Winnick Woods, Cross Hill, Davis Forest, Dyer-Hutchinson Farm trails

This large tract protected by Cape Elizabeth Land Trust encompasses more than 250 acres and four preserves (Dyer-Hutchinson Farm trail, Cross Hill, Winnick Woods, and Davis Forest). There is a sprawling network of trails here, allowing you to explore fields, forests, wetlands and streams. They also bring you around some housing developments with large homes.

There are lots of trailheads along the lanes of these developments where you can dip into the woods (but no parking if so signed). The trail system is popular with dog walkers, joggers and bikers. While much of the walking is easy, with a few boardwalks, there are a few places where the paths go up and down along craggy outcrops. The paths tend to be quite wide, as well.

Overall, the trails are well maintained and well marked, with occasional trail maps at intersections.

One trail at the southern end of the preserve, the Marsh Trail off Wells Road, is a bit of a hard one to explore because of the lack of nearby parking. I don’t feel comfortable parking on the side of the road of the neighborhood north of the trail since the roads are narrow, but there are no signs indicating you can’t! (I drew in the line roughly where the trail is — you can see it on the land trust maps.)

Directions: There are two main parking areas: the main one off Sawyer Road, about 800 feet from the intersection with Fickett Street, with room for 10 or so cars, and a secondary one off Eastman Road. The Eastman Road lot is a bit smaller, probably large enough for three cars.