Our next #WEOUTSIDE trip was a truly special one: a trip to Penobscot Nation tribal lands to learn about Wabanaki culture and the relationship to the land. We were fortunate to have four personnel from the Penobscot Nation Department of Natural Resources who took the group out to locations that the public doesn’t normally get to see.

This including a great swimming location where Shantel talked to the group about the importance of water quality. The kids are thinking of water primarily as something to swim in but Shantel showed them the water quality levels and the importance of clean streams for cold water fish species and drinking water. Chuck talked to them about some of the riparian tree species nearby – white/paper birch as the species for making canoes and black ash as the central species in the Wabanaki creation story of Gluskabe firing an arrow into its trunk, and the Wabanaki people springing forth from it.

These were great connections for the kids to make, given that they had paddled canoes and seen many white birch and other species out on our trips!

We would like to extend our great thanks to the Penobscot Nation Department of Natural Resources for having us as their guests!

Trip #4! For this outing, we wanted to get the kids out to access Maine’s numerous lakes, rivers, ponds, and streams. Paddling is a great way to access the A.T. region of Maine that doesn’t involve hiking and is a great way to do it if you have a camera crew from Maine Public tagging along! Which we did. One of the logistical challenges with a group paddle is the number of boats, life jackets and paddles you need to pull together. Fortunately, for this trip as several others, we partnered with another Maine conservation organization to to help us out! Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust and Amanda provided all the boats and gear along with instruction so we could get the participants out for some fun in a safe way.

Our destination was the Cupsuptic River, a relative short and slow river that empties into Cupsuptic Lake (which is actually just the northern portion of Mooselookmeguntic Lake). After getting our gear and going through a tutorial on paddling and canoe logisitics with Amanda, we were ready to paddle a few miles upstream for lunch at Hickley’s Cafe on the far shore. (The “cafe” is really just a nice lunch spot with picnic tables and an outhouse.) Fortunatley for us, both Amanda AND one of the Maine Public camera crew speak Portuguese and so things moved efficiently as they typically do with about a dozen twelve year-olds attempting to paddle canoes for the first time in their lives.

Fortunately, everybody made it for lunch. A few boats even pioneered new paddling techniques like the “zig zag for shore to shore” and “going backwards seems easier, let’s do that” methods. Lunch was provided by the Oquossoc Grocery and since there was very little garbage to pack out, everybody seemed satisfied. The return trip was downstream so it went a bit quicker, leaving lots of time for swimming at the boat launch and interviews for the Maine Public documentary. They are creating a multi-platform project called Borealis which will focus on people in the outdoors in Maine.

Then after loading up the boats the kids went swimming. Special thanks to the Maine Forest Rangers for helping to load the trailer. And stay tuned for adventure #5 next week!

#WEOUTSIDE – Trip #3. For this trip to the Maine Appalachian Trail region, we wanted to start challenging the participants. They are all eleven to thirteen years old and we wanted to see what they can do! Weather and time were a bit of an issue, so we decided to head up to Table Rock in Grafton Notch, on the side of West Baldpate Mountain. The hike is approximately 2.5 miles and is pretty steep in places – complete with a section of iron rungs to climb to reach the flat viewpoint on the rock at the top. The kids had all their own gear, including lunches, so would be hiking for that reward!

The weather was hot but we were grateful that the rain has been falling on days when #WENOTOUTSIDE. The kids started out slowly, getting their legs under them, but gradually picked up steam with help from Mardi. She is a hiking expert and as a Black woman out on the trail, imparting her experience to a new group of hikers who look like her is immensely important. There’s even a documentary about her! We were so grateful to her for leading this group.

We had lunch up on Table Rock, enjoyed the views and took many photographs. The trip down was pretty quick, especially when the kids were told we could go SWIMMING in one of the nearby waterfall areas. After coordinating with a camp group, we headed over to Mahoosuc Land Trust’s Step Falls Preserve to cool off. Strategically, we didn’t tell the kids they would have to hike a half a mile to get to the pools. But just when their spirits were flagging, we made it! The falls have a series of “water slides” that are great to slide down, into pools of water at the base. Some local swimmers were very helpful in guiding us on reaching the best areas. We all know sweaty hiking is way more fun, but we were able to force the kids to swim for a little while…

Onto the next expedition!

The #WEOUTSIDE crew had its first outing in the Maine woods on Wednesday, to the Perham Stream Birding Trail. This quiet spot in the valley between Mount Abraham and Saddleback was once home to the settlement of East Madrid, Maine, but is now a quiet intervale between Perham Stream and Orbeton Stream. The former farmland has reverted to blueberry meadow and forest, making it ideal habitat for migratory birds! The trail is located on land conserved by the High Peaks Alliance and hosts many birding festivals and walks throughout the year. It’s an ideal spot to introduce this group of kids who are new to Maine to what a wonderful place it is.

