Somes Sound, one of only a few U.S. fjards, is a glacially carved valley drowned by the sea. This five-mile-long bay has attracted people for thousands of years. In 1761, English homesteaders Abraham and Hannah Somes and James and Rachel Richardson settled their families at the head of the bay at what is now Somesville. Schooners and merchant ships soon plied these waters with loads of lumber, fish, and granite. Today, residents and visitors alike relish the scenery on foot, or by water on sailboats, tour boats, and kayaks. Somes Sound nearly divides Mount Desert Island in half, and the west side includes villages and Acadia National Park sites on the island’s quiet side. Somes Sound is 150 feet at its deepest point but decreases to about 30 feet at its entrance, called The Narrows.