It's a beautiful, warm Maine day. The sun is shining, there's a breeze and things are feeling pretty perfect. Except for that fact that it feels like every hike, every walk, every outdoor endeavor has been tackled. What do you do? Start looking for the ones you've missed! There are walks, hikes and bike paths all over this state and we love exploring the ones that don't make their way into the guide books. This is one of those!
While the Branch Lake Public Forest in Ellsworth might not look terribly exciting from the start, once you're meandering the trails found inside you'll be glad you came!
The 239-acre forest has 5 marked hiking trails right now with more planned in the future.
The main trail, Tote Road runs through the forest connecting each of the hiking trails. It's about .7 miles and an easy walk.
Each trail can be accessed from Tote Road and most are short and simple to follow. Our favorites are the ones leading to Branch Lake.
The shortest two trails are Marsh Trail at .2-miles and Pine Trail at .3-miles. You'll find both on the left while walking down Tote Road. These will take you through the forest, but plan on taking the other trails for lake access.
The Lake Loop trail is about a mile round-trip and begins from the west end of Pine Trail.
You'll make your way over some bog bridges and ultimately to the lake. Then the loops turns back inland where you'll end up right where you started.
Brookside Trail is slightly longer at 1.6-miles. It travels through the marsh, over a brook and to the shores of the lake.
Whether you make it to the lake or simply enjoy the sound of the wind in the forest trees, this is a wonderful network of short trails that will let you find some peace and quiet.
You can learn more about the Branch Lake Public Forest here, or you can find out more about the hike on Maine Trail Finder. For more ways to enjoy Maine head to the lakes! Here are 7 lake beaches in Maine that will make you feel like you're at the ocean.
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