Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Rail-Trails Northern New England: The definitive guide to multiuse trails in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont
    Rail-Trails Northern New England: The definitive guide to multiuse trails in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont
    Rail-Trails Northern New England: The definitive guide to multiuse trails in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont
    Ebook381 pages1 hour

    Rail-Trails Northern New England: The definitive guide to multiuse trails in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont

    By Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Explore 60 of the best rail-trails and multiuse pathways across three states—Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont—with this official guide.

    All across the country, unused railroad corridors have been converted to public multiuse trails. Here, the experts from Rails-to-Trails Conservancy present the best of these rail-trails—as well as other multiuse pathways—in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.

    Bucket-listers won’t want to miss Vermont’s 13.4-mile Island Rail Trail, which boasts a spectacular 2.7-mile marble causeway crossing Lake Champlain. Those who like short and sweet might check out the 2.1-Eastern Promenade Trail showcasing Portland’s Casco Bay and Portland Harbor, or for lengthier adventures, New Hampshire’s 58-mile Northern Rail Trail—the longest rail-trail in the state—offers a variety of wooded landscapes, waterside enjoyment, and welcoming small towns. Whether you’re on your feet, wheels, or cross-country skis, there’s something for everyone in this collection of multiuse trails in Northern New England.

    In this book, you’ll find:

  • Detailed maps for each trail, plus driving directions to trailheads
  • Icons indicating the activities each trail can accommodate
  • Succinct descriptions written by rail-trail experts

    Rails-to-Trails Conservancy serves as the national voice for more than 160,000 members and supporters, more than 22,000 miles of open rail-trail across the country, and more than 8,000 miles of potential trails waiting to be built—with a goal of ensuring a better future for America made possible by trails and the connections they inspire.

    • LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWilderness Press
    Release dateMay 15, 2018
    ISBN9780899978987
    Rail-Trails Northern New England: The definitive guide to multiuse trails in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont

    Read more from Rails To Trails Conservancy

    Related to Rail-Trails Northern New England

    Related ebooks

    United States Travel For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Van Life Lite

      Oct 15, 2018

      Van Life Lite
      4 min read

    • Article

      Choose Your Own Adventure

      May 12, 2020

      Choose Your Own Adventure
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Internet Has A Rat Poison Problem

      Dec 20, 2021

      My shopping spree was born out of boredom. On a lazy July morning I was in bed browsing Amazon when I decided to follow up on a tip I had received. I plugged the word “brodifacoum” into Amazon’s search bar, and a second later my screen filled with wh

      14 min read

    • Article

      Community Assets

      Oct 28, 2020

      Community Assets
      7 min read

    • Article

      NEWS & NOTES

      Jul 30, 2021

      NEWS & NOTES
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Place

      Dec 29, 2017

      BY WILL RITCHIE PHOTOGRAPHED BY SCOTT MARKEWITZ Isn’t it supposed to be tame here? A fest of vanilla, hamster wheels of loops within prescribed parks, gentle berms and smooth lap riding where people are nice and nothing is scary? I’m perched precario

      9 min read

    • Article

      Q&A Kyle Horvath

      Apr 4, 2024

      Cyclist: Thanks for making the time to chat with us, Kyle. First of all, why should I listen to you about riding in Nevada? Just joking – but tell us about your riding background. Kyle Horvath: I played bikes all my time growing up in Virginia. Nothi

      8 min read

    • Article

      LETTER of THE MONTH

      Jul 19, 2023

      The article ‘What I learned tramping in Patagonia’ included some fine photographs, but the accompanying words and the ‘us and them’ theme were disappointing. Two of the finest skylines in the world deserve more than a few complaints and comparisons w

