Smack in the middle of Kennebec County and within easy striking distance of the vast majority of Maine’s population, lies one of the prime examples of the kind of recreational resource that can result from a cooperative effort between the state and private interests.

There, in the Kennebec Highlands, lies an undeveloped tract of land that is important to the area both in terms of wildlife and natural resource conservation, and as a public recreation area.

In 1998, the Belgrade Regional Conservation Alliance, a nonprofit land trust and lake trust based in Belgrade Lakes, initiated the Kennebec Highlands project, which began the momentum toward the Kennebec Highlands becoming public land.

In 1999, the Bureau of Public Lands and BRCA got funds from the Land for Maine’s Future Program to serve as a catalyst to begin buying land to become the Kennebec Highlands. Several hundred acres were bought by late 2000.

Prior to then, an application for additional funds, which included the Kennebec Land Trust as a partner, was submitted and approved for funding to purchase nearly 6,000 acres in Vienna, Rome, New Sharon and Mount Vernon.

Today, this huge protected parcel includes five undeveloped ponds, several low mountains (including Kennebec County’s two highest peaks), streams, deer wintering areas and wetlands.

After passing through and around the area for years, I finally came to my senses on a recent midweek day, with fall foliage at its peak, to explore this accessible but pristine treasure.

And what a day it was, made even more special because on my hike of just about eight miles I encountered nary another human, and my only companions were the crying loons that inhabit the uncluttered shorelines of the protected ponds, and croaking frogs in the remaining vernal pools.

As my planned hike was to include three mountains, in an area with which I was heretofore unfamiliar, I wisely stopped in Belgrade Lakes Village to pick up BRCA’s well-produced (waterproof) trail map and guide. Doing so, I had all the detailed information I needed, not to mention helping to support BRCA’s great work.

My threesome started with French Mountain, the trail head for which is a scant .7 mile south on the Watson Pond Road off Route 27, just past Rome Corner.

It was a perfect warmup, as the ascent of only about 200 vertical feet to the 716-foot summit, and the little loop back to the car was less than a mile. But short as it is, the climb brings you to a wonderful overlook of Long Pond and a bird’s-eye view of the entire Belgrade Lakes area.

Next on my agenda, and still early in the morning, was 854-foot Sanders Hill, for a roundtrip hike of a little less than three miles, including a vertical rise of about 320 feet. The trail head is a scant .6 mile farther south on the Watson Pond Road and, as at French Mountain, there’s ample parking and a helpful informational kiosk.

It’s a loop trail, which I opted to take in a counter-clockwise direction. This gave me the opportunity to pass by the south end of Watson Pond and then ascend about a mile to ledges, a rest and snack spot, and an outstanding view of the entire area. Continuing around the loop descending to the west, I crossed the Kennebec Highlands (snowmobile and ATV) Trail to pick up a newly relocated section of the Sanders Hill Trail meandering along the bank of Beaver Brook, thus avoiding a walk of nearly .75 mile on the graveled multuse trail. The entire loop back to the parking area is a measured 2.8 miles.

Hike 3 on my schedule was Round Top, at over 1,100 feet with a vertical rise of about 400 feet and a roundtrip distance of nearly four miles. The parking area is almost exactly four miles from the Route 27/Watson Pond Road intersection, so you can see how compact this special recreation area is, and how easy it is to access and knock off multiple hikes on a single visit.

The trail offers views of Long Pond, Belgrade Lakes Village and Great Pond, and if you add the Round Top Spur Trail to your outing, as I did, you’ll add .6 mile to the hike from the summit of Round Top, but you’ll get views to the north and east, including Mount Phillip as well as the Vienna Mountains to the northwest through the trees.

So close, but seemingly so remote, I felt almost as if I were in the North Maine Woods or scampering around glacial boulders like those on Tunk Mountain.

John Christie is a former ski racer and ski area manager and owner, a ski historian and member of the Maine Ski Hall of Fame. He and his son, Josh, write columns on alternating weeks. He can be reached at:

jchristie@fairpoint.net

Copy the Story Link