Pisgah Hill Preserve

Description

This 200-acre preserve has two separate trailheads, one at 74 Dougherty Road (“South”), and the other at 159 North Pownal Road (“North”), both in New Gloucester. The preserve includes old quarries, distinct and varied ledges, mixed forests, and beautiful ground cover of lichen and mosses. The ridgeline offers winter-time views, including beautiful sunsets and moonrises. Every winter we invite you to join us on our annual Full Moon Trek. The northern-most section of the preserve near the powerline includes a large wetland complex with several beaver ponds, significant vernal pools, and rich habitat. Most visitors explore this preserve on the trails that begin at the southern trailhead at 74 Dougherty Road, New Gloucester.

Location

South Trailhead: 74 Dougherty Road, New Gloucester; North Trailhead: 159 North Pownal Road, New Gloucester

Length

Summit Loop Trail - 1.2 Miles

Permitted activities

Hiking

Snowshoeing

Dogs on leash or under voice control

Backcountry skiing

Hunting

Trapping

Bird Watching

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More information

Maps

Adjacencies

A 94-acre Town of Pownal woodlot abuts Pisgah Hill Preserve and provides backcountry access via access points on Sweetser and Allen Roads in Pownal.

The Pisgah Hill forested block is connected across a few rural roads and conserved farms to even larger conservation priority areas including Runaround Pond, the New Gloucester Intervale, Bradbury Mountain, and Pineland.

Trails, Trailhead, + Accessibility

‍Pisgah Hill Preserve South: A 1.2-mile primitive loop trail begins at 74 Dougherty Road in New Gloucester. The 6-car trailhead parking lot is off-road and plowed in the winter. This primitive hiking trail has become a beloved, go-to trail for many locals and their dogs. From the parking lot, proceed along the field edge to the tree line. The trail drops to an 80-foot bridge and boardwalk over Quarry Brook, then splits to form a loop, either direction leading to the summit and old quarries. Please avoid hiking on delicate mosses and lichens.

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Pisgah Hill Preserve North: A short 0.3-mile access trail at 159 North Pownal Road in New Gloucester is designed to get off-trail enthusiasts including hunters and foragers across the powerline and onto the large undeveloped parcel. It is a quiet trail for a short hike, or convenient access to a mossy picnic ledge, beaver ponds, and vernal pools.

Stewardship and Conservation History

Pisgah Hill Preserve was established in 2010 and expanded multiple times through the acquisition of numerous parcels through 2023. The preserve is part of a 300-acre public landscape of protected land.

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Funding for acquisition and capital improvements has come in part from the Land for Maine’s Future program, the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund, Casco Bay Estuary Partnership, the Recreational Trails Program (Maine BPL), and the Maine Natural Resources Conservation Program (Maine DEP).

Rules + regulations

Please help us protect this natural area by observing the following guidelines:

Dogs are welcome under voice control or on a leash. Due to deer wintering, we ask that dogs be on leash during periods of deep snow; deer struggle to maintain energy during the winter; dogs and humans cause them to expend this precious energy.

Please adhere to ‘leave no trace’ and ‘carry-in/carry-out’ practices. This includes dog waste!

Art installations including rock sculptures and monuments are discouraged. Please contain any “trail art” to the designated stone sculpture area by the picnic quarry.

Please stay on marked trails.

Safe and responsible hunting is allowed. All trail users should wear blaze orange during hunting season. s a courtesy and also noting Maine law, please call RRCT prior to any trapping on the parcel.

Equestrian use is by permission only, respecting the capacity and conditions of the land.

Bikes and motorized vehicles are prohibited.

No camping, overnight parking, fires, or smoking.

Interpretation

Royal River Conservation Trust protects and stewards properties, including Pisgah Hill Preserve, located within the traditional homelands of the Wabanaki. We strive to ensure that our properties are inclusive and accessible and provide opportunities for healing, education, and respite.

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Various small quarries on the Pisgah Hill Preserve helped build farm foundations and other structures in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In 1867 deeds, the Town of New Gloucester had quarrying rights while the landowner reserved enough granite for his own new barn. The loop trail off Dougherty Road crosses one of the quarries - please do not move the rocks from the quarry.

Notable details

Property

Habitat

Located in the Town of New Gloucester near the boundary with the Town of Pownal, Pisgah Hill Preserve boasts high conservation value for climate resilience and wildlife habitat, one of RRCT’s most beloved hiking trails, and one of RRCT’s largest trail-free expanses facilitating traditional uses such as hunting. It is located within a 1,080-acre block of unfragmented habitat with excellent landform diversity, highlighted by its 381-foot namesake, Pisgah Hill.

Pisgah Hill North contains several waterbodies and wetlands, which include one of two mapped tributaries to Quarry Brook, a beaver pond and associated wetland, a significant vernal pool designated by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Wood duck boxes installed at the beaver pond are checked and cleaned out each year. Pisgah Hill South features numerous rock outcrops that provide a unique setting for the local biota.

Notable ledge outcrops and other slopes and old trees provide dens or good habitats for mammals, including foxes and porcupines. Bear and moose occasionally pass through the forests. Turkeys, wood ducks, turtles, and many other species are regular preserve residents and visitors. There are surprisingly few invasive plants, due to the preserve’s healthy native forests.

Management Plan

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