      3 min read

    • Article

      All Access

      Aug 31, 2022

      All Access
      3 min read

    • Article

      HANMER & TONGS

      Dec 22, 2020

      HANMER & TONGS
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Place

      Dec 13, 2017

      The Place
      10 min read

    • Article

      Railway Revival

      Mar 8, 2023

      Railway Revival
      11 min read

    • Article

      A Bicyclist’s ADK Dream

      Feb 21, 2020

      A Bicyclist’s ADK Dream
      7 min read

    • Article

      Wild East

      Aug 11, 2017

      Wild East
      9 min read

    • Article

      Outtakes

      Sep 1, 2023

      Outtakes
      3 min read

    • Article

      Trail Mix

      Oct 17, 2023

      Trail Mix
      2 min read

    • Article

      Q&A with Philip D’Anieri, author of ‘The Appalachian Trail: A Biography’

      Aug 25, 2021

      Author Philip D’Anieri talks about his book “The Appalachian Trail: A Biography” and how “we wind up asking new and different things from nature.”

      2 min read

    • Article

      Turning the Page

      Jun 2, 2017

      Turning the Page
      5 min read

    • Article

      Hitting The Bike Trails

      Aug 2, 2022

      Hitting The Bike Trails
      4 min read

    • Article

      On the Rocks

      Sep 20, 2017

      On the Rocks
      5 min read

    • Article

      Fresh Look

      Jan 1, 2022

      I had never hiked any of the Northville-Placid Trail’s 135 miles before the morning of Nov. 15. I had no expectations. I was coming back from two weeks of traveling, and I was excited to get back to the land I call home, upstate New York. What better

      3 min read

    • Article

      Letter Of The Month

      Nov 7, 2019

      Letter Of The Month
      4 min read

    • Article

      Is B.c. Getting Soft?

      Mar 20, 2020

      Is B.c. Getting Soft?
      6 min read

    • Article

      Fall Cycle

      Aug 31, 2022

      Fall Cycle
      3 min read

    • Article

      Reasons To Ride

      Mar 18, 2020

      Reasons To Ride
      2 min read

    • Article

      On The Rocks

      Sep 28, 2018

      On The Rocks
      5 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Rail-Trails Northern New England

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Rail-Trails Northern New England - Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

      Maine

      Kennebec River Rail Trail shares its corridor with active tracks, a configuration known as a rail-with-trail.

      1Aroostook Valley Trail

      County

      Aroostook

      Endpoints

      US 1/Main St. between ME 210/Reach Road and Parsons Road Connector/ME 163 (Presque Isle) to ME 164/Washburn St. between Willow Dr. and Roosevelt Ave. (Caribou) or Westmanland Road just east of Jepson Road (New Sweden)

      Mileage

      28.8

      Type

      Rail-Trail

      Roughness Index

      2–3

      Surfaces

      Crushed Stone, Dirt

      The Aroostook Valley Trail gets as much use from ATV riders and snowmobilers as it does from mountain bikers as it winds through the forests and potato farms of northeastern Maine. It’s so far north that the United States and United Kingdom both laid claims to the area in the late 1830s in a dispute dubbed the Pork and Beans War, which ended without combat.

      The rail-trail takes its name from the Aroostook Valley Railroad. (Local tribes translate Aroostook to beautiful river.) A lumber baron built the railroad in 1910 to haul logs to his Presque Isle sawmill and used the river to generate electricity to power the railroad to Washburn. Over the years, it expanded to Caribou and New Sweden and provided full freight and passenger service, though it hauled more freshly picked potatoes than anything else. Switching to diesel in the 1940s, the line struggled until it ended operations in 1996.

      Today the 28.8-mile trail connects with the Bangor & Aroostook Trail in Washburn and is part of the Interconnected Trail System, which comprises thousands of miles of ATV and snowmobile track in the state. Although it passes through four towns with food and lodging, most of the trail is remote, and travelers need to pack for backcountry emergencies. Note that in addition to snowmobiling and snowshoeing, dogsledding is permitted.

      In the far northeast reaches of Maine, this trail offers a rustic ride through quaint towns and remote areas.

