Maine State Parks- Bradbury Mountain

Thom and I purchased a Maine State Park pass at the beginning of the year and we have been impatiently waiting for nice weather so that we can get out and use it. This past weekend fit the bill, temperatures in the 60's with no chance of rain. We took full advantage of my three day weekend from work to do some exploring. 

On Saturday, we visited Bradbury Mountain State Park. The park is on the way to my mother's house, so we have driven past it numerous times. I

had visited the park several times before, but Thom had never visited. The use of the term "mountain" is a bit of a misnomer, it might be a mountain by geological definition, but it is really more of a big hill. Thom and I went up the South Ridge Trail, and it only took us about 45 minutes to reach the summit. That time includes a break at an overlook. We went down the mountain on the Summit Trail, which is essentially a straight drop from the summit to the parking lot, the descent took us about 10 minutes.

Upon arrival at the park, we were informed by the ranger that there was a bird demonstration going on throughout the park. At the summit there were a number of telescopes set up for bird watching, we opted not to participate. Once down the mountain, there was a live bird demonstration by a local bird rehabilitation group. We sat at a picnic table, enjoyed the sunshine, and listened to the stories of the various birds. I also got to meet this little red tailed hawk named Sabre.

Despite the brief hike, the views from the top of Bradbury Mountain are gorgeous. There is also a large picnic area, playground, and campground at the base of the mountain. We plan to go back to Bradbury Mountain throughout the year to keep up with the seasons. It will be nice to see the landscape with the green leaves of summer, and the fall foliage later on.