Wanakiwin

Wanakiwin is placed where Mount Desert Island becomes most elemental: forest, pink granite, and open Atlantic water. A long private drive passes through moss-covered woodland before the shingle-style residence appears above the ledges, giving arrival the deliberate pace of a true Maine estate.

The 10,198-square-foot house contains 10 bedrooms and 11 baths across a plan created for extended gatherings. Inside, a three-story fir-paneled hall and a substantial white-oak staircase establish the scale. The grand living room opens through French doors to a broad covered porch, shifting attention from architecture to ocean. Staff quarters add practical support for a household of this size.

Six acres provide separation without removing the house from Seal Harbor or the larger life of Mount Desert Island. Ocean-facing rooms and porches make the coastline part of the daily experience, while nearby Acadia National Park extends the possibilities well beyond the property line. The result is not simply a summer house, but a compound capable of holding several generations in one place.

Now offered at $11 million following a September price adjustment, Wanakiwin presents one of the clearest expressions of Maine coastal living: substantial, private, and built into the landscape rather than above it. William “Bill” Gaynor of Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty represents the offering.

The ownership perspective

Wanakiwin’s architecture gains much of its force from contrast. The wooded approach establishes enclosure; the ocean-facing rooms and covered porch then release the view. That sequence gives a large residence a legible rhythm, moving from shelter toward exposure. In a coastal estate, the best room is not always the most elaborate one. Here, the porch deserves attention as a place where the house and its setting can be experienced together.

The scale of the accommodation suggests another useful way to read the offering: as a gathering place. Ten bedrooms create considerable hosting capacity, while staff quarters introduce a practical layer. The question is how those parts serve the household a buyer actually intends to bring together. The coastline establishes the identity, but the circulation and distribution of rooms determine how comfortably that identity can be lived in.

Source and photography: Newcastle Realty / Maine MLS #1655480. Property details reflect the verification date and may change.