      Starting at a riverside park on US 1 in Presque Isle, the largest town along the route, the trail follows the south bank of the Aroostook River. (A private ATV and snowmobile route heads east for 23 miles toward the Canadian border along the Canadian Pacific Railroad right-of-way.) You’ll head through second-growth forests of spruce, fir, beech, poplar, and birch and, in the clearings, see the vast potato farms for which Aroostook County is known. The trail crosses the river in 5 miles, then rolls along the north riverbank for nearly 5 miles to its junction with the Bangor & Aroostook Trail in Washburn.

      Leaving the banks of the Aroostook River and following the trail through town for a mile, you’ll take the right fork to remain on the Aroostook Valley Trail heading north. After passing through the Woodland Bog Preserve and arriving in Carson at 3.8 miles, the trail splits: the right branch goes east toward Caribou, and the left continues north to New Sweden.

      Caribou is 6.7 miles down the right branch, and, like other towns along the route, many businesses there cater to trail users. You’ll find restaurants, bakeries, coffee shops, and even bed-and-breakfasts less than 0.5 mile east from the trailhead on Washburn Street. A branch of the Bangor & Aroostook Trail also ends in town.

      Heading north from the trail junction in Carson, a separate 7-mile segment to New Sweden also passes through mostly woodland to Westmanland Road. New Sweden got its start after Maine invited immigrants to bolster its economy in the 1870s, and many Swedish events and traditions survive in the area. Light services are available in town, where you’ll also find a museum, as well as historic homes and churches.

      CONTACT: maine.gov/cgi-bin/online/doc/parksearch/details.pl?park_id=77 and caribourec.org

      DIRECTIONS

      To reach the trailhead in Presque Isle from I-95, take Exit 302 north toward Presque Isle on US 1/North St. Go 26.4 miles north on US 1, and turn left to remain on US 1 in Mars Hill. Go another 15.8 miles, and turn right into the Star City ATV Club parking lot on the right, just before you cross the Aroostook River.

      To reach the trailhead in Caribou from I-95, take Exit 302 north toward Presque Isle on US 1/North St. Go 26.4 miles north on US 1, and turn left to remain on US 1 in Mars Hill. Go another 26.8 miles, and turn left onto Lyndon St./Main St. in Caribou. Go 0.5 mile, and turn left onto Herschel St. Go 0.2 mile, turn left onto Prospect St., and then take your first right onto Sweden St. Go almost 0.1 mile, turn left onto Summer St. and then turn right onto ME 164/Washburn St. Go 0.1 mile, bear left to stay on ME 164/Washburn St., go 0.1 mile farther, and look for trailhead parking on the left. (This lot is not recommended for ATVs and snowmobiles. Instead, continue 2.6 miles past this parking lot to the trail crossing on ME 164/Washburn Road, where you’ll see parking on the right.)

      A parking lot dedicated to snowmobiles and ATVs is located at the northern endpoint in New Sweden and is accessible by crossing Westmanland Road (look for the path immediately to your right, which heads northeast a few hundred feet). However, there is no dedicated parking lot for automobiles during the week. On weekends, parking is permitted at the New Sweden Consolidated School parking lot, which can be accessed by heading west from the trailhead on Westmanland Road about 0.3 mile, and turning right into the parking lot. To reach the endpoint from I-95, take Exit 302 toward Presque Isle on US 1/North St. Go 26.4 miles north on US 1, and turn left to remain on US 1 in Mars Hill. Go another 27.7 miles, and turn left again in Caribou to remain on US 1. In 0.8 mile turn left onto US 1. In 7.2 miles turn left onto Emond Road/Townline Road. Go 1.7 miles, and Emond Road becomes Station Road. Go another 3.8 miles. The trailhead is 0.1 mile past the New Sweden Covenant Church.

