Old Pond Railway Trail

Visited today. We started at the east entrance. About ½ way thru the wooded area past the rail bridge we encountered a pretty sizable bear that was off the trail. We were noisy and he went back into the woods. But definitely made our pace back to the car much faster!

I last walked this trail on June 9th of 2023. There was a report of a bear in the area and I saw lots of signs to indicate that was true. I'm thinking of hitting the trail again on June 23rd if I can, hopefully the bear is long gone but to be safe I'll keep my eyes open and a whistle at the ready.

I last walked this trail on June 9th of 2023. There was a report of a bear in the area and I saw lots of signs to indicate that was true. I'm thinking of hitting the trail again on June 23rd if I can, hopefully the bear is long gone but to be safe I'll keep my eyes open and a whistle at the ready.

Have only walked the portion from the town hall to the bridge. Mosquitoes are fierce through the wooded portion so be prepared! Bridge has nice views and peaceful vibe.

Started from Western End - keep your eyes peeled as you Y off Rte. 1 onto Old Rte. 1; it comes up quickly on the right, but the sign is parallel to the road! The short trail to the rail trail is a goat-trail - lots of lefts and rights. It's lightly traveled, so not always 'obvious' with foot traffic wear, so you need to look for blue marks on trees; there are no 'blue ribbons' left after their construction of this bit about 15 years ago. This bit takes less than 10 minutes, actually, you cross a wooden footbridge to access the rail cut and rail bed. Turn LEFT. This rail bed has been abandoned for over 60-80 years, based on the size of some of the trees in the old wooden sleepers, which are still there, above and just under the trail surface. The trail is not 'rail bed wide' - only single file with all the tree growth since abandonment. Cannot 'get off' the trail trail because it's smooth grade and straight with only gradual curves left or right. Because it is a rail trail, I will call this EASY. The only thing 'moderate' about this is stepping around tree roots and stepping along or between (depending on you leg length and gait) the rotting wooden sleepers. Because this is a railway grade, you can be higher or lower than the existing forest, which is a neat perspective; just like you are traveling in a train car, IMO. But, there are drainage ditches immediately to either side of the rail bed, so these can be breeding grounds for mosquitos, anywhere along its length, when it 'Is That Time of The Season. Walking east, you eventually come to the causeway where the rail trail crosses Old Pond, the only time you are not 'in the trees'. I stopped for a lunch here, looking south over the clam flats, since it was low tide. There is a short iron bridge before walking back into the woods. You do come across an area of concrete on the right where side tracks existed, and, in fact, it's the only place where there is any iron left of the rails. This is not too far from the Eastern End, which terminates across from the Hancock Town Hall and the Village Triangle. The whole walk took me 1-1/2 hours, with stops for photography and talk with other hikers (only three people and one dog, total). I did not do the return, but, rather, hiked back along Rte. 1 to Old Rte. 1, which took only 50 minutes. I spent only about 10-15 on the busy part and enjoyed walking on 'An Old Maine State Road' on a nice fall day. There are two other in-and-out hikes accessed off of Old Rte. 1 - Old Pond and Carrying Place. Lastly, there are two old logging roads and two current residence roads which cut across the rail trail, so if you have any need to cut short your hike, you could take these and 'head toward the road noise' of Rt. 1 to 'orienteer' your way back onto either of those main roads and return to your vehicle.

Excellent hike. Well marked with blue ribbon, easy to follow. Trees and brush make the trail tight, though. Also, be sure to bring bug spray, as the muddy areas along the trail are guarded by plenty of mosquitos.