This 1,500-acre preserve lies at the heart of Maine's Bold Coast, which stretches from Western Head in Cutler to Quoddy Head in Lubec. Some of preserve's many exceptional natural features include nearly 3 miles of salt water frontage, bold headlands, gravel and cobble beaches, bluejoint meadows, coastal peatlands, and one of the only natural ponds in the towns of Cutler and Trescott - 10-acre Norse Pond. Bog Brook Cove's high rocky shore provides sweeping views across Grand Manan Channel to New Brunswick's Grand Manan Island.
The preserve showcases a scattering of rocky knolls separated by gently sloping ground, swampy flats, wet meadows, and small brooks (an estimated 40% of the property consists of wetland soils). The diverse habitat is home to a great variety of wildlife, including black bear, bobcat, and fisher.
The preserve has a long history of human activity that has included farming and forestry. Today, roughly 80 acres of the preserve are managed for commercial organic blueberry harvesting.
The Bog Brook Preserve consists of multiple adjoining parcels, interspersed with privately-owned properties. MCHT acquired the first parcel in 2005, but the bulk of the preserve was purchased in 2008. There are several trails with two separate parking lots. The northern parking lot provides access to the Moose Cove trails, including an ADA trail. The southern access parking lot is the trailhead for Norse Pond and Bog Brook Cove.
The handicapped accessible trail at Moose Cove leads 1,100 feet to a spectacular lookout over the cobble beach below and out to the Grand Manan Channel beyond. The surface of the trail is stone dust, and it is six feet wide. The trail slopes very slightly downward toward the cove. There are stone barriers at the beginning of the trail, but with the opening between them is wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs.
The Norse Pond trail takes the hiker through deciduous and coniferous woodlands, up several rocky knolls and along the eastern side of Norse Pond and down to Bog Brook Cove Beach--the only public access to the beach which is privately owned and open to the public via the generosity of the landowner.
With the adjacent 12,234-acre state-owned Cutler Coast Unit, Bog Brook Cove is part of the largest contiguous area of conservation land on the Maine coast outside of Acadia National Park.
To read about Enock's experience using a wheelchair on these trails in MTF Stories, click here.
Please note: This preserve is abutted by private parcels. Please stay on the established trails and observe preserve guidelines below; a map showing the preserve’s boundaries is available from the Maine Coast Heritage Trust website.
There is no camping or fires permitted on the preserve. Please stay on established trails, carry out all waste (including human and pet waste and toilet paper), keep pets under control, respect the privacy of preserve neighbors, and do not pick privately-managed blueberries or wander in the blueberry fields. Cell phone coverage is unreliable so please come prepared and do not count on it in case of emergency.
This trail passes through a property that was acquired in part with funds from the Land for Maine’s Future program. For more information about the LMF program and the places it has helped to protect, please visit the LMF webpage.
Visit Maine Coast Heritage Trust online for more information or contact:
There are two main parking areas for the Bog Brook Cove Preserve, both off ME-191. The south entrance parking area, in Cutler, is 18.5 miles from the junction of US-1 and ME-191 in East Machias (5-6 miles from Cutler Village and 8.2 miles south of ME-189 in Lubec). Use this trailhead for Norse Pond and Bog Brook Cove Beach.
The north entrance parking area, in Trescott, is 1.5 miles further north. From ME-191, turn onto Moose River Road, which is the only road with a small triangle of land in the middle of the turn (20 miles east of US-1 in East Machias and 6.7 miles from ME-189 in Lubec). Continue 1.1 miles to the end of a private gravel road to the handicapped accessible parking area. Use this trailhead for the handicapped accessible trail, the beaches at Moose Cove, and the Ridge Trail.
Note: The trail comes out onto Bog Brook Road (labeled Shag Rock Road/Scraggly Rock Road on the map), but vehicle access to these points are discouraged due to steep sections of road.
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