In honor of Mother’s Day, I wanted to bring you THE BEST stroller friendly trail in Southern Maine. We know in those early postpartum days, weeks, months, and even years, being outside in nature with a friend is sometimes the best medicine!
The award for the Best Stroller Friendly trail in Southern Maine is….The Town Forest in the town of Cumberland.
Read through the blog for an in depth summary of the Town Forest and IMPORTANT BATHROOM details or head straight to the summary at the bottom for quick information.
General Information
The Town Forest is located at 290 Tuttle Road and adjacent to the Cumberland Town Hall. No need to worry about parking. There are ample spots available at the trailhead!
The Town Forest was planted around the 1930s with many plantations of red and white pine trees along with varieties of spruce. Unfortunately, some of the forest has fallen victim to invasive species and the town is working hard to minimize their impact on this beautiful parcel of land.
*You can read more about their protection efforts on placards located throughout the trail.
This trail is very wide and has graded gravel. You will have no issues on this trail with double strollers or two strollers side-by-side. Most strollers will have no issues with the gravel trail..with the exception of maybe umbrella strollers. I could imagine some issues with maneuvering on the trail with umbrella strollers but a jogging stroller, or heavy-duty strollers like Uppababy, will have no issues.
Another great feature of this trail…a story book walk that changes its story every month.
The storybook walk is roughly a ¾ mile walk. If interested in this, you will want to walk the trail in a clockwise fashion. About half of the story is at the start of the trail, and the last half towards the end of the trail. If you have little ones who are walking with you, there is a nice cut through where you can pick up the story towards the end of the two mile loop.
And…if you forget, don’t worry! There are well-marked signs that will point this out for you.
Dogs MUST BE ON LEASH. The Town of Cumberland even provides extra leashes for you to borrow at the trailhead in case you left yours at home.
Coming on a Saturday mid-May through mid-October? Bring a basket and enjoy the Cumberland & Falmouth Farmers Market from 10am-1pm.
Our Experience:
We have wonderful walks through the Town Forest in Cumberland! My daughter is now 7 years old and can easily complete the larger loop (roughly 2 miles) now. Our biggest motivator to keep coming back to the trail is the changing storybook walk. I love that it changes on the first Saturday of every month…even in the winter! The inner loop can get a little muddy, which can make it inaccessible for strollers and requires boots for all.
Even though I have a sense that a lot of people know about this trail, I do not find it very busy!
The trail is well marked and a map is available to scan at the trailhead.
Sometimes we visit when the Town Hall is closed and have to be mindful of bathroom breaks. We usually visit this trail more in the summer (#teacher) so having the Town Hall open and getting access to a nicer bathroom available VERY NICE!
Bathroom Rating: B+
I would be lying if I didn’t say that the access to clean bathrooms is a major draw for why I love this trail. The Town Forest is in the same parking lot as the Cumberland Town Hall. When the Town Hall is open, you will have access to sex-separated bathrooms. Currently, the hours of the Town Hall are: Monday-Wednesday 8am-5pm, Thursday 8am-6pm. They are closed Friday-Sunday.
The only drawbacks to these bathrooms are that they are NOT accessible when the Town Hall is closed and there are no changing tables within the bathrooms. When the Town Hall is closed, you will find a port-a-potty at the trailhead.
If coming when the bathrooms are closed AND the port-a-potty isn’t going to work for your family, I highly recommend the Oxo Tot Travel Potty and liners.
Local Food Options:
- Rise Pizza offers some great pizza options in downtown Cumberland. Their gluten free pizza is quite good!
- Dara Bistro is a cute coffee shop just up the road from the Town Forest and offers a variety of caffeinated beverages, pastries, and breakfast goodies. Weekends can be very busy so get there early!
Additional Adventures:
Looking to add on to your adventure to the Town Forest in Cumberland? Here are a couple of options you add to your day on the quietside:
- Pineland Farms. Consider the short 15 minute drive from the Town Forest to Pineland Farms in New Gloucester. Grab a bite to eat in their family friend cafe and then head to the Education Barn to visit some barnyard animals.
- Wolfe’s Neck State Park. Want to keep exploring? Bring a picnic lunch (Bow Street Market has delicious grab-and-go options!) and continue to explore the trails and shoreline of this beautiful state park just 15 minutes up the highway in Freeport, Maine.
What’s in my car for this trip?
- For any bathroom needs if the Town Hall is closed: Oxo Tot Travel Potty and liners.
- Rainy day or muddy trail? I love these Bog Boots for kids! My daughter wears these constantly so these are one of our gear items that I typically buy new. However, these are usually a well-stocked item at consignment stores!
- Dirty or wet clothes? I always have a wet bag ready. Even if the clothes are not wet.. I like to put our trail clothes in a contained space just in case there are ticks on them.
- Tick Removers. To be honest, I have one in my car, hiking pack, and at home. I don’t mess around with ticks. Period.
Summary:
The Town Forest in Cumberland is FREE and open year-round. The trail is very wide and has graded gravel. You will be able to comfortably fit two strollers wide or a double stroller. Dogs MUST BE ON LEASH.
The inner loop of the Town Forest is part of a Storybook Walk; with a new book that changes the first Saturday of the month (even in Winter!).
When the Cumberland Town Hall is open, so is access to their sex-separated bathrooms. If the Town Hall is closed, you will find a port-a-potty near the trailhead.
Coming on a Saturday mid-May through mid-October? Be sure to stop by the Cumberland Falmouth Farmers Market in the parking lot of the trailhead.
Thank you for reading this blog post on The Wandering Chickadee!
~Natalie
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