Dorothea Dix Park, Hampden

Though the trail system at Dorothea Dix Park could have used a bit of caretaking — and more blazes! — when I visited in 2023, I think it is worth trying to figure out the trail system to make it down to the view of the Penobscot River. From the trail head off Route 1A, it’s about 0.8 miles to the river. (There’s 1.8 miles total in the trail network.)

The confusion begins almost as soon as you pass the archway entrance to the park: first off, where to park? There are two unpaved (and when I visited, muddy) circles, with some picnic tables at the park entrance. I parked alongside the edge of the circle closest to the trailhead.

From this point, you can take Maple Trail or Black Locust Trail toward the river. When I visited, Black Locust was in rough shape, with erosion and blowdowns. Maple was better. When the two trails converge, you can proceed down the wide Owl Trail to a small meadow. At the corner of the meadow, you should see a sign for the Pine Loop. This will bring you down an unmarked, wide path to a little ledge overlooking the river’s edge. There are no blazes, so you should follow what appears to be the main path.

You can read about Dorothea Dix, an extraordinary woman born in Hampden in 1802, on Maine Encyclopedia. She was an advocate for reforms at prisons and institutions for impoverished people with mental illness, and she’s credited with helping to establish this country’s first public mental hospitals.

Directions: The entrance to the park is off Route 1A, about 620 feet north of Hopkins Road. If you’re coming from the north, it’s a little over half a mile from the intersection of Route 1A and Kennebec Road, on the left.