Pleasant Point Nature Preserve, Cushing

The drive to this 65-acre preserve is part of its pleasure. The little roads along Maine’s coasts are so pretty, and it’s easy to feel jealous of the people who own houses here! Pleasant Point Preserve is an inland preserve, without ocean views; it makes up the interior of a little peninsula. Soft moss blankets a lot of the forest, and at times walking along the 1.5 miles of trails makes you feel as if you’ve received an invitation into a place you really shouldn’t be. It’s peaceful.

Georges River Land Trust describes its features as “closely packed balsam fir, exposed ledge flush with lichen, and a wetland boardwalk in a forest of mossy knolls.”

Directions: From Route 1 in Thomaston, head south on Route 97 toward Cushing. Travel for 6.8 miles and turn left onto Salt Pond Road. Continue for 1.4 miles and turn right onto Pleasant Point Road. After 2.2 miles, turn left onto Stone’s Point Road. (Ignore the first sign for Stone’s Point Road. It is a loop that intersects with Pleasant Point Road twice. You want the lower intersection.) Parking is available in a small, grassy area on the left on Stone’s Point Road, just after turning off from Pleasant Point Road.

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