Mount Desert Island Marathon training plan: course, start dates, and plan options
Bar Harbor, MEOctober 17, 2027
The highest point of the Mount Desert Island Marathon is at mile 25. Not mile 8, not the halfway hill. Mile 25, after which the last 1.2 miles fall away into Southwest Harbor. That single fact should shape your entire build for this point-to-point race from downtown Bar Harbor, Maine, through Acadia National Park.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Everything else about the race reads like a tourism brochure, and fairly: Somes Sound (the only fjord on the Eastern Seaboard), peak foliage in mid-October, quiet Maine villages. None of that is why runners finish it wrecked. 811 people finished in 2025 and 4.4% of them ran Boston qualifying times, which tells you what the hills do to goal paces.
388 days to race day
Mount Desert Island Marathon · October 17, 2027 · about 55 weeks out
Your plan starts with your race and works backward. Every week lands on a real calendar, with race day at the end.
When to start training for the Mount Desert Island Marathon 2027
Race day is October 17, 2027, which is 388 days from today. Counting back from that date, here is when each length of build starts.
- 30-week buildStart March 21, 2027
- 24-week buildStart May 2, 2027
- 18-week buildStart June 13, 2027
- 16-week buildStart June 27, 2027
- 12-week buildshortest Stride acceptsStart July 25, 2027
You have about 55 weeks until race day, so there is still room for a full build. Stride reads the runway you actually have and maps every week from today to October 17, 2027.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Mount Desert Island Marathon course facts
- Course
- Point to Point · Hilly · Road/Pavement
- Highest / lowest point
- 249 ft / 9 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 811 in 2025 (small field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 4.4% in 2025
- Typical race morning
- 47°F at the start, 83% humidity, clear
- Race day high / low
- 55°F / 41°F on average
Let’s find the plan for you.
Your race, current mileage, longest run, marathon experience, and available days decide the best fit. Stride maps the plan you choose to race day at the Mount Desert Island Marathon.
- Stride Run-Walk FinisherThree sessions a week with planned walk breaks, cover the full distance before race day.
- Stride First MarathonThe classic four-day first-marathon build: easy running and one weekly long run, no speedwork.
- Stride First Marathon PlusA first-marathon build with a little more volume and weekly race-pace miles.
- Stride 6-Day FinisherFinish your first marathon on frequency: six easy-leaning runs a week, no monster long runs.
- Stride 5-Day Pace BuilderFive days a week with race-pace runs before your long runs, built for a mid-pack time goal.
- Stride 6-Day RhythmSix days a week with three quality sessions, steady fatigue that teaches you to finish strong.
- Stride Time-Based FoundationFive time-based runs a week, mostly easy, the injury-averse way to a strong finish.
- Stride Time-Based BuilderSix time-based runs a week at a strict 80% easy / 20% hard split, chase a time goal without breaking.
- Stride 3-Day Cross-TrainThree runs plus two cross-training days over 24 weeks, marathon fitness on a busy schedule.
- Stride 3-Day QualityExactly three hard runs plus two mandatory cross-training sessions, every workout counts.
- Stride 6-Day CumulativeThe six-day cumulative-fatigue build with quality from week two, for PR chasers with a base.
- Stride Threshold 55The serious BQ/PR build to 55 miles a week: threshold work, medium-long runs, and 20-milers.
- Stride Threshold 70The high-mileage BQ/PR build to 70 miles a week for veterans with a deep base.
- Stride 2-Quality FlexTwo fixed quality sessions a week, everything else flexible easy running, fits any schedule.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Choose your Mount Desert Island Marathon training window.
Compare 12, 16, 18, and 20 weeks counted back from race day. The 18-week option includes the complete four-day schedule.
The course: climbing all day, with the top at mile 25
The Mount Desert Island Marathon is a hilly point-to-point course from downtown Bar Harbor to Southwest Harbor, running between about 9 and 249 feet above sea level. The organizers say the first mile out of Bar Harbor is slightly downhill, then a 150-foot climb arrives between miles 1 and 3. The high point of the whole course is at mile 25.
In between, the route stays on the water. Cooksey Drive from mile 6.2 to 8.3 and Sargeant Drive along Somes Sound from mile 12.3 to 17.5 are both closed to traffic, and those five-plus quiet miles beside the fjord are the heart of the day. Somesville arrives around mile 20. Then the road keeps rising while your legs have nothing left, all the way to mile 25, before the final 1.2 miles drop into the finish.
How to train for Mount Desert Island
Train for Mount Desert Island by putting the hills at the end of your long runs instead of the beginning. The course's high point is at mile 25, so the specific ability you need is climbing on legs that are already three hours deep. Most plans do the opposite and get the hills out of the way early, which trains the wrong thing entirely.
Build it deliberately. Pick a loop with a real climb and run that climb on your last lap rather than your first. Add long runs where the closing 5 miles are rolling and run at marathon effort rather than jogged home. And don't skip the descent: those final 1.2 miles are a genuine drop onto quads that have been climbing for hours, so include controlled downhill running so the finish doesn't cost you the minute you just earned.
