The first time I hiked in the Great Pond Mountain Wildlands it was April. I had wanted to see what was available for hiking trails on the property, owned by the Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust.

Back then the trails were just beginning to be constructed. On that bright, sunny day, my hiking partner and neighbor, Sonny Whittaker, and I ran into a trail crew that was surveying the flagged route up Cascade Brook. A lot has changed since then.

Scott Bennett, chairman of the Trails Committee, gave me a phone call a couple of weeks ago to invite me along on a group hike to show us the progress he and the trail workers have made on the Cascade Brook Trail. Whenever new trails are built, I can’t resist hiking them, so he informed me of the time and the place and I didn’t hesitate to accept.

I met Scott and the group at The Wildlands south gate, on U.S. Route 1 about 12 miles west of Ellsworth, last Sunday. The day was sunny, the air temperature cool for mid-August, accompanied by a strong breeze. The Wildlands south gate is only open on weekends, from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. Visitors are welcome to use the property on weekdays, they just have to either bicycle or walk in. Since it was Sunday, we drove the dirt-surfaced Valley Road to the trailhead parking area.

The first person I met in the group was at the gate before the others arrived as we were a few minutes early. After talking a while we both realized we grew up in the same neighborhood in South Brewer.

Soon, the others arrived and, after we got to the parking area, we made our introductions. There was Robin Estey, Gail Downes, George Elliott, Dick Merrill, my childhood neighbor, and Scott, the leader for this hike. After everyone was ready, packs cinched up, lunches checked and boots put on, we set off on the new trail. We started on the Cascade Brook Loop Trail, a fairly gradual climb of about three-quarters of a mile to the intersection of the Hillside Trail. Along the way Scott would point out the points of interest, like an overlook into the ravine where Cascade Brook flows.

The trail was vastly improved since this spring. Now, instead of flagging, light blue, wooden arrows affixed to the trees point the way. We picked some raspberries along the trail and soon arrived at the Hillside Trail. The previous private owner was a logging company which had cut skidder roads to harvest trees, as well as building roads for a future housing development.

Now that the Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust owns the property, some of those roads are used to link trails together. Near the signed intersection of the Oak Hill Path, one of the roads, and the Hillside Trail, we turned toward the top of Oak Hill on the East Ridge Trail.

Partway up, we stopped to admire an outstanding view of Hothole Valley. Across the glacially carved valley rose Great Pond Mountain, its prominent ledges clearly visible in the view. While we hiked we chatted about other hikes we had been on and how this trail impressed all of us.

We soon came to a field and another great view, this one facing southwest. We stopped, sprawled out, opened up our lunches and took it all in while identifying landmarks and features. We could see the Camden Hills, Penobscot Bay, Sears Island, the towers of the new Penobscot Narrows Bridge, Fort Knox, and Mount Waldo in Frankfort.

I chatted a while longer with the rest of the folks and in the process asked Scott a few questions about the Trust’s plans for future trails.

“The trails project is ongoing. We have more trails to propose, and if they’re approved we’ll start building them this fall and next spring,” he said.

That was great news to me because more trails are better than fewer trails. The whole idea of this property, he said, is to have it be nonmotorized multi-use. That means you can ride horses on the gravel roads, mountain bike on the same roads or jog and hike on trails. In winter you can use snowmobiles on Valley Road and cross country ski.

He also pointed out that they always need volunteers to build trails or anything else that suits your interest. “We have a volunteer questionnaire on our Web site, so we can match people’s interest with our need for volunteers,” he said.

After our lunch, the group and I split up, with me heading back to a family commitment and the rest heading up the East Ridge Trail to the top of Flag Hill and, I was told, even more views of Acadia, Branch Lake, and Schoodic Mountain, among others. We said our goodbyes, and as I was headed back to the parking area, I thought about what a great resource The Wildlands are to anyone who wants to spend time outdoors.

The trails are still so new they’re not even on the map that’s available on the Web site or at the map boxes. Which is not to say the maps that are available are inaccurate, it’s just that the new trails haven’t been transferred to the maps scheduled to come out soon. With all the crowds at other hiking destinations, Great Pond Mountain’s Wildlands makes a great location to have the new trails to yourself.

Directions to The Wildlands

There are two gates to the Wildlands: the north gate, which is always locked, and the south gate, open weekends.

To the north gate from Bangor: Take U.S. Route 1A to Dedham. Turn right on Maine Route 46. Drive 8.4 miles and turn left on Mast Hill Road at the fork in the road. Keep on Mast Hill Road for a half-mile, then turn left on Bald Mountain Road. Go about 2 miles and look for the gate on your right.

To the south gate from Bangor: Follow Maine Route 15 through Orrington for 20 miles to Bucksport. At the intersection with U.S. Route 1, bear left onto Route 1 north. About 9 miles from town on the left is the south gate, just before the intersection of Maine Route 176 to Surry on the right.

For more information about The Wildlands visit its Web site at greatpondtrust.org.

Brad Viles can be reached at sball1@prexar