Commissary Point. With over two miles of undeveloped, scenic views, highly productive shorefront and wildlife habitat along Cobscook Bay, the Point includes 200 acres plus a 50-acre easement. It lies in Trescott Township across Whiting Bay from Tide Mill Farm and has similar high-quality shoreline values, including over two miles of undeveloped, highly productive shorefront…
Carlton Pond Waterfowl Production Area. The area is a 1,055-acre impounded wetland located in the town of Troy in Waldo County. The area was acquired by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1966 to protect the waterfowl and other wildlife associated with this area in central Maine. Carlton Pond WPA has historically provided good…
Coburn Woods in Skowhegan. This 300 acre tract is named in honor of Louise Helen Coburn, founder and first president of the Somerset Woods Trustees, which owns and manages the land. Is contains significant vernal pools with good surrounding wooded habitat for juveniles and adults of vernal pool species. Informal trails and woods roads provide…
Bald Head Preserve, Arrowsic. A Bald eagle wintering area on 296 acres and two and a half miles of the Kennebec and Back Rivers. Access is across privately owned marsh or from the river. A trail leads to the picturesque Squirrel Point Light (now decommissioned) on the Kennebec River. Managed by the Nature Conservancy, access…
Nature Preserves Appalachian Trail, Eliotsville Twp. Six miles of trail along the Barren Mountain ridge are protected by The Maine Bureau of Parks and Recreation. The Trail south trends westward over Barren Mountain to Wilson Stream, then south to Little Wilson Falls, one of the highest in Maine with a drop of about 40 feet.…
Hirundo Wildlife Refuge, is in Alton and Old Town. The site of an archaeological project along the Pushaw Stream, where evidence suggests occupation by prehistoric Indian cultures dating back approximately 7,000 years. Although no excavation is presently going on, and much of the excavation site has been back-filled, there is written information about the project…
Lake Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge, established in 1992 spans the Maine-New Hampshire border. 5,000 of the total of 17,500 acres lie in Maine in Upton. A Magalloway River trail leads off Maine Route 16. In addition, about 20 miles of logging trails are open to hikers. Richardson Public Reserved Land, Adamstown and Richardsontown Townships. Located…
Great Salt Bay from the Mills Road in Newcastle (2004) Preserves owned and managed by Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust Bass Rock Preserve, Round Pond. 12 acres look out on Muscongus Sound. There are no trails. Park on Back Shore Road. Damariscove Island, Boothbay. This National Historic Landmark (Maine’s earliest permanent settlement) is 209…
The Brothers and Hay Ledge Preserve, St. George. These four islands off Port Clyde provide a 12 acre home to a number of nesting sea birds such as the black guillemot, common eider, double-crested cormorants and various gulls, which prefer the dense grasses and shrubs. As such, the preserve is closed during nesting season. Managed…
The Pine Tree State Arboretum, Augusta. 200 acres of rolling hills and meadows, mature pine and hardwoods and open woodlands provide a rich variety of colors and a diversity of habitats. A pond and open field provide fine opportunities to observe birds of many shapes and sizes. According to its Guide, From 1840 to 1972,…
Barred Island, Deer Isle. 2 acre island with spruce-fir and shrub-cover and extensive granite shore ledges. Accessible by landing on inter-tidal sandbar or across private property with permission of Goose Cove Lodge owners. There are no trails; walk along the shore. Managed by The Nature Conservancy. Birdsacre Sanctuary, Ellsworth. Lovely 40-acre woodland sanctuary with trails…
Bald Mountain Public Reserved Land, Rangeley. Bald Mountain’s one mile trail to the summit offers panoramic views of Rangeley, Cupsuptic and Mooselookmeguntic lakes and the Height of Land. Especially popular in the fall with autumn colors, the area contains more than 200 species of wildlife in its 1,873 acres. A short trail leads to the…
Basket Island, Cumberland. 9 acres of mixed forest and shell and gravel beaches. Osprey nest on nearby ledges. Watch out for abundant poison ivy. Popular picnic spot. Managed by The Nature Conservancy. Bay Bridge Landing, Brunswick. A six-acre wetland park with a trail and interpretive signs, this area off Bay Bridge Road features osprey and…
Thorncrag Bird Sanctuary in Lewiston was founded by the Stanton Bird Club in 1921. At 310 acres it is one of New England’s largest bird sanctuaries. According to its own description, Old foundations, stonewalls, wolf pines, and large spreading maples suggest that farming was a primary use for many years. At the turn of the…
was created from a portion of the former Loring Air Force Base, which extended for 9,000 acres in the town of Limestone, and other sections in Caswell and Connor Township. One of the many nature preserves in Maine, it was established in 1998 when 4,700 acres were transferred from the U.S. Air Force to the…
Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge. The 5,000 acre preserve, created in 1998, was once a part of the former Loring Air Force Base in Limestone. Deboullie Public Reserved Land, T15 R9 WELS. Its low rugged mountains and scenic remote trout ponds are all available for visitors using the 22,000…
Maine has hundreds of special places set aside for perserving natural areas and wildlife. Nature preserves, for the purposes of this article, include the following: public reserved lands, conservation areas, wildlife refuges, bird sanctuaries, etc. Click on a county for an annotated list of preserves and links to detailed articles when available. According to a…
APPALACHIAN TRAIL – SPRINGER MOUNTAIN GEORGIA Here in the Chattahoochee National Forest on Springer Mountain is where the Appalachian Trail begins for the “north bounders” as they trek to Katahdin in Maine’s Baxter State Park. Often they are dropped off at the parking lot, make the short .9 mile hike to the top of Springer,…
Tireless worker to complete the Appalachian Trail, Myron Avery (1899-1952), born in Lubec, was a navy veteran of two world wars, and was awarded The Legion of Merit. Avery Peak on Bigelow Mountain was named in his honor.
It was like sitting in a chimney and waiting for the smoke to blow away. It was, in fact, a cloud-factory,– these were the cloud-works, and the wind turned them off done from the cool, bare rocks. [Thoreau] Washington Irving described the Kaatskill Mountains as “a dismembered branch of the great Appalachian family…swelling up to…