Sunday, July 23, 2000
Five great spots for peaceful paddling
These lakes, ponds and rivers are uncrowded even on weekends.
Copyright © Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.
With more than 6,000 ponds and lakes and 5,000 rivers and streams, Maine offers a lifetime of exploring by canoe. Here are five great spots for a day of canoeing. Although these spots are likely to be peaceful and relatively uncrowded even on weekends, weekdays are the best times for maximum solitude.
Horseshoe Pond, Lovell | Turner Pond, Somerville | Little River, Freeport | Pemadumcook Lake, west of Millinocket | Sherman Lake, Edgecomb
Nestled against the southern boundary of the White Mountain National Forest, Horseshoe Pond has some unobtrusive development on its southern end but otherwise offers wilderness solitude. A four-mile paddle covers the complete shoreline.
Horseshoe's shoreline is thick with hardwoods and evergreens. White birches hang delicately out over the water. The end of the peninsula bisecting the two angular bays contains a stand of tall red pine. Listen for their song.
Heart-shaped Sugarloaf Mountain (no, not that Sugarloaf) towers over the pond to the north.Further north, the broad summits of Ames and Speckled mountains peer up out of Evans Notch on the Maine-New Hampshire border.
The pond is clear and refreshing, offering prime swimming. One of the best spots to take a plunge is at the northern end of the eastern bay. Cruising the shoreline, look for an obvious open area under a cluster of large white pines and a conspicuous white birch leaning out over the water. The soft white sand in the shallows makes a great spot to sit in the water and soak up the midday sun. Swim out a bit, and you can enjoy the panoramic mountain scenery.
To get to Horseshoe Pond, drive to Kezar Lake in Lovell. Cross The Narrows and follow the West Lovell
Road on the western side of Kezar Lake. Just beyond the Kezar Lake Camping Area, turn left onto the
Foxboro Road. You will come to two forks; take the right fork each time. The road turns to dirt at the
second fork. The boat access area is well kept and offers ample parking.
(See Delorme Map #10)
The drive itself makes this paddling spot worth the time. Rolling meadows are full of colorful wildflowers, and distant views of the Camden Hills beckon to the east.
Situated 15 miles east of Augusta, this narrow pond offers two hours of exploring in its nooks and crannies.
Drive east of Augusta on Route 105 to Somerville. Turn left onto the Turner Ridge Road. In one mile, turn left onto the gravel Colby Road. Put in on the right, a mile up the road, just after passing over Lovejoy Stream.
There is no development on the pond so you will be sharing it with lots of wildlife: loons, blue heron, osprey and a variety of wading birds.
The pond has changed significantly the past few years. The old dam on the outlet stream has fallen into disrepair, and the water level has dropped 5 feet. This means mud around the edges of the pond and shallow going in spots. On a recent visit, we hit a few submerged rocks.
A couple of gigantic glacial erratics sit in the hardwood forest along the shoreline. Ringing the shoreline are boulders of every shape and size.
As you head north on the pond, you will encounter a number of ledges and islands. There is a conspicuous ledge island a half mile up the pond. It makes for a great picnic spot. Rising 10 feet above the water, it provides an expansive view over the pond.
At the northern reaches of the pond, beds of yellow pond lilies and fragrant water lilies float on the surface. Turn back here and explore the opposite shoreline on the way back.
Turner Pond is not a swimming pond. If you are in the mood for a swim, there are plenty of options nearby.
A few miles east on Route 105, Washington Pond is clear and cool, perfect for a dip. Park at the state of
Maine boat access site at the southern tip of the pond. Damariscotta Lake State Park is to the south in
Jefferson, and Lake St. George State Park in Liberty is to the north.
(See Delorme Map #13)
If you are looking for a beautiful place to paddle in a salt marsh environment, check out Freeport's Little River, adjacent to Wolfe's Neck Farm.
The Little River is a 10-minute drive from L.L. Bean. Turn off Main Street onto Bow Street and follow Bow Street and Flying Point Road for 2.5 miles. Turn right onto the Wolf Neck Road. Drive 1.5 miles to the gravel Burnett Road and turn left. Drive 0.4 mile to a bridge over the Little River. Put in on either side of the bridge.
The cove at the mouth of the river flats out at low tide, when only a small ribbon of fresh water snaking out to the cove remains. The best time to paddle is from two hours before high tide to two hours after high tide. Any other time, you will be mired in mud.
Follow the tidal flow up through a broad estuary. A few saltwater farms sit on a hillside meadow on the left, but with the first serpentine turn, all vestiges of civilization will be left behind. Settle in for a winding journey upriver for two miles. The channel soon narrows, and hardwoods and mixed evergreens lean over the river. You will see many kingfishers along the shoreline.
The thrill of this paddle is in the exploration. With so many oxbows and dramatic turns, you never know what you will see around the next bend: wild turkeys, deer, mallards, goldfinches. A few downed trees along the way can be portaged around easily.
