Stories and Updates from the Coast 2023
I hope you enjoy this collection of stories and updates about our work, the places we have the honor to conserve, and the partners and supporters who make it all possible.
This longer, more in-depth publication includes stories about our collaborative efforts to protect connected forests and wildlife habitat, recent projects to create permanent public coastal access for clammers and diggers, and how we’re collaborating with partners to advance conservation while addressing issues of concern to communities up and down the coast.
Protecting Regular Patches of Woods to Keep Common Species Common
In a changing climate, protecting connected woods and waters becomes increasingly important to help plants and animals survive.
On Watch for the Bagaduce River
Bailey Bowden, from Penobscot, Maine, brings numerous talents and skills to his role at River Monitor for the Bagaduce
Exploring Clifford Park
What do you think of when you imagine green space in the city? The first major city parks in America were basically gardens, with sculpted lawns, large paths, spots of shade, borders of flowers, and picturesque water features. But Clifford Park is nothing like that.
Clifford Park in Biddeford offers a striking departure from traditional city parks. This rugged and challenging forested area, nestled inconspicuously in the city, invites visitors to embark on a wilderness adventure. On a sweltering July day, one writer’s journey through its rocky terrain left them delightfully exhausted.
The park’s wilderness allure lies in its meandering trails, occasionally confusing enough to lose your way, and its rough terrain, particularly challenging for cyclists. Despite its emptiness, the woods buzzed with life, from squirrels’ footprints to the mesmerizing world of insects. They followed a trail adorned with panels narrating a turtle tale and discovered nature’s treasures, from early blueberries to translucent ghost pipes.
A simple adventure in this pocket of the wild left them with lasting memories and a profound connection to nature..
ART FROM THE COAST
“Marshes are this vast expanse, very quiet, empty, and yet everything is so alive. I’ve seen fox, deer, eagles, all kinds of migrations—so many different birds. I’ve seen seals pull up to the grass and sun- bathe in the warmth.
As soon as you get out to the marsh, you just exhale. It’s phenomenal. It’s really my favorite place.”
– Mary Byrom, artist
Regional Updates
Southern Maine Update
We collaborated with the Intercultural Community Center and Portland Paddle to bring refugee, immigrant, and asylee youth to Lanes Island Preserve.
Other area projects include:
- Managing invasives at Woodward Point Preserve in Brunswick
- Readying Cousins River Preserve for the public–a new preserve in Yarmouth!
- Protecting a coastal access site for local clammers and diggers in Phippsburg
Midcoast Maine Update
Numerous volunteers joined us for work days on Monroe, Sheep, High, and Louds Islands.
Other area projects include:
- Partnering with Midcoast Conservancy to conserve 12 acres along the Sheepscot River
- Kirk Gentalen explores the Midcoast and blogs about the wildlife he sees at mcht.org/nature-bummin
- The Aldermere Farm and Erickson Fields campaign continues, with every donation matched dollar-for-dollar
MDI-Area Update
Forty MCHT staff members and volunteers removed 2,300 pounds of plastic buoys, rope, and trash from Marshall Island Preserve.
Other area projects include:
- A collaborative art project at Kelley Farm Preserve that will depict the anticipated impacts of sea level rise on the landscape
- Marsh restoration projects currently underway at Mitchell Marsh in Tremont and Babson Creek in Mount Desert
- Farther east in Sullivan: a collaborative effort that secured permanent water access for harvesters and paddlers
Washington County Update
MCHT and the town of Cutler completed a collaborative project to protect 4.4 shorefront acres that will eventually be developed into a town park.
Other area projects include:
- Readying Machias’s first public preserve for visitors
- Welcoming over 100 people to an open house at MCHT’s Whiting Office
- An archaeological dig at Sipp Bay Preserve in collaboration with the Passamaquoddy Tribal Historic Preservation Office
Carry the Coast with You
Explore the MCHT shop — where every purchase supports conservation in Maine.
Learn more & get involved!
Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT) is a nonprofit land conservation organization. Our work spans the Maine coast and extends up coastal rivers and into inland forests, benefiting communities throughout the state and the vitality of the region at large.
Thanks to our Donors
Everything you read about in this newsletter is possible thanks to the generous support of Maine Coast Heritage Trust donors.
Donors are creating more public access to the coast, strengthening coastal communities, making Maine more resilient to climate change, and so much more. Thank you to all who are a part of MCHT.
Download a printable version of Maine Heritage (PDF, 4 MB)
