Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands: July 2018 Events & News

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Events & News

Maine State Parks

July 2018


Storied Lands & Waters - Allagash Wilderness Waterway Resource Assessment Released

Bob McIntosh presenting Storied Lands and Waters to Matt LaRoche, Superintendent of the Allagash wilderness Waterway.

Storied Lands & Waters is the first heritage resource assessment of the famed Allagash Wilderness Waterway and offers recommendations for possible action in the years ahead.

Bob McIntosh, president of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway Foundation and a former senior official with the National Park Service, announced the release on June 15th after the Foundation presented the bound document to the Allagash Wilderness Waterway Advisory Council. He stated that, “If the Allagash Wilderness Waterway had a voice, Storied Lands & Waters would surely be it. Never before have the heritage resources of the Allagash been so well documented and presented; nor have the possibilities for telling their story been so well conceived.”

In addition to the Waterway’s heritage resource assessment, Storied Lands & Waters presents an elaborate menu of options to interpret these exceptional assets for Waterway users and the general public, and to advance teaching and learning about the Waterway in Maine’s classrooms.

Don Hudson, president emeritus of the Chewonki Foundation and a participant in creating Storied Lands & Waters, noted that the publication “marks a milestone in the history of the Allagash. It offers the best possible assessment of these Waterway resources, and an abundance of interpretive projects to deepen understanding of the Waterway’s enduring importance.”

The 300-page volume is the product of a two-year collaboration between the Allagash Wilderness Waterway Foundation (AWWF)* and the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, with financial support from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund and private donors.  Principal author is Bruce Jacobson, former Chief of Planning & Land Resources for Acadia National Park and Superintendent of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area.

Matt LaRoche, Superintendent of the Waterway, received the first copy from McIntosh (see photo above). LaRoche commented that, “A great challenge in managing the Waterway is to tell the rich human histories of the area without intruding on its wilderness character. Storied Lands & Waters offers a range of projects for the Bureau and our Advisory Council to consider and act upon in the years ahead.” 

Storied Lands & Waters is available by visiting the Allagash Wilderness Waterway Foundation website, www.awwf.org, and through the Maine State Library at http://digitalmaine.com/awwf/

*The Allagash Wilderness Waterway Foundation was created in 2012 to build a community of support for this exceptional and remote public resource, and to raise funds to supplement its state funding. Its focus areas of interest include youth access to the Waterway, resource interpretation and education, foundation support for the protection of important adjacent lands, and capital projects to enhance the experience of the Waterway. Learn more at www.awwf.org or on Facebook.

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Paddlers at Chase Rapids on the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.
Paddlers at Chase Rapids, Allagash Wilderness Waterway.

Camping - No Minimum Night Stay Beginning July 1, 2018

kettle on a campfire with a dome tent behind it

New, Beginning July 1, 2018, customers can make a reservation at the 12 State Park Campgrounds without any minimum night stay limits.  This is an added customer service allowing campers to book a single Friday or Saturday night for reservations between July 1st and the end of the camping season.

Make Your Camping Reservation now:

for Maine Residents:  800-332-1501, 

for All Others: 207-624-9950

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Grant Money Available in Support of Public Recreation

Logo of the Land and Water Conservation Fund

Land & Water Conservation Fund Grants

Recreational Trails Program Grants




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Hikers on mt. ledge and crossing stream, biker on wooded trail.

Hike-ku of the Month: Bigelow Preserve & Flagstaff Lake Public Lands

Bigelow splits sky

above the broad shouldered range

Flagstaff tickles feet

Bigelow Preserve, established by popular referendum in 1976, encompasses 36,000 acres including the entire Bigelow Mountain Range and nearly 20 miles of the southern shore of Flagstaff Lake. The hallmark features are the trails, including the Appalachian Trail (AT), and camping alongside Flagstaff Lake.

Montage of the mountains of the Bigelow Range, Maine

Loon Plate Appreciation Day - Sunday, July 15

Loon license plate supporting conservation in Maine.

On Sunday, July 15th all vehicles with a current Maine Loon License Plate will receive free admission to Maine's State Parks and Historic Sites*. Valid 9:00 a.m. to closing; day use only. No rain date available.

When you purchase a Maine Loon License Plate you're showing your support for Maine's special places and its wildlife. Order the Loon/Conservation License Plate online now.

For every $20 spent on a new loon plate:

  • $8.40 goes to the Bureau of Parks and Lands;
  • $5.60 goes to Inland Fisheries & Wildlife; and
  • $6.00 goes to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles.

* Does not apply to: Acadia National Park, Allagash Wilderness Waterway (AWW), Baxter State Park, the Maine Wildlife Park (IF&W), Peacock Beach, Scarborough Beach, Swan Island (IF&W), Penobscot River Corridor (PRC) or the Penobscot Narrows Observatory in Prospect, though admission to Fort Knox State Historic Site will be free that day with the Loon Plate.

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Be Safe Around Browntail Moths

The browntail moth is an invasive species from Europe that is spreading northward through Maine. The moth gets its name from its brown tipped abdomen (the "tail") of the otherwise all white moth. 

The hairs of the caterpillar are toxic and can cause a mild to extreme skin irritation that most often presents as a painful itchy rash. Stay away from the caterpillars and their leaf-wrapped cocoons (which are full of hairs from the pupating larvae). 

The caterpillar count is going down now as they start to enter their pupal webs. Most of the caterpillars will have emerged as moths by mid-July and the risk of exposure to their hairs will be much less.

Additional Information:

Photos: top = browntail moth caterpillar; bottom = adult browntail moth; brown tip of abdomen barely showing between folded wings.


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Browntail caterpillar and moth.

Events and Programs

Aerial shot of Colonial Pemaquid State Historic Site
Colonial Pemaquid State Historic Site

Bradbury Mountain State Park

Colonial Pemaquid State Historic Site

Crescent Beach State Park

Holbrook Island Sanctuary State Park

Mount Blue State Park

Popham Beach State Park

Reid State Park

Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park

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