      2Auburn Riverwalk

      County

      Androscoggin

      Endpoints

      Moulton Park at Hutchins St. and High St. to Great Falls Plaza near Turner St. (Auburn) or Simard-Payne Memorial Park at Beech St. and Oxford St. (Lewiston)

      Mileage

      1.6

      Type

      Rail-Trail

      Roughness Index

      1

      Surfaces

      Gravel/Crushed Stone, Asphalt, Brick

      The Auburn Riverwalk passes through the heart of the old mill district of the Twin Cities of Auburn and Lewiston. The 1.6-mile paved and gravel path offers many scenic views of the Androscoggin River, the powerhouse that fueled the historic mill industry. Lewiston is the second largest city in Maine and offers many dining opportunities. Keep an ear out for spoken French, as Lewiston is home to the largest French-speaking population in Maine (the language is spoken by nearly 15% of residents).

      A section of trail crosses the Androscoggin River on a trestle built by the Grand Trunk Railroad in 1909. The railway started service in the 1850s, connecting Portland with Montreal. It later added a line to Auburn and Lewiston, serving the shoe and textile industries that boomed here in the second half of the 19th century. The Canadian National Railway later took over the railroad.

      Starting in the west just past the skate park in Moulton Park, follow the gravel path for about 0.25 mile to a fork in adjoining Bonney Park. The left fork heads north alongside the Androscoggin River for 0.7 mile to West Pitch Park and its overlook at Great Falls, also known as Lewiston Falls. One of only 15 urban waterfalls in the United States, it drops 37 feet over rocky outcrops and is still used for hydroelectric power. The segment is paved in bricks and offers benches for viewing wildlife or simply contemplating life.

      Moulton Park, in the heart of Auburn, offers a great starting point for your journey.

      Taking the right fork from Bonney Park carries you across the Androscoggin River on a 425-foot converted railroad bridge. Viewing the river, you can appreciate the local efforts to clean up this waterway, once known as the most polluted in the state.

      After crossing the bridge, you will run into Simard-Payne Memorial Park, which serves as a welcoming gateway to the trail and river. The park has several small walking paths that lead down to benches along the river and a paved loop encircling the park. At the top of the loop, a short trail leads to a gravel lot for parking and a picnic area. Depending on when you arrive, you could also experience the annual Great Falls Brewfest in June, the Great Falls Balloon Festival in August, or the Dempsey Challenge in September.

      CONTACT: mainetrailfinder.com/trails/trail/Lewiston-auburn-greenway-trails

      DIRECTIONS

      To reach the Auburn trailhead from I-95, take Exit 80 toward ME 196/Lewiston. Traveling north on I-95, turn right onto Alfred A. Plourde Pkwy.; traveling south on I-95, turn left onto Alfred A. Plourde Pkwy. Go about 0.5 mile, and turn right onto Goddard Road, and then go 0.9 mile, and turn right onto River Road, which becomes Lincoln St. Go 1.6 miles, and turn left onto Cedar St., and then go 0.4 mile, and turn right onto Mill St. in Auburn. Go 0.1 mile, and turn right onto S. Main St., and then go 0.3 mile, and look for parking on your right. The trail is at the bottom of the slope; go left 0.2 mile for the western endpoint.

      To reach the Lewiston trailhead from I-95, take Exit 80 toward ME 196/Lewiston. Traveling north on I-95, turn right onto Alfred A. Plourde Pkwy.; traveling south on I-95 turn left onto Alfred A. Plourde Pkwy. Go about 0.5 mile, and turn right onto Goddard Road. Then go 0.9 mile, and turn right onto River Road, which becomes Lincoln St. Go 1.7 miles, and turn left onto Beech St. Cross the canal and park in Simard-Payne Memorial Park.

      3Bangor & Aroostook Trail

      County

      Aroostook

      Endpoints

      Main St./US 1A and State St./US 1 (Van Buren) to Morrison St. between Station St. and Hughes Road (Mapleton) or Limestone St. and Broadway

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1