QUICK TRAIL FACTS
- Preserve Size: NA
- Trail Mileage: 6 miles one way
- Pets: yes
- Difficulty: easy
- Sights: Deering Pond, wetland, fields
(Sanford Rail Trail marked in blue on map. McKeon Reserve in green, Hall Reserve in orange, and Sanford Community Forest in red.)
Sanford has converted six miles of a former railroad track into a pleasant and fully accessible pedestrian and biking path. Some of the nicest sections pass a wetland area and the lily-pad studded Deering Pond. The gravel trail is wide and flat throughout.
There are several intersecting trails, allowing walkers to explore for miles. Some of your options include hiking the fantastic trails in the beautiful Hall Environmental Reserve (in orange on map). You can also do a one-way hike along the Farm Trail, which passes a pretty little pond and fields, extending almost all the way to Shapleigh Trail. (My map ends at Blanchard Road because it seems most people end here and also poison ivy started popping up all over the trail.) The rail trail also links up with the beautiful 550-acre Sanford Community Forest (in red on map) and the pretty McKeon Environmental Reserve (in green).
Directions: The largest parking area for the Rail Trail is at the trailhead off Hanson Ridge Road. There is a tiny parking area (for one or two cars) on Oak Street as well.
