QUICK TRAIL FACTS
- Preserve Size: 4,794-acre
- Trail Mileage: ~1.3 miles to Partridge Pond
- Pets: yes
- Difficulty: easy to moderate
- Sights: remote ponds
Both of these remote ponds are wonderful, with wide flat ledges sloping smoothly into the water, for easy, enticing access. You can’t find more ideal swimming spots. On the hot June day we visited, we had both ponds to ourselves.
The ponds are part of the 4,794-acre Amherst Mountains Community Forest, which doesn’t have too many trails, just enough. You can reach Partridge Pond via a 1.3-mile trail, or you can swing by Ducktail Pond first. This route is just a hair shorter, at 1.2 miles.
We walked in via the Ducktail Pond trail, which was easy to follow until we arrived at Ducktail Pond. Then the blazes were harder to see where a couple of of little footpaths intersect. To keep on the path, it’s helpful to remember that the trail takes a hard left at the very tip of the pond, right where you first emerge on the water. You cross a little stream, and continue straight. Or you can walk along the ledge on the side of the pond, and then dip left into the campsite. At the campsite, look for cairns for a trail that heads away from the pond. It will intersect with the trail to Partridge Pond in about 0.3 miles, and Partridge Pond is another 0.5 miles from this point.
When you emerge onto Partridge Pond, you’ll cross a ledge between the pond and stream, and will walk onto the pond’s campsite. Look for a little path to your left that will take you to a big, broad ledge — a great place for swimming and soaking in the sun.
Directions: From Route 9, turn onto Ducktail Pond Road, which is marked with an Amherst Community Forest sign. The first parking area and trailhead for Partridge Pond Trail is on the left, in about two miles. The parking area and trailhead for Ducktail Pond is another 0.7 miles farther down the road.
Update: I think this area has become under new management as it is signed now as Amherst Public Lands. It also seems to be managed in a very similar way to the Donnel Public Lands, or the Cutler Public Lands areas. I believe it is maintained by the Conservation Department of Maine.
I visited on 8/23/2026 and found the trails to be more impressive than I thought. I was not expecting views of Acadia from Bald Bluff Mountain and loved how the trail winds its way through steep terrain and massive pines and spruce. Even the jack pine forest of the summit still held interest to me. The trail also had been freshly blazed with new paint, and blowdowns had been cleared of the trails within the past few weeks. My only caution is to hike the loop trail counterclockwise because hiking down the slippery pine needles might be troublesome. As strange as it sounds, I think hiking up the trail would be easier.
When I was there, in 10 miles of hiking, I saw only two other people, and none upon the trails. One was on a bike and the other passing by in a car. Both were on the main road. Patridge Pond was stunning, Ducktail pond beautiful, but less so than Patridge Pond. Just be wary of the abrupt turn in the trail at Ducktail Pond. I got lost for a moment. If you see a big, old pine tree over the trail, go back: you missed the turn!
This place was impressive though as hiking down the main trail to get to new trail heads, a hiker can stitch together a ten mile plus hike. The ponds can also be swum in, and the mountain views from Bald Bluff Mountain is very impressive on a clear day since the ocean of Acadia Region can be seen. I even texted my wife at Patridge Pond and said, “I never want to leave here”. It was so peaceful.
(Note: I treated both Bald Bluff Mountain and Partridge Pond as one hiking entity in my update since for me, I connected them by the main road)
This is my second favorite place after Donnell! Thank you for your observations.
I agree! This is my second favorite place compared to Donnell Public Lands. Bold Coast in Cutler is pretty good too, but is extremely popular since being in the hiking magazines a few years ago. It is nice in the offseason though.
What I like about Donnell Pond Public Lands is that there is no shortage of unofficial and official trails. I have spent all summer hiking it and have yet to do the same loops. By mixing and matching, but also getting to know the old logging trails from the old Diamond Match Company days of ownership, you can stream together endless treks. Using two vehicles can help too. I have hiked across it twice, once taking on Schoodic, Black, Caribou and Catherine Mountains all on the same day. That is good practice for Maine hikers looking to take on Mount Katahdin, or the Appalachian Trail. And someday soon I want to hike from the Baker Hill Preserve to Tunk Mountain (Route 1 to Route 182). That will take two cars as it is 16 miles one way.
I long to do some western mountains of Maine again, and wanted to move to the Bethel area of Maine, but instead came Downeast. It is not at all bad here in terms of hiking, but it is such a long distance to the Western Mountains that it becomes problematic to get there for day hikes.
But without question, this preserve needs to be explored more. At 5000 acres I cannot imagine I have hiked all there is to hike here.