We started out with lunch (of course) since food is a great motivator. After eating along the quiet banks of Perham Stream, Pete McKinley, an ecologist with The Wilderness Society, led our group along the trail through the blueberry fields. Pete’s skills in hearing and identifying the calls of migratory bird species really engaged the kids, who had great questions about behavior (“Why do they call to each other? What makes a mate choose one over another?”). Since this group are native Portuguese speakers we had a translator with for the hike and she did an excellent job. Birds are fascinating for all ages, whatever the language.

It was a fairly hot day but on the way back things were livened by a rare summer moose sighting! The moose, a juvenile presumably interested in other young people fooling around in the hot weather, stayed around for a few minutes, allowing everybody to get an up-close view. Couldn’t have worked out better if we had staged it for this first expedition!

We ended the day back by Perham Stream, where several kids predictably got soaking wet despite trying not to. Check back for info on next week’s hike on the Appalachian Trail in the Mahoosucs!

The #WEOUTSIDE program was finally launched on June 30th at the Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth, with the goal of introducing the participants to the Maine outdoors in low-key manner (and with food). Maine Audubon graciously allowed MANA and the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust to use both their indoor facilities for going over some safety and preparedness information, but also to then be able to step outside and immediately forget all of it while enjoying the beauty and peace of this nice spot along the Presumpscot River estuary. Despite being new to Maine and new to this environment, the kids aren’t shy about their personalities and that made this introduction day all the more fun.

Special thanks to Eric Topper, Director of Education for Maine Audubon, and translator Gee for being so emphatic in helping out with the language barrier (“Poison ivy. Do not touch! You – don’t touch!!!)

Next week will be the first trip in the Maine Appalachian Mountain region so check back for more info!

#WEOUTSIDE is a partnership program between the Maine Association for New Americans (MANA) and the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust, with a focus on youth ages 13 to 25 who were are currently are housed in hotels or the Portland Expo Center, and other immigrant youth participating in MANA’s Peer Support program. These participants traveled through harsh outdoor conditions to arrive in Maine in detention centers and then shelters and hotels. They are currently navigating the asylum system and seeking stable housing, but as summer approaches many of these young asylum seekers will have more free time to explore their surroundings. 

We will have more updates on this really amazing program as the summer progresses!

The Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust has an important announcement! The land trust accreditation program recognizes land conservation organizations that meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. The Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust is pleased to announce it is applying for accreditation. A public comment period is now open.

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, conducts an extensive review of each applicant’s policies and programs. Accreditation is an important step for the organization as it continues to grow and meet the challenge of protecting land surrounding the Appalachian Trail in Maine for public benefit.

The Commission invites public input and accepts signed, written comments on pending applications. Comments must relate to how the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust complies with national quality standards. These standards address the ethical and technical operation of a land trust. For the full list of standards see https://www.landtrustaccreditation.org/help-and-resources/indicator-elements.

To learn more about the accreditation program and to submit a comment, visit www.landtrustaccreditation.org, or email your comment to info@landtrustaccreditation.org. Comments may also be mailed to the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, Attn: Public Comments, 36 Phila Street, Suite 2, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.

Comments on the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust’s application will be most useful by May 1, 2023. Thanks you for your input and continued support!

The Four Ponds Preserve hike along the Appalachian Trail near Height of Land* in Township E, Maine is one of our tamer hikes, but it is not without its challenges. Although there are no tall mountains to climb this day, there were plenty of hilly ups and downs to get our blood pumping. The weather was chilly at the start, around 9 degrees but there was no wind; we had bright sunshine and bluebird skies.

6 MATLT hikers met at the snowmobile parking lot about a half mile northwest of the trailhead. We grabbed our gear and walked to the trailhead dodging a little traffic along the way.  It was clear no one had been on the trail in ages, so we were prepared to do some trail breaking. We donned our snowshoes and immediately began a gradual climb into the woods.  Fortunately, the snow was not too deep, and as it was crunchy and frozen on top, trail breaking was less arduous than expected.

The Four Ponds Preserve lies just east of Mooselookmeguntic Lake. The Appalachian Trail traverses the length of this 6,000-acre unit with a lean-to at Sabbath Day Pond and a campsite at Little Swift River Pond. Fishing and swimming are popular activities during the warmer months.  Snowshoeing and nearby snowmobile trails are the winter activities.

We wandered in about 2.5 miles of the trail, stopping often to hydrate and snack, take pictures, admire Long Pond or to examine some animal tracks. We think we identified some moose tracks, maybe coyote, probably some hares and some kind of feline. Lynx, bobcat? Alas, no experts among us.  It is a beautiful hike through the woods in the winter and everyone remarked how just how beautiful and peaceful it was.  As we got a later start than planned, we exited the woods in the late afternoon. As we headed back to the cars, we all spent a moment admiring the spectacular views from Height of Land. All in all, a great day.

* Height of Land is perched beside Route 17 in western Maine and offers an expansive look at the sprawling Rangeley Lakes Region and the mountains beyond. This viewpoint is considered one the finest in the state and maybe in all of New England.