From the trailhead at the Visitor Center, the Silver Maple trail travels through the woods over mostly flat terrain. It crosses various small campus trails for about a half a mile before reaching and following a small side-branch of the river and marshes on the left. The Silver Maple trail reaches main river after 1.4 miles, and follows the river along its banks for an additional 0.4 miles before reaching a trail junction. At the junction, the Tote Road goes to the right, and the River Trail goes to the left.
The Riverside Trail follows the banks of the Penobscot River for its entire length of 6.7 miles, offering spectacular view, and occasional crossings over well-constructed bridges. There are Link Trails to the east every mile or two, linking to the Tote Road which parallels the Riverside Trail and heads back to the Silver Maple Trail, allowing skiers to loop back to the trailhead at any time for routes of a variety of distances. The Riverside Trail leads to two warming huts with vault toilets. The Pine and Ridges warming hut is located 3.5 miles from the trailhead; the Long Meadow warming hut, which offers views of Katahdin, is 8.5 miles from the trailhead.
The Tote Road Trail is 5.3 miles in length, and can be used as a return route from the Long Meadow hut back to the junction with the Silver Maple Trail. Fat biking is allowed on the Tote Road, and only on the Tote Road.
At the northern end of the trail network, the Long Meadow Hill Trail offers another 1.9 miles of skiing, as an alternative to the Tote Road from the Long Meadow warming hut.
At the southern end of the trail network, the Long Logan Loop circles along the river near the Visitor Center for 1.2 miles of easy skiing.
Penobscot River Trails is a nature preserve which is privately owned by a family funded Maine registered charitable foundation. The trails are groomed with a Pisten Bully snow groomer for Olympic quality trails. The Visitor Center has a wood stove and heated restrooms; the warming huts (day-use only) are heated with wood stoves.
All visitors are required to register at the Visitor Center to use the trails. No walking, fat-tire bicycling, or other visitation permitted during the winter.
For more information, visit the Penobscot River Trails website, or contact:
Penobscot River TrailsFrom Bangor, take I-95 north to exit 244 (Medway). Go left at the top of the exit ramp, continue past the Irving gas station, and take the next right onto ME-11. Continue north on ME-11 for 11.9 miles, and turn left after Haybrook. There is a PRT sign at the entrance on the left side of ME-11. Follow the signs for 0.5 miles to the parking lot and Visitor Center.
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