UBICACIÓN:Twin Bridges Preserve, la ruta 117 en el río torcido, Otisfield
DISTANCIA: 5 millas de senderos
DIFICULTAD: Maderas suaves
DATO CURIOSO: Más de 200.000 hogares, 1/6 de Maine, dependen de la limpieza
beber agua del embalse del lago Sebago, que es alimentado por el Crooked
Río y otros afluentes dentro de la gran cuenca del lago Sebago.
USOS PERMITIDOS: Senderismo, caminatas, raquetas de nieve, esquí, pasear perros, pesca con mosca
LOS PUENTES DOBLES PRESERVAN
Twin Bridges Preserve is part of a 2,375-acre block of connected forest along the Crooked River that Western Foothills Land Trust has conserved.
Why does that matter? The Crooked River is the largest tributary of Sebago Lake, which proves drinking water to more than 200,000 Maine households, about one in six people in the state.
Western Foothills Land Trust Purchases 721 Acres of Forest and River Frontage Protecting Essential Landlocked Atlantic Salmon Spawning Habitat
On October 11th, 2023, the Western Foothills Land Trust (WFLT) enlarged its existing Twin Bridges Preserve by acquiring an adjacent 721-acre forest tract known as Edwards Mills, one of the Chadbourne Tree Farm working forests in western Maine. The large tract includes access from State Route 117 and land on both sides of the Crooked River in Norway, Otisfield, and Harrison. The purchase will also protect 47-acres of wetlands, over one mile of stream habitat, and two miles of frontage along the Crooked River.
The Edwards Mills property is part of a 15,000-acre assemblage of former Chadbourne Tree Farm properties acquired in 2020 by The Conservation Fund in a partnership with Malone Family Land Preservation Foundation known as White Pine Forest, LLC. Western Foothills Land Trust is working to reunite fragmented parcels and natural habitats for the benefit of wildlife, water quality, and public access. Edwards Mills is adjacent to 100 acres (3 parcels) recently protected in Norway and Otisfield as well as the 252-acre Twin Bridges Preserve that WFLT has managed since 2015.
The expanded Twin Bridges Preserve will protect over 1,000 contiguous acres of working forestland, 4.5 miles of Crooked River shoreline, and over 2 miles of stream habitat on the Crooked River. In addition to shoreline and stream protection, the land features 275-acres of deer wintering area, 84-acres of wetlands, and at least one potentially significant vernal pool. Permanent protection of this land will preserve its ecological functions and scenic features, and provide future opportunities for public access and recreation.
Sixty-two miles long, the Crooked River is the largest tributary to Sebago Lake, the drinking water reservoir for one-in-five Mainers. The river’s health supports upstream aquifers, local recreation economies, and essential spawning habitat for brook trout and landlocked salmon, while sustaining downstream drinking water quality. Approximately 99 percent of Sebago Lake’s landlocked salmon spawn in the Crooked River which supports one of only four known indigenous populations of Landlocked Atlantic Salmon in Maine.
