suckfish Brook conservation area

Trail Distance and Description

5 mile trail system; trails are often rooty, rocky, and narrow

Dogs

Must be on leash April 1st - Sept 30th to protect sensitive wildlife habitat

Bikes

Allowed

GPS Address

Main trail access: 4 Upland Way, Falmouth

Bog view access: 184 Mast Road, Falmouth

Parking

Upland Way: small unpaved lot with about 3 parking spaces

Mast Road: unpaved pull off with about 2 parking spaces

Additional Information

Ownership

Town of Falmouth

Year Protected

2012

Acreage

~ 180

Property Uses

Hiking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, mountain biking, hunting, and nature study are all allowed. Motorized vehicles are prohibited. Trails are not wheelchair accessible. Dogs must be leashed from April 1st to September 30th.

Additional Directions

From I-95 take exit 53 and turn left onto Gray Rd (Rte 100/26). Continue for 1 mile, then turn left onto Mountain Rd. Continue on Mountain Rd for 2 miles, then turn right on Blackstrap Rd. In a half-mile turn left onto Mast Rd. Continue approximately 1 mile, and turn left onto Upland Way. The trailhead and kiosk are less than one-tenth of a mile down the dirt road. There is an unpaved parking lot with approximately 3 parking spaces.

general information

Suckfish Brook Conservation Area includes extensive wetlands, including portions of Falmouth’s only northern peat bog, ±1,500 feet of frontage on Suckfish Brook, and acres of upland hardwood forest. There are miles of woodland trails on the northern portion of the property, and a ¼ mile long trail that provides access to an elevated walkway into the bog on the southern end. The address for this bog view trailhead on the Falmouth/Westbrook town line is 184 Mast Rd. A portion of this property was conserved by the City of Westbrook.

history

The Falmouth property was acquired in 2012 with funding from the Maine Natural Resources Conservation Program and the Casco Bay Estuary Partnership, and is protected through a conservation easement held by the Falmouth Land Trust. Most of the property was part of the original ±500 acre Huston farm, a prominent early Falmouth family. William Huston was the King’s forester in the 1700s, when this area grew the tall pine trees needed for masts on British ships (hence the name Mast Road). A memorial gravestone for the Huston family is located on the northern edge of the parcel, just off the loop trail. The Westbrook portion was acquired in 2013.

habitat

The property is home to a wide variety of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, including the endangered box turtle, Maine’s rarest turtle. Brook trout and white suckers – "suckfish" – spawn in the brook. The unique plant life found in the bog is also of special interest.