Watching the flow the debris in the water for clues to the tidal direction. How far can you go before water depth, and deadfall, turn you back?
Head out with the tide on a downhill rush to the sea. The challenge is in holding back the speed just enough so that you can turn your craft in time to avoid a nose plant into the sinuous oxbows.
On a calm day, additional exploring can be enjoyed in the cove adjoining Wolf Neck Woods State Park. Cross under the Burnett Road bridge and follow the shoreline over to Googins Island. The sharp cry of osprey wheeling in the air mixes with the gentle cooing of eider ducks.
On the eastern side of the cove, granite ledges provide a fine vantage point for sunset vistas.
(See Delorme Map #6)
Pemadumcook Lake, west of Millinocket
This overnighter is for experienced lake paddlers only. Pemadumcook, Maine's fifth largest lake, is subject to strong winds and sudden storms. An early morning start should be considered to take advantage of calm conditions. Spending the night before in Millinocket will provide you an early start.
This paddle in combination with a short hike south on the Appalachian Trail to the Potaywadjo Spring Lean-to primitive campsite offers one of the best paddle-hike trips in the state.
Start at the boat access site at Spencer Cove at Millinocket Lake. Put in on the western side of the Golden Road. Paddle 10 miles to the western shoreline of Pemadumcook, to where Twitchell Brook enters the lake. Stash your canoe in the woods, and pack your gear a mile south (left) on the Appalachian Trail to the campsite. The AT is blazed in white, and is just a few yards into the woods from the shoreline.
If the lake level is low, the mouth of Twitchell Brook will be harder to find due to a maze of exposed boulders. Consult your map, and poke about -- you will find it.
One of the delights of your journey will be discovering the large bubbling spring at the campsite. It is considered by many to be the finest spring along the whole 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail -- cold enough to give you an ice cream headache even in the hottest of weather. The bottom of the spring is pure white sand, and four to five sizable sand bubbles percolate up out of the bottom. It is mesmerizing to watch. If the water table is down, the bubbles are less frequent. There is a lean-to and privy at the campsite. Bring a tent in case the lean-to is occupied.
The views of Katahdin are impressive from the lake. Maine's highest point towers above the evergreen forest on the shores of Ambajejus and Pemadumcook Lakes. It is hard to believe it is 15 miles away as the crow flies. It appears to be peering over the lake.
Quite a few cottages dot the shores of Ambajejus Lake, but once you enter the wide reaches of
Pemadumcook, civilization is left behind. At the campsite the forest cover is punctuated by the echoing
call of loons down on the lake, and the hooting of owls getting ready for the evening hunt.
(See Delorme Map #43, and the Maine Appalachian Trail Guidebook Map #2)
How many times have you driven by the Sherman Lake Rest Area adjacent to Route 1 in Edgecomb and wondered how the paddling is on Sherman Lake? It's even better than you imagined. Put in under the Route 1 bridge adjacent to the rest area.
You have three exceptional options here: Sherman Lake south of the highway, and Deer Creek and the Marsh River north of the highway. For the latter two, be sure of the tide situation. The waters of each are connected to the tidal ebb and flow of the Sheepscot River. Putting in two hours before high tide allows plenty of time to explore, and still have enough water to get back to your vehicle.
Sherman Lake was not always a freshwater lake. It was once a saltwater marsh. The building of Route One in the 1920s created the lake. A few saltwater farms dot the meadowed slopes to the east of the lake, but for the most part the shoreline is undeveloped. Red-winged blackbirds play in the reeds along the edge.
The lake is shallow, with floating mats of pickerelweed suspended on the surface. Steep, forested hills line the western side of the lake. You will encounter a number of beaver lodges in the northern reaches of the lake. Anglers looking for bass and pickerel are courteous and quiet.
A conspicuous cove on the eastern shore leads under a small bridge and into a secluded backwater. Follow the brook up to the ruins of an old grist mill. This was a busy spot more than a century ago. A nearby ferry used to transport farm produce and raw materials down to Wiscasset, where they were transported onto schooners for the journey to Boston markets.
Under the Route 1 bridge, you can see the ruins of the old highway and the low dam that created the lake by halting the twice-daily flush of the tide. A fish ladder helps alewives make their annual spring trip up over the dam and into the lake.
If you choose to explore the tidal marsh north of Route 1, you can go a couple of miles up Deer Brook
encountering osprey, kingfisher and a multitude of shorebirds along the way; or paddle to the left up the
Marsh River, which connects into the Sheepscot River four miles away. Just keep the tides in mind.
(See Delorme Map #7)
Michael Perry is former director of the L.L. Bean Outdoor Discovery Program and founder of Dreams Unlimited, specializing in multi-media programs about the outdoors. This article first appeared in the VacationLand Guide, July 23, 2000.