Getting in
The marathon starts at 200 Main Street in downtown Bar Harbor at 8:00 a.m. and finishes in Southwest Harbor, so entry planning is really logistics planning. It's point-to-point on an island, which means you need a plan for getting back to your car and a room booked a long way ahead, because mid-October is peak foliage season on Mount Desert Island and lodging goes early. There's no early start option, and the finish line closes at 2:30 p.m.
Where does the Mount Desert Island Marathon get hard?
Miles 20 to 25, where the road keeps climbing past Somesville to the course's highest point with your quads already spent.
What is the weather like at the Mount Desert Island Marathon?
Race morning averages about 47F with humidity near 83%, and the day usually reaches around 55F against an average low of 41F. That's excellent racing weather and cold standing weather, and the start is at 8:00 a.m. in downtown Bar Harbor. Plan a throwaway layer, and get a few long runs done in genuine cold so the first mile out of town doesn't feel like a shock.
Is the Mount Desert Island Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Mount Desert Island is a USATF certified course (ME23002JG) and a direct Boston qualifier, and the hills make it a demanding one. 4.4% of finishers ran qualifying times in 2025, with the rate sitting between 3.8% and 6.2% since 2022. If a qualifier is your only goal, choose this course for the running rather than for the clock.
Is the Mount Desert Island Marathon a good first marathon?
Probably not, unless the experience is the point rather than the time. The course climbs most of the day and saves its high point for mile 25, and the 6.5 hour limit means holding better than 15 minutes per mile with the hardest hill still ahead of you at mile 24. A first-timer who trains on flat roads will walk the last four miles.
Mount Desert Island Marathon questions, answered.
How hard is the Mount Desert Island Marathon?
Hard, and hardest late. The course climbs steadily from Bar Harbor toward Southwest Harbor and reaches its highest point at mile 25, with only 1.2 downhill miles left after it. Boston qualifying rates have run between 3.8% and 6.2% since 2022, which is what a course like this does to goal times.
Where is the hardest hill at the Mount Desert Island Marathon?
At mile 25. The high point of the course sits there, at the end of a hilly point-to-point route that starts climbing 150 feet between miles 1 and 3 and keeps rolling all day. The finish arrives 1.2 downhill miles later. Train your hills at the end of long runs, not the start.
What is the time limit for the Mount Desert Island Marathon?
6.5 hours, an average of 15 minutes per mile, with the finish line closing at 2:30 p.m. after an 8:00 a.m. start in Bar Harbor. There's no early start option. Given how late the hills come, build your cutoff margin inside the first 20 miles rather than assuming you'll hold pace to the end.
Is the Mount Desert Island Marathon worth travelling for?
For most runners, yes. It's a point-to-point through Acadia National Park in mid-October foliage, including more than five traffic-free miles along Sargeant Drive beside Somes Sound, the only fjord on the Eastern Seaboard. With 811 finishers in 2025, it's a small race in a very big setting.
Where does the Mount Desert Island Marathon get hard?
Miles 20 to 25, where the road keeps climbing past Somesville to the course's highest point with your quads already spent.
What is the weather like at the Mount Desert Island Marathon?
Race morning averages about 47F with humidity near 83%, and the day usually reaches around 55F against an average low of 41F. That's excellent racing weather and cold standing weather, and the start is at 8:00 a.m. in downtown Bar Harbor. Plan a throwaway layer, and get a few long runs done in genuine cold so the first mile out of town doesn't feel like a shock.
Is the Mount Desert Island Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Mount Desert Island is a USATF certified course (ME23002JG) and a direct Boston qualifier, and the hills make it a demanding one. 4.4% of finishers ran qualifying times in 2025, with the rate sitting between 3.8% and 6.2% since 2022. If a qualifier is your only goal, choose this course for the running rather than for the clock.
Is the Mount Desert Island Marathon a good first marathon?
Probably not, unless the experience is the point rather than the time. The course climbs most of the day and saves its high point for mile 25, and the 6.5 hour limit means holding better than 15 minutes per mile with the hardest hill still ahead of you at mile 24. A first-timer who trains on flat roads will walk the last four miles.
When should I start training for the Mount Desert Island Marathon 2027?
Race day is October 17, 2027. Counting back from that date, a 20-week build starts around May 30, 2027, a 16-week build around June 27, 2027, and a 12-week build around July 25, 2027. Already inside that window? Stride maps a plan from today to race day, whatever the runway.
How does Stride's Mount Desert Island Marathon plan work?
Download the app, pick the Mount Desert Island Marathon as your race, and answer a few questions about your recent running and your weekly schedule. Stride matches you to one of 14 marathon plans, maps every week from today to October 17, 2027, adjusts when life gets in the way, and puts you in a feed of runners training for the same race.
Choosing a training app?
A Mount Desert Island Marathon buildup is months of your life. See how Stride compares before you commit it to an app.
Find your plan.
Your race, current mileage, recent longest run, goal, and run days determine which plans rank first. Choose one and subscribe, then open every workout in Stride.