pond Archives - Maine by Foot

Rick Swan Trails at Perch Pond

While this trail system was primarily designed for bikers, it can also be a nice place to walk, especially if you hike Shore Trail along Perch Pond. Also known as Mud Pond, the undeveloped pond is not terribly appealing for swimming (rocky, murky), but you could easily splash in from one of the spots where

Salt Pond Blueberry Barrens

17ApriladminBlue Hillblueberry barren, pond, stream

This place is miraculous. I couldn’t stop taking photos, though none do justice to what you see in person, especially on a clear spring day: an exposed landscape of burgundy barrens and jumbled rocks set against a bright sky and the green-blue waters of Salt Pond. On a different day, in another season, the colors

Vienna Mountain, Kennebec Highlands

31MarchadminViennablueberry barren, pond, view

Vienna Mountain trails in blue, other Kennebec Highland trails in red. McGaffey Mountain trails in gray. On a clear day, under a wide open sky, standing amid Vienna Mountain’s purple-red blueberry barrens and the varying shades of distant blue mountains is an extraordinary experience. At this site, in the state-owned Kennebec Highlands, you’ll find one

Boody Pond, Kennebec Highlands

21MarchadminViennabog, marsh, wetland, pond

Boody Pond trails in red; York Hill Farm fat biking trails in blue. By Sam Shirley The far western part of Kennebec Highlands Public Land, in Vienna and New Sharon, sees a lot less use than the eastern part. The miles of old woods roads in this part of the Highlands make for easy, secluded hiking.

Great Carrying Place Portage Trail

7OctoberadminCarrabassett Valley, near Carrabassett Valleybeach, history, pond

Great Carrying Place Portage Trail in blue; connecting trails in orange. By Sam Shirley This ~12-mile orange-blazed trail follows an ancient portage trail used by Native Americans, as well as the famous route that Benedict Arnold and his troops followed, from east to west, on their 1775 attempted invasion of Quebec City between the Kennebec

Coffin Pond

2JulyadminBrunswickpond, river, swimming

If you walk past the town’s public swimming pond, popular with little kids and other waterslide fans, you can follow unmarked, easy paths to the Androscoggin River, a trickling stream, a little gully, and around the pond to prominent ledges (good perches for swimming). The trail to the river bank is about 0.3 miles, and

Hanson Farm Trails and Lowd Environmental Reserve

2MayadminSanford-Springvalelong walk, pond, wheelchair accessible

Hanson Farm trails in blue; Lowd Environmental Reserve and connector trails in orange. You can go for a long walk in the miles of wide, forested trails around the 346-acre orchard, especially if you connect to the trail system beyond the farm’s boundaries. These unmarked trails will bring you to Mousam Way Land Trust’s 14-acre

Far Winde-a-Way Nature Preserve

14ApriladminGreenwoodcliffs, pond

By Sam Shirley Far Winde-A-Way Nature Preserve is located just down the road from the Noyes Mountain trailhead. (Winde is pronounced like the start of winding.) It is a network of trails on private land that have been generously opened to the public. Some of the trails pass along the shore of Mud Pond and

Basin Pond Trails

13ApriladminMonroepond, stream

The town’s 4-mile trail system criss-crosses the land east of Basin Pond, a mostly undeveloped 29-acre pond, and also brings walkers to points along the long and winding Marsh Stream. Don’t miss the little two-fingered point on the pond — it’s beautiful, and it looks as if you could take a swim here on a hot

Little Spencer Pond Trail

18OctoberadminGreenville, and near Greenvillepond

Just about 1.2 miles farther north along the dirt road from the Little Spencer Mountain trailhead you’ll pass a rather discreet trail to Little Spencer Pond. When we visited, there was a small trail sign tucked into the woods a few feet from the roadside. Other than this, the trail was unmarked but easy to