Our primary project this field season is building the trail system for the Gorham Community Forest. Located off of New Portland Road, the Gorham Community Forest is 53 acres of forested wetlands, stream, and meadows. The preserve will include an outdoor classroom, a multilingual storywalk, two scenic overlooks above Indian Camp Brook, and a ¾ mile multi-use trail for running, biking, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling that will integrate with the existing Cross Town Trail via White Birch Lane.
An updated map of the trail system, trailheads, and scenic overlooks being built at the Gorham Community Forest.
A year ago, we were able to announce the conservation of this land, thanks to the generous donations of the Robie families and KV Enterprises. Last December, we were awarded $237,990 from the Maine Trails Program to create the trails that will open it up for public access (you can read more about the grant award in this post.) With the support of this grant, funding from the town of Gorham, a generous gift from Maine Community Bank, and in-kind support from Shawn Moody, we’ve solidified plans and recently broken ground on the property!
We’re excited to be working again with Chris Cyr, a.k.a. Sanctuary Trail Works, who we have partnered with recently at Lowell Preserve (have you biked the new trails yet?). Chris won a competitive bid for the project, which will involve building the ¾ mile of natural surface trail—including 1,200 feet of raised 6-foot-wide boardwalk—and two scenic overlooks. He also happens to be a Gorham resident; it thrilled us to be able to award this contract to a local who is personally invested in the success of the project.
Photos from Chris Cyr and Toby Jacobs of recent progress on the trails at Gorham Community Forest.
We’re also working closely with the Town of Gorham and Village Elementary to make sure this space is rooted in community needs and values. Coordination with the Town will make sure this project connects to the Cross Town Trail. Village Elementary neighbors the preserve and we are working with their administration to create an outdoor classroom space at one of the scenic overlooks that enhances the work teachers are already doing to use nature learning resources in their curriculum.
The Resilience Corps clearing chainsaw debris and posing for a group photo with Abigail (in orange).
In late June, we welcomed the Resilience Corps from Greater Portland Council of Governments for some hands-on help. Resilience Corps fellows gather as a group once a month for a Day of Service to spend time giving back to local nonprofits. We were so happy to host them for their June event, and to give Clara, our own Resilience Corps fellow, the chance to show PRLT off to her cohort. The volunteers helped out by filling and carrying out buckets full of trash and debris, removing invasive species, and clearing chainsaw cuts from fallen trees in areas where trails will eventually be established. Toby and Abigail also helped the fellows learn how to identify harmful plants and species of ticks so that they can confidently explore PRLT preserves and other local trails throughout the summer.
As we make progress on the initial clearing, we’ll start having trail work days for the community to come and lend a hand. There’s plenty of brush to cut and boardwalk to build before this trail becomes a reality, and many hands make light work. If you’re interested in joining a trail work day and helping us build this community resource, you can sign up to volunteer on our website here.
We hope to have the grand opening of the Gorham Community Forest in spring 2027—stay tuned for more updates as the work keeps moving forward!