We stumbled upon this trail one day while walking the Fore River Pathway Trail. This trail is also…read moreone of Portland Trails' network of trails and can be connected to the Fore River Parkway Trail by crossing the street. We crossed the street at the stop light by Mercy and discovered a little slice of wildlife heaven. This loop is a short walk, but what makes it interesting is that there is such a great little ecosystem. The pond is located between the employee lots and the hospital. The loop takes you around the marsh that they were not able to fill in when they built the hospital here. The path is paved and probably only 1/4- 1/2 mile total. There is some fencing around the pond/marsh. We have seen ducks, geese, woodchucks, lesser blue herons nesting, turtles, red-winged blackbirds and many other birds I can not identify. While this path is not long, it is pleasant and a nice distraction from all that is going on around you. I imagine for families or friends who have someone at the hospital, it is a nice way to get out and get air... or even a nice place for employees to take a quick walk on a break. As a side note, they have high bush blueberries planted along the backside of the loop by the train tracks and each blueberry season I have gone over and picked tons of berries!

We visited Thorncrag Bird Sanctuary on a Saturday morning. It had snowed the week prior, and the…read morecouple days run up to our visit it had alternated between rain and snow, making conditions a combination of slushy/snowy and muddy. There were lots of other folks at the place, some jogging/exercising, others walking dogs, and we saw a number of people 'power walking' with sticks. Parking lot was about half full. We entered into the sanctuary and took the blue trail to the right. We ended up walking all of the trails during the course of our 2.5 hours in the sanctuary, visiting the Anthony Fireplace, Miller Fireplace, Gordon's Ledge, and multiple small semi-frozen ponds. We really enjoyed the elevation changes, the variety of trees, the plethora of mushrooms and fungi. If it had been a tad better weather we could have stayed longer. I would definitely recommend walking sticks if you want to walk/hike here in snow - they really helped us navigate some of the steeper more slippery parts of the trail. I would also guess this place is awesome all year round, and a place worth visiting as the seasons change. Lovely little spot for a walk and enough trail distance to spend an hour or more without backtracking.

If you've lived in L/A your whole life and have never traversed the 3.5 miles of trails, or have…read morepassed through the area and thought there was nothing of note to see, I would highly recommend taking a couple hours to explore this wonderful Sanctuary! This 370+ acre nature conservation/wildlife preserve boasts of having the highest point in Lewiston (as a matter of fact, on really clear days you can see Mt. Washington from the Ray Landry Memorial Bench), and also claims to have a tree roughly 250 years old near Anthony's Fireplace. Walk around the trails and you'll see Whale Rock (a giant rock that looks like a... you guessed it!... whale), handmade wooden bridges over small streams, old homesteads, and - if you're very quiet - an abundance of different birds and (of course) squirrels. In the summer, the Sanctuary is lush and green; in autumn, it's the perfect escape from the city to enjoy the sights, smells, and sounds of foliage. So there you have it! Thorncrag is one of the most wonderful places in Androscoggin County for nature walks, jogging, hiking, picnics (remember to take your trash out, please!), cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing. Please be respectful and courteous of others who use the space: don't start fires or camp here, don't bring your bike or vehicle of any kind, dogs, horses, or alcohol (all of this is against the rules of the Sanctuary anyway)!

Totally love this trail! I spend many summer days either walking or riding the first length. Of…read morecourse there is always time to jump off the railroad trestle to cool off. I have often wondered how high up off the river this structure is. Anyway, it's very exhilarating and the view from there is spectacular year round.

