Hiking and Backpacking in Maine

Maine's landscape boasts numerous scenic trails for the hiking, camping and backpacking enthusiast. Thirty-three state parks encompass the state, with over half of these offering well maintained hiking trails. Maine topo maps and hiking trail maps are available through Trails.com. Browse over 30,000 trails and unlimited topo maps for free. Sign up today! Some of the more popular hiking destinations include Baxter State Park, home to 5,267 foot Mt. Katahdin and the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. This scenic park has more than 175 miles of trails with picturesque natural areas and waterfalls interspersed along the way.

Along Route 26, several miles north of Bethel in the Western Mountains & Lakes Region, lies 4,180 Old Speck Mountain in Grafton Notch State Park. Screw Auger Falls, Mother Walker Falls, and Moose Cave Gorge are but a few of the natural wonders hikers will see via this route! To the east lies Tumbledown Mountain. This three peaked mountain is just north of Weld, and borders scenic Webb Lake. One of the more popular trails around this mountain is the Brook Trail, an easy 1.5 mile roundtrip hike which passes Tumbledown Pond, agreat freshwater fishing spot! From Brook Trail, hikers can traverse the Parker Trail, an easy climb to the east and west peaks of Tumbledown Mountain.

 

Due north is the Bigelow Mountain Range, on the northern ringe of the Carrabassett Valley. Several hikes in this area offer magnificent panoramic views of Sugarloaf Mountain, home to the Sugarloaf/USA Ski Resort, and Flagstaff Lake, the state's fourth largest lake, to the north. One of the more popular hikes in this area is a trek to the 4,150 foot summit of West Peak.

Along Maine's coast, hikers will find two very popular parks with well maintained trails and awesome vistas. Camden Hills State Park in the Camden/Rockland area has approximately 30 miles of trails, which can be accessed from five trailheads. All trails lead to the summits of 800 foot Mt. Battie or 1,380 foot Mt. Megunticook and offer breathtaking views of the mid-coast region. To the northeast lies Acadia National Park. This park, which surrounds the town of Bar Harbor on Mount Desert Island, has 120 miles of hiking trails and 45 miles of carriage roads. Hikers will enjoy the views from the top of Cadillac Mountain, the Eastern Seaboard's highest point.