Bigelow Preserve Public Reserved Land

Encompassing the entire Bigelow Mountain Range with its seven peaks, the 36,000-acre Bigelow Preserve is one of the state's largest Public Reserved Land units and a spectacular destination for Maine camping and hiking. A 20-mile stretch along the southern shore of the 20,000-acre Flagstaff Lake and a difficult-rated ridge hike that follows along the Appalachian Trail (the Bigelow Preserve Trail) provide hikers with tasty morsels of choices for one-day and overnight hikes. Those into “leisurely” difficult hikes often extend their trek along the Bigelow Preserve Trail into a two-day trip, enjoying their Maine camping experience at one of the tent sites or shelters along the way.

Hiking the Appalachian Trail is always a thrill, but Bigelow offers many other trails as well, along with fishing and camping at Horns Pond and Jones Pond and swimming at Flagstaff Lake. A popular three season recreation area (spring is the only time that sees few visitors), Bigelow Preserve hosts snowmobilers, cross-country skiers, and snowshoers, summer anglers seeking out the fish-plenty small ponds and brooks, and leaf peepers oohing and aahing at the fall foliage lining the roads and trails.

Latitude: 45.1392
Longitude: -70.2267