Hike Location: Moose Point State Park
Geographic Location: north of Belfast, ME (44.43239, -68.94273)
Length: 1.2 miles
Difficulty: 1/10 (Easy)
Date Hiked: July 2019
Overview: A nearly flat loop around Moose Point.
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=759620
Photo Highlight:
Directions to the trailhead: From Belfast, take US 1
north 4.4 miles to the signed entrance for Moose Point State Park on the
right. Turn right to enter the park, pay
the small entrance fee, and park in the large oceanside parking lot at the main
park road’s end.
The hike: Consisting
of 146 acres on the shore of Penobscot Bay, Moose Point State Park began its developed
life in 1859 as a dairy farm owned by the family of Captain George A.
Carver. The Carver family operated the
farm for over 60 years until most of the buildings burned down in 1927. The land was offered to the State of Maine as
a park in 1952, and the park officially opened in 1963.
The park is solely a day-use park,
and it is a popular local destination for picnics and weddings. The park features only a picnic area and a
playground for amenities, but the park’s trails form a nearly flat loop around
the entire property. This hike makes a
great short, easy family outing, or it could be hiked as an add-on destination
before or after visiting nearby Camden Hills State Park, which offers a plethora of fantastic hiking options.
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| Start of Big Spruce Trail |
Two trails leave the south side of the parking
area: a two-track service road and the wide single-track Big Spruce Trail. You could use either of these trails to start
a clockwise tour of the park, but the Big Spruce Trail is more scenic because
it stays closer to the ocean. After passing
through a cluster of picnic tables, you reach a bench that offers the first of
several Atlantic Ocean views. Moose
Point lacks the sheer cliffs that make other parts of Maine’s coast so spectacular,
and the ocean is less than 15 feet below you.
Nevertheless, the view across Penobscot Bay’s blue waters is fantastic
and worth pausing to take in.
|
| View across Penobscot Bay |
As you continue around the tip of
Moose Point, you soon learn why this trail is called the Big Spruce Trail. Numerous large white spruce trees grow here,
including one giant that has a 31 inch diameter trunk, stands 69 feet tall, and
is over 100 years old. After passing one
final ocean view just shy of 0.4 miles, the trail curves right to head inland
away from the ocean. More large spruce
trees grow here including one that seems to have 5 trunks.
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| Large spruce tree |
 |
| Tree with 5 trunks? |
At 0.5 miles, the Big Spruce Trail
ends at a junction with the Moose Trail, which goes straight and right. Continue straight as the Moose Trail heads
north paralleling the park’s west boundary.
The Moose Trail climbs on a gradual grade and curves right as traffic
noise from US 1 comes within earshot from the left. The difference between the highest and lowest
elevations on this hike is only 55 feet, so all elevation changes here are easy
to handle.
Just past 0.8 miles, you reach the
end of the Moose Trail where it intersects the park road near the park’s gatehouse. To find our return route, turn left and walk
a short distance along the park road to reach the start of the Meadow Trail,
which is located on the right. A grave
marker-looking rock marks the start of the Meadow Trail.
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| Start of Meadow Trail |
 |
| Gazebo |
True to its name, the Meadow Trail
descends on a mowed-grass treadway through the meadow in the eastern part of
the park. Where side trails exit right
to reach some picnic areas, stay left to remain near the park’s eastern
boundary. Just shy of 1.1 miles, you
reach the park’s gazebo, which was surrounded by orange lilies in bloom on my
late July visit. The gazebo stands
within sight of the ocean, but some wooden steps leading down to the water
provide a closer look. Ships near
Searsport Harbor can be seen up the bay in the distance. When you have finished viewing the ocean,
walk across the mowed-grass area to the parking lot to complete the hike.
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