Cascade and Saxl Parks, Bangor

Cascade and Saxl are two parks with different characters attached by a short trail. Cascade is small (7.4 acres) and situated on a hill that makes some of its trails quite steep. Its highlight is a pool and fountain surrounded by flat pathways, gardens and benches. There is a manmade waterfall and stream. If you choose to leave this idyl, you can head breathlessly uphill and over to the wonderful Saxl park.

Saxl, a 75-acre city park, is wilder — basically a wide, open meadow, a haven for birds and those who love them. The trails are mostly wide, mown paths that wind through the fields, allowing you to walk different lengths and find different birds. There’s a little pond at the northern end. I have visited twice: It can get soggy at certain times of the year, so bring your mud boots if you think the conditions will be wet. It can also be hard to walk or ski here in winter, when there’s snow on the ground and before others break trail, since the trails are unmarked.

Here’s a great map of the preserve and other Bangor trails.

Directions: There’s a big parking lot for Cascade Park off State Street, just past the hospital if you’re heading east. You can also park closer to Saxl Park from a drive off Mt. Hope Avenue, 900 feet west of the intersection with Hogan Road. Drive past the ball fields and when you reach the parking lot, turn right, following the edge of the fields. Right before the road bends, you’ll see a few parking spaces on the right, and the park entrance starts right at the bend in the road.