This is a lovely partly paved path that runs from the ocean to the mountains. The Sebago to Sea…read moreTrail runs to Portland via westbrook road to this location. You can mountain bike or walk. I love this trail because you can choose your own adventure. Go as far as you like, past the rolling farmlands and through the woods. My dogs LOVE this little hike. There is one part, in Windham, which goes over an old train bridge. The view over the river from this spot is magnificent. Sebago to Sea Map Link: http://sebagotothesea.org/ Mountain Division Trail Map Link: http://me-windham.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/View/219

Portland Trails is a nonprofit land trust that preserves green space for public access. They…read moreconnect people with places by creating and maintaining a 70-mile (and growing) network of trails in Greater Portland. They encourage the participation of actively using the trails along with land stewardship. And they are trying to make our great region a model for people-powdered recreation and transportation. And nearly every day I am thankful for their existence. I go running on Back Cove - a 3.6 loop that is constantly in excellent condition. And when there's a problem (trash, broken fences, erosion in the trail) it takes maybe only a week before that's fixed. I feel safe there - the trail is compact and clean of debris, so I don't have any fears I'm going to trip over something and hurt myself (even when it's raining); the path is mostly well lit, so (as a smaller female) I don't feel physically uncomfortable or nervous being alone. I love my run, because I get outstanding views of the Portland skyline; and, I get an intimate look at nature (last autumn there were literally hundreds upon hundreds of Canadian geese that ate and slept in the marsh near mile marker 2... they were there for days). Portland Trails is great about community education and involvement, too. I've worked with a teen-centric non-profit before, and Portland Trails is great about allowing them to come volunteer on a trail. They get information on why the trail is being built, what important ecosystems need to be kept in place, and what this is going to mean for the immediate community. Love that they have all that knowledge about each and every one of their trails. Which, by the way, there are currently 30+ of. So if you like being outside (running, hiking, walking, looking at nature, etc.), there are so many options in so many different parts of Greater Portland that you'll never not have something to explore or be inspired by!

Portland has set aside a bunch of walking "trails" around the city for both the enjoyment of…read moreresidents and visitors. I love this idea and commend Portland for setting it up. They have a website were you can check out all the trails (which are almost entirely sidewalks) and download maps and descriptions. I chose to check out the two most appealing: the Back Cove Loop and the Portland Harbor trail. The Back Cove boasts that it gives great views of Portland. Harbors aside Portland isn't an attractive city from a distance by any means and I wouldn't go on any trails that boast a "view" of Portland. The Cove water level was way down and it was very swamp like when I went. It was a great paved loop (with a good sized parking lot) to go on to get exercise, some fresh air or to relax but there was nothing really to see. The Portland Harbor trail is quite a long trail you'd have to devote the majority of the day to completing (and walking back if you don't plan a water taxi ride in advance) the Trail brings your through the main stretch of Portland, over the bridge and runs through the neighborhoods of South Portland. It ends in getting to see the Bug Light. Unfortunately I didn't complete the trail but would love to go back and finish it. It's a really nice walk and a great addition to Portland.

Reviewing this so I can find it later! Lovely trail but definitely has parts of moderate…read moredifficulty, navigating steep climbs on slippery rocks and lots of tree roots to trip on. Not handicapped friendly. Cell reception was spotty at times. A few of the bridges are getting pretty rickety. Great for dogs, little/no bugs.

So, forget the trails. Someone else can review that. I'm here for floating down the river, which is…read moreone of the most fun, free summer activities that you'll find in the Portland area. When you're bored on a summer's day, grab a friend and head to Walmart for tubes and a few beers (in cans, of course). Take two cars. You can drop one car off after the bridge on Allen Ave Extension (a couple miles after the intersection with Washington Ave). Take the other car to the sandy parking lot before Hannaford in West Falmouth that's on the river. This is where I use for the entry point. The next three hours are absolute perfection. Floating down a mild current, bright sun beaming on your face and complete silence besides nature. The water is warm, somehow, even early in the season. It's a fairly wide river and very deep (yeah I may be the loser who wears a life jacket...I blame that on my parents for not investing in swimming lessons!). There's also rope swings at various points that you can jump off. After about two hours, you'll see signs warning of dangerous rapids and it will scare the living **** out of you. That's the time to head to shore and walk the trail for a few minutes. The signs aren't joking and I'd love to see a kayaker navigate those serious rapids. Hop back in the water after and keep relaxing until you reach the dock, which leads up the hill to your first car. I hope too many people don't discover this river because it's been so peaceful the last few summers. But it really is a great group activity and I'd highly recommend it if you want a break from the usual beaches/lakes.

