Chosen By: Beth Comeau, Communications Manager Location: Phippsburg, Sagadahoc County Description: Popham Beach is a sandy beach near Fort Popham, at the mouth of the Kennebec River. It’s near the site of the short-lived Popham Colony, founded in 1607 and abandoned the following year. Farther down the beach is Popham Beach State Park, a state Read More
Explore Maine Map locations
Smalls Falls
Chosen By: Beth Comeau, Communications Manager Location: Madrid, Franklin County Description: A 54-foot waterfall on the Sandy River Activities: Swimming, hiking, photography, picnicking Favorite season to visit: Early fall Why it’s special: This waterfall is beautiful! You can hike up to the top, swim in the fresh, clean water at the bottom of the falls, Read More
Upper Androscoggin River
Chosen By: Allison Wells, Senior Director, Communications Location: Gilead to Bethel, Oxford County Description: A six-mile excursion from Gilead to Bethel along a beautiful stretch of the Androscoggin River. The paddle, at a leisurely pace, takes three to four hours and winds through the spectacular beauty of the Mahoosucs, the northernmost extension of the White Read More
Tunk Lake Area, including Donnell Pond and Spring River Lake
Tunk Lake Area, including Donnell Pond and Spring River Lake Location: In and around Township 10 SD, 12 miles east of Ellsworth, Hancock County Description: The Donnell Pond Public Reserved Land unit includes mountains, pristine lakes, and remote ponds all spread out over 14,000 acres in eastern Maine. There are sites for camping along the pond’s beaches, Read More
Pocomoonshine Lake
A Land for Maine’s Future program grant helped the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife acquire land alongside the Town of Princeton’s boat launch on Pocomoonshine Lake. The increased lake frontage will allow for parking and a turnaround at this popular sport fishing site, and will create safer opportunities for swimming (situated farther from Read More
Presumpscot River Preserve and Walton Park Water Access Site
Before its waters were harnessed for dams and polluted with industrial waste, the Presumpscot was a clear and swift-moving river that plunged over 12 sets of falls in its 24-mile course from Sebago Lake to Casco Bay. Improvements in water quality have renewed recreational interest in the river, after decades in which people kept far Read More
Rangeley Lakes Region
The Land for Maine’s Future (LMF) program has helped to conserve three recreational gems in the Rangeley Lakes region. An LMF grant enabled Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust to purchase Bald Mountain from International Paper. The Trust subsequently transferred this 1,873-acre tract to the Bureau of Parks and Lands for management as the Bald Mountain Public Reserve. A Read More
River-Link Trail
Multiple conservation partners have joined forces to establish the River-Link Trail, a 10-mile stretch of protected freshwater and tidal streams, forests, shorelands, and trails connecting the Sheepscot and Damariscotta Rivers. By linking existing conservation holdings, this corridor will enhance the ecological value of established preserves and create a unique 20-mile hiking experience in Midcoast Maine. Read More
Round and Long Ponds
Knowing that Round Pond was a popular destination for fishermen seeking bass and brown trout, the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife (IF&W) began looking for a water access site on its shores more than a decade ago. Finally, in 2000, the State had an opportunity to acquire an attractive, wooded 17-acre parcel, bordering Read More