SCENIC LOCAL WALKS
Kennebunk, Maine

Carson rocked the world with her 1964 expose of the effect of pesticides on marine life. She would be proud of this preserved site. Carson Trail is not only the perfect place to walk, but the ideal setting for teaching walkers, young and old, about the life of a salt marsh, its design and its inhabitants.

Name: Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge
Location: Kennebunk, ME, just off Route 9 from Route 1 heading north
Details: Federally run refuge and walking trail and education center on preserved wetlands area of South Coast Maine
Resources: Parking area, porto-toilets, detailed signage and walking trail brochures and map available, narrated walk, smooth flat trails, guided tours avaiable
Rules: Open dawn to dusk daily, no bikes, stay on trails, not a picnic area
Dogs: Okay on leash and on trails only
Web Site: National Wildlife Refuge

The Carson Trail is the Cadillac of short walks in the Seacoast. The mile-long trail is absolutely flat and packed as smooth as a running track. There are sturdy wooden handrails in many spots, lots of wooden benches, well-constructed wooden bridges. The entire trail is ideal for wheelchairs.

First time visitors can pick up one of three brochures or download them entirely online from the US Fish & Wildlife Service. The 11-step interpretation is clearly marked and takes readers through the formation of a salt marsh, the same critical ecosystems that we have destroyed through much of the coastal area. Here, at least, we can see what the salt marsh used to look like.