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Riding from Sebago to the Sea By Emily Parkhurst Imagine riding a bicycle from Sebago Lake to Casco Bay without having to traverse rough, rural roads, fight with traffic, wait at stop lights, or fear being run off the narrow roads by tractor trailer trucks. This is the goal of the Sebago to the Sea Trail project, now underway. The trail plan includes paved and unpaved sections, some already in existence, some merely colored lines on a map that represent proposed trails. When completed, the Sebago to the Sea trail system will cover more than 28 miles from the shore of Sebago Lake to the shore of Casco Bay. This plan includes a section of the Mountain Division Trail, which is an already existing trail that runs along the railroad tracks from Fryeburg to Windham. The Presumpscot Land Trust is organizing the development and further expansion of the existing trails and the trails yet to be constructed, that will eventually become the Sebago to the Sea Trail system. A coalition of several interested parties, such as the land trust and the towns the trail will run through, recently put together a vision map that includes the sections where the trail is yet to be built, connected to the completed sections. ''It’s really diverse. Each section will offer its own opportunities,’' said Tania Neuschafer, who is the project coordinator for the development of this trail system. She explained that some sections will be better for hiking, but that the whole trail should be available for mountain biking and cross country skiing. Some sections will be open for snowmobiles in the winter. ''This project has been talked about for years,’' said Neuschafer. ''We all want to make sure the entire watershed is protected.’' The trail follows the Presumpscot River from Sebago Lake to its conclusion in Casco Bay. Neuschafer said that 18.5 miles are already existing trail systems like the Mountain Division Trail in Windham and Standish. This summer 4.7 miles of the Mountain Division Trail in Windham was paved to increase usability, said Brian Ross of the Parks and Recreational Department in Windham. ''It’s more user friendly for families and senior citizens,’' said Ross, who rides his bike along the trail regularly. He said since the paving he has seen an increase in the number of users, and has seen more young families and older people who would not have been able to utilize the trail otherwise. Ross presented the Windham Town Council with a request for approval of a resolution to support the Sebago to the Sea Trail project on Tuesday evening, and answered questions from the councilors concerning the town’s involvement in the trail system. ''The trail is designed to coexist with the rail,’' said Ross after Councilor Donna Chapman expressed concern regarding the potential return of the Mountain Division railroad system. Minor adjustments to the trail may have to be made, depending on the speed of the train. Train speed would determine the setback requirements of the trail, explained Town Manager Tony Plante. ''The state has paid for everything so far,’' said Ross, who explained that the Maine Department of Transportation has covered the paving and construction of the trail, as well as purchasing right of way easements when necessary. The Windham Parks and Recreation Department has taken care of the maintenance like cleaning up trash, mowing along the trail and dealing with erosion issues. ''We have an Eagle Scout who’s putting benches in,’' said Ross. ''We got a grant from the National Park Service for the materials.’' Chapman, who is a horseback riding enthusiast, expressed concerns that the trail would be further paved or covered in rock dust, rendering it unusable for horses. ''If the horse groups are going to get behind this, they’ll want to make sure they can use it,’' she said. Ross said that horseback riders were being considered, but that there were several other trails in the area that were available to riders that were not paved and more suitable for horses. One other concern the council members voiced was regarding some recent vandalism along the trail and how the town would deal with it. ''We had a fire started on the trestle bridge in July. The fire department was called out. They had to cut out a section of the bridge with chainsaws. It was repaired the next day,’' said Ross, who added the vandalism has decreased lately and that he hopes that eventually it will no longer be an issue. On Sept. 9 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., the Sebago to the Sea Trail coalition will hold a public meeting at the Standish Town Hall to provide people with information about the initiative and the current trails, answer questions, as well as to gather suggestions from the public. This is the first of three meetings. The following two, scheduled in October, will be in Westbrook, and Portland or Falmouth. ''There are areas that still need to have some work done,’' said Ross of the Windham section of the proposed trail. ''We’re working with the Portland Water District on connections through there.’' In the meantime, Ross hopes to see more and more users on the Mountain Division Trail. ''We’re pretty exciting about having the trail. Hopefully we’ll be able to get people out there using it,’' he said. |
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