Name: Sea Point & Crescent Beach
Location: Off Route 103 at Kittery Point toward Gerrish Island (but stay on the old route and look for Seapoint Beach signs).
Resources: None
Parking: Biking is best. Limited parking with additional spaces nearer the beach for Kittery residents only ($25 fine there for cars without Kittery dump sticker).
Rules: Conservation land -- No fires at any time, no overnight camping, carry in/carry out
Dogs: On leash only.
Web site: Kittery Land Trust

Technically this area is separate from Seapoint Beach. It consists of a spit of land conserved by the Kittery Land Trust that is part of the Maine Land Trust network. This group saves open land which is rapidly disappearing to development. Formerly private land is preserved for use by the public. On a blustery spring day the wind can practically knock you off this mini-peninsula that juts out between Kittery’s only two curved beaches. It feels a bit like being on one of the Isles of Shoals.

The problem with saving land for the public is – well, the public. Already there is no animal habitat on the small three-acre plot. The constant human travel and the large number of dog walkers have scared away even the bird population. A few dogs on the beach can be fun, one members of the local conservation committee told us, but 50 dogs is no fun. So far the conservators are hoping that the public will come to respect and enjoy the land responsibly without the need to enact tougher rules. On our visits, we regret to say, dog owners have been slow to clean up after their dogs. Others think it is acceptable to fling the dog feces into the bushes, unaware that this may eventually lead to banning of dogs.