QUICK TRAIL FACTS
- Preserve Size: 27 acres
- Trail Mileage: 0.4 miles one way
- Pets: yes
- Difficulty: easy
- Sights: white cedar swamp, pitch pine forest, boardwalk
The George E. Sweet Ecology Trail, protected by Mousam Way Land Trust, guides you through a pitch-pine forest (more specifically, a “pitch pine-scrub oak barren”) to a rare Atlantic white cedar swamp, where you can walk along a short boardwalk to a viewing platform.
A sign here explains that this unique forest swamp is the habitat for the rare Hessel’s hairstreak butterfly. “There are only a handful of places in Maine like it, and not all Atlantic white cedar swamps will support this delicate butterfly, but THIS is one of them!” Also, it reminds you that Maine is home to 120 butterfly species and gives you some tips on how to help protect them (avoid using lawn chemicals and pesticides, support local zoning laws that support wildlife, and purchase a loon license plate!).
I didn’t see the hairstreak, but I did see lots of picturesque pine cones littering the trail.
When I visited the preserve, the trail system was not blazed, and the little side trails that create short loops were especially a bit easy to miss.
Directions: A small parking area is at the end of the dead-end Great Works Drive. Turn onto Great Works Drive from Sand Pond Road. The turn is directly after Huttopia Southern Maine if you’re coming from Route 4. Be mindful not to block the nearby driveways.