Paved paths, natural beauty, easy access, plenty of parking, port-a-potty. Boat rentals in the…read moresummer. So much to do - walk, bike, horseback ride or maybe even roller blade. Canoe, kayak, paddle board on the Presumscot on a hot summer's day. Something for everyone!

This park is a dog-walkers dream…read more There is a 2-mile loop that includes part of the mountain division trail that goes all the way around the park. There is water for your dog to jump into, and fields for him to run in. During the summer they have boat rentals. Along the walk is the Gambo Dam. There are a few bridges to cross as well. Trash is carry-in, carry-out but they do have a dog-potty bag station and a few port-a-potties. The park is very clean and well maintained. A nice swing set and picnic tables too!

The South Portland Land Trust has done a great job in the Western side of South Portland (the Mall…read moreside) This is a paved sidewalk that goes around the outer edge of the Maine Mall. They did a nice job of repaving the sidewalks in order to make this Wellness Loop safer for people to walk. You can connect to the South Branch Trail at the JC Penny side as well, which travels over to the Cinemagic and Home Goods strip mall which you could then connect to the Red Brook trail or Clark's Pond Trails. The Wellness Loop is well lit and is a great walk with the dogs. We do actually cut across the parking lot by Sears and walk along by Best Buy until we get to Macy's just because we are often with the dogs and being on the "main drag" can me more stressful for them. This is our winter go to walk if we aren't on a beach due to the lighting and the fact that they do a great job plowing this sidewalk and keeping it well sanded.

I feel the need to preface all of my nature reviews with this: being 90% forested and having around…read more3500 miles of coastline, Maine has a tremendous amount of spaces, walkways, paths, and trails of all kinds and of all levels. There's something for everyone. What I'm reviewing is how a spot compares to similar outdoor spots in my personal opinion. Being in nature - and remembering to carry in, carry out - is always five stars! :) Parking? Yes. Loop trail? Kind of. Well marked signs? Kind of. Element of surprise? No. When I think about hikes in Maine I need to do again, want to do again, would suggest others do... Douglas Mountain is unfortunately not one of them. For a few reasons: 1. There's no real view at the summit; there's a large stone observation tower that's pretty cool that you can climb up to see maybe a 160° view of the Maine Lakes Region (mountains, bodies of water, etc.). However, unless you're at the top of the tower (which always has a large number of wasps, by the way), you can't see anything at all because of the tree coverage. 2. If you take Eagle Scout (orange) from the parking lot, the first part is a really lovely walk in the woods. It then becomes a much more strenuous uphill hike. You need to stick on this trail to reach the top of the mountain, but it becomes confusing near Nature Loop Trail --- there's a misleading path, that's not part of the trail system, that it seems people have made overtime in search of a shortcut. We watched about ten people follow each other into the woods on one of these, then doubleback when they realized they weren't on Eagle Scout anymore. After you get to the top you can go down Woods or Ledges trail... but they both end on a dead end road with private homes. It's underwhelming. 3. We didn't see anyone pay the $3 suggested donation (to help maintain the trails). So that's a bummer; on the flipside, people were very respectful and patient about taking turns going up the stone tower so there wasn't overcrowding there. 4. If I wanted something similar, honestly I think Bradbury or Mt. Agamenticus are much better choices. Here's what I can say about Douglas Mountain: have you ever seen a man take his chickens hiking before? Because I have.

it's a pretty view but not the best i've ever seen. you can see mount washington from the top of…read morethe stone tower. the stone tower had a lot of wasps/hornets. it said the hike was a mile up and a mile down but my apple watch said the total (up AND down) was only 0.8 miles. nice hike though.