QUICK TRAIL FACTS
- Preserve Size: 285 acres
- Trail Mileage: ~3.8 miles in network
- Pets: no
- Difficulty: easy
- Sights: forest, bog, rocky outcroppings, Megunticook Lake
This is a beauty — but be warned, no dogs allowed. Fernald’s Neck Preserve, protected by the Coastal Mountains Land Trust, encompasses 326 acres, four miles of shore and roughly four miles of trails. The trail doesn’t closely follow the shoreline, but it does deposit you at some nice points along Lake Megunticook. Some of these points have flat rocks that look like good bases for swimming. The preserve also has a humongous boulder balancing on a narrow point. It’s quite impressive.
Directions: From Camden, take Route 52 north to Youngtown Corner. Just past Youngtown Road (on right), turn left onto Fernald’s Neck Road. To reach the preserve, follow the road (which changes to dirt), bearing left at the fork. Continue to the end of the road around curve. Parking lot is at the end of the road.
