for information on the tour and on where to purchase tickets.

Tuesday, July 23
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: The Nature Conservancy in Maine Fishing for a Brighter Future in the Gulf of Maine
5:30PM: Marine Program Director Geoffrey Smith will discuss ongoing efforts by The Nature Conservancy to restore ecological health/resilience in the Gulf of Maine by working directly with fishermen and scientists to develop more selective and sustainable fishing practices and to use innovative technologies improve the information used to guide fisheries science and management. 244-7065

Thursday, July 25
Charlotte Rhoades Park's Annual Butterfly Release
3:30PM; reservations required. This annual event is a wonderful family affair that is fun for everyone! Money raised at the event helps support the park by providing funds for plants, supplies, and equipment for maintaining the garden, and producing educational materials. Click here for info and to purchase tickets.

Friday, August 2
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: We Were an Island with Director, Peter Logue
2 showings; call 244-7065 for reservations and times. Inspired by the book, We Were An Island: The Maine Life of Art & Nan Kellam by Peter P. Blanchard III, the film stars Loudon Wainwright III and Becky Ann Baker, as a couple who moved to Placentia, an uninhabited island off the coast of Maine, in 1949, where they lived in near isolation for four decades.

Sunday, August 4
YMCA's Acadia 70.3 Triathlon
We are so excited to have you join us for our first triathlon, on the Quietside of Acadia. The money raised through your entry fees help sustain the YMCA's scholarship programs, ensuring that individuals and families have access to the care, services, and programs that can help them improve their lives through healthy living or community activities. Click here for more info and to register.

Tuesday, August 6
Harbor House Presents: Lobsters on the Sound
5:30PM: Lobsters on the Sound features a cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres from many local restaurants, a lobster bake, live and silent auctions and music and dancing under the stars at the Hinckley Company in SWH. Proceeds support the many programs and services Harbor House provides to the communities of Mount Desert Island. For information or to purchase tickets, call Diana at 244-3713.

Tuesday, September 10
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: The Geological Evolution of Mount Desert Island with Duane and Ruth Braun
5:30PM: Registration required. Please call 244-7065. Have you ever wondered about the geological origin of Mount Desert Island? How it was put together? What effect the glaciers had on the current landscape? The Brauns are back by popular demand to take us on a geologic history tour! Their talk will begin around a billion years ago!

Tuesday, September 17
Southwest Harbor Public Library Presents: Quietside's Unsung Civil Rights Heroines: LaRue Spiker and Louise Gilbert and the Wade House Bombing with Carolyn Gage
5:30PM: La Rue Spiker is celebrated in Southwest Harbor as an activist, environmentalist, and editor for the Bar Harbor Times. Many people do not know that she and her partner Louise Gilbert courageously put their lives and their freedom on the line in one of the most violent landmark incidents in the Civil Rights Era: the Wade House Bombing. For information, please call the Library at 244-7065

Wednesday, September 25
Acadia's Night Sky Festival
Continues thru September 29. Join us for one of the premier night sky events on the eastern seaboard. With workshops, internationally recognized speakers and hands-on experiences, there truly is something for everyone from families to the serious amateur astronomer. Click here for a full schedule and other information.

Friday, October 11
3rd Annual Southwest Harbor Week
Kicking off on Friday with Acadia's Annual Wine Tasting, and finishing with the MDI Marathon on October 20, Southwest Harbor Week is 10 days filled with great programs highlighting the Quietside of Acadia. Cruises, walks, talks, tours and activities featuring the wonders of Acadia and our great museums. Stay tuned for more information as the events are scheduled.

Friday, October 11
Acadia's 10th Annual Wine Tasting
4-6PM: Join us at Smuggler's Den Campground under the big tent for an evening of wines from around the world. Hosted by Sawyer's Specialties and catered by Sips Restaurant, this intimate evening is always a treat. Click here for more information and a link to purchase tickets.

Saturday, October 12
Acadia's 24th Annual Oktoberfest
Noon - 5PM: Join us at Smuggler's Den Campground under the big tent for our annual brewfest! More than 20 brewers, pouring more than 60 craft beers for your tasting pleasure. Music by Banned from Eden and Pitch Black Ribbons, great food from local vendors, crafts, games and our 2nd home brewers competition are just some of the highlights.Click here for more info and a link to purchase tickets.

Saturday, November 2
Friends of Acadia's Take Pride in Acadia Day
8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. This volunteer effort, now in its twenty-seventh year, focuses on areas where clogged drainage ditches and culverts could result in significant damage to road surfaces during the freeze-and-thaw cycles of a coastal Maine winter. Take Pride in Acadia Day is key to the park’s ability to maintain the carriage roads in pristine condition. Click here for registration information.