The 766 acre Schmid Preserve in Edgecomb held their annual fall trail work day on Sunday, Nov. 5. Eighteen local volunteers cleared trails, repainted trail blazes, constructed a bridge, and removed invasive plants.

A student group from the University of Southern Maine’s Department of Environmental and Policy, led by group president Sage Tocci, removed invasive vegetation from historic Dodge farm foundations in the Haggett Field on the preserve.

The Schmid Preserve has approximately 10 miles of trails with three main access points which have kiosks and trail maps. The preserve was donated by Charles and Constance Schmid in 1979 and an additional 90 acres was added in 2002. The preserve is owned by the town of Edgecomb and maintained and managed solely by volunteers and an advisory board appointed by the selectboard. There are many interesting and historic sites on the preserve.

The Schmid Preserve is a large wildlife habitat and is used by many people who enjoy hiking, mountain biking, hunting, birding, cross country skiing and snowshoeing. Volunteers also work on the River Link trail, which connects the Zak Preserve in Boothbay (Boothbay Region Land Trust) to the Dodge Point Preserve (State of Maine Public Land) in Newcastle. River Link travels through the Schmid Preserve as well as Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust land. We all work in partnership to keep River Link maintained for public use. Riverlink, at almost 8 miles long, is one of the longest contiguous trails in Lincoln County, and connects The Sheepscot and Damariscotta rivers.

The Schmid Preserve Advisory board hosts two trail work days a year, one in spring and one in fall. If you are interested in finding out more about the Schmid Preserve, go to www.edgecomb.org or send an email to Schmidpreserve@gmail.com