Hiking in Maine

The Blackstrap Hill Preserve, along with the Blackstrap Community Forest, is comprised of two separate properties totaling almost 600 acres and 11 miles of trails, owned by the Falmouth Land Trust (FLT) and the Town of Falmouth, and divided by north and south. We have hiked this several times, and the photos are from a mid-March day and a mid-November day, several years apart. Dogs are allowed, and must be on-leash within 300 ft of trailheads. Hunting is permitted, so blaze orange is highly suggested in-season. Parking is available at the Blackstrap Community Forest parking lot on Blackstrap Road, where there is a small lot and map kiosk (see the FLT website for a map). From there, we have completed a loop of about 4.2 miles in a little under two hours (White Trail, Waterfall Trail, Red Trail, Greenline Trail, Saw Whet Trail, and Cross-Cut Trail).

The Preserve is also accessible from a trailhead further up Blackstrap Road (same as for North Falmouth Community Forest), just north of Babbidge Road, where we did a 4.8 mile hike in about 2 hours (River Trail, Hayfield Trail, River Trail, Updraft Trail, Bobcat Trail, Rocky Ridge Trail, Happy Cats Trail), as well as another small parking lot off Hurricane Road. A connector to the east (from the River Trail) extends to the Hadlock Community Forest, as well.

In March, after a short walk across the grassy field to the White Loop Trail, I put on micro spikes to deal with the icy footing. The White Loop Trail led to the Waterfall spur trail, marked with purple blazes, which added about .7 miles out and back, with the pleasant sound of the creek leading downhill. The waterfall was not so much one massive torrent, but a pleasing series of cascades, and would be a nice, easy hike for young children in warmer months.

I returned to the White Loop Trail, continuing a counter-clockwise loop to the Red Trail, which was wide and sunken, making it a sort of frozen river in the winter melt. At the Red Trail intersection with the Yellow Trail (which I bypassed), you can begin to hear the highway again. The trail network is mostly self-correcting, with maps at major intersections.

I turned left by a lazy bend in the West Branch of the Piscataqua River to take the Greenline Trail toward the Saw Whet Trail. The Saw Whet climbs a ridge next to a marshy area, and is not particularly well-marked, but I eventually re-acquired some white blazes, eventually returning to the Red Trail and then the White Trail, which widened out for the loop back to the parking lot. For the longer loop from further up Blackstrap, we used AllTrails to navigate clockwise, dodging a few mountain bikers here and there (all of whom were courteous and respectful).