Land Use & Conservation Team Helps Protect Over 2,700 Acres of Critical Wildlife Habitat in Maine’s High Peaks Region

Drummond Woodsum’s Conservation Group worked with the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust to protect over 2,700 acres of critical wildlife habitat in Maine’s High Peaks Region.

These lands are part of the traditional territory and are of ongoing cultural significance to the Wabanaki People. They include four and a half miles of frontage on Orbeton and Perham Streams, which are listed as Wild Brook Trout Priority Areas by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. The streams join each other before meeting with the upper Sandy River, a tributary to the Kennebec River that is widely considered to be the top priority in Maine for endangered Atlantic salmon recovery.¹

The Keystones project creates better road access to the Mount Abraham Public Reserve Lands, opportunities for new access points along Perham and Orbeton Streams for fishing, swimming, and hand-carry boat use, a trail connection to Orbeton Cascades – a series of gorgeous waterfalls – and permanent access for hunting and other recreational activities. It also protects local ATV trails, almost five miles of Snowmobile Trail ITS-84, and the viewshed along the Appalachian Trail, located less than a half mile to the north.²

Read the full announcement article on the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust’s website to learn more about this successful collaboration and the Keystones Project here.

_______________

_{1 Keystones Project Completed – Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust (matlt.org)(May 16, 2024)}

_{2 Keystones Project Completed – Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust (matlt.org)(May 16, 2024)}