Thorncrag Nature Sanctuary

Imagine if you will, a sprawling, lush land filled with pines, oaks, maple trees, and ferns. Abundant with life, there are constant sounds of owls hooting, birds chirping, squirrels scurrying, and chipmunks…..chipmunk-ing! With every corner brings a new sight, a new set of scenery, a new adventure. Imagine all of this, nestled amongst urban and suburban surroundings, and you’ve just entered into a new discovery that Mia and I have made in the city. The Thorncrag Nature Sanctuary.

We pulled into the parking lot, rounding half of the circular parking area, and backed into a spot. Mia was giggling in the backseat. When I looked in the mirror to see why, I found that Eliza, Mia’s besty who had joined us for the weekend, was reaching over and unbuckling her. Apparently Mia though it was funny to have this “upper hand” on mommy as she leapt forward to put her forehead against mine with a big smile on her face.

We got out of the car and put on our bug spray, grabbed out water bottles, and headed up the trail. Mia led the way to the information board and waited for me to catch up. These are always a sign to her that the trail is near, and she always remember that mommy needs to look at these.. There are actually two large information boards, but I only grabbed a picture of one. One shows the types of birds a person can see during their walk. Thorncrag was originally set up as a bird sanctuary, and has gained multiple uses over the years.

HUGE trails makes for a great family hike!

I grabbed a trail map from the board and took a quick peak at it. As it turned out, there would be more than just trails, trees, and sounds to explore. This trail was also dotted with some pretty interesting additions. I tucked the map into my back pocket to use as a reference along our way.

Mia had started her happy screeching as she and Eliza ran up the trail. I lightly jogged to keep up with them. Who am I to tell them to stop or slow down? After all, they were out here to have fun and enjoy themselves. Run to your hearts content kiddos!

Mia came to an abrupt stop when she came to a four way in the trail. She looked back at me, with a quizzical look on her face. “Which way do we go mom?”, the look asked me. “Go straight Mia, follow the yellow trail!!”

“Follow the yellow trees Mia!”, Eliza hollered at the top of her lungs as she pointed to the yellow paint mark on the tree trunk closest to them. And in an instant, Mia and Eliza were off on a journey, and I was jogging along with them again!

Eliza: I'm so happy to be here!
Mia: Eliza, I'm so happy YOU'RE here!
:)

It was Eliza’s turn to stop next, as she asked me what THAT was up in the woods. I squinted up in the direction that she was pointing, but I couldn’t make heads or tails of which THAT she was looking at. When I asked her what she was looking at, because I wasn’t sure if she was looking at a tree or something else, she responded with “Ashley, that black thing right THERE. It looks like  a BEAR! Should I be afraid of it?”

Instincts told me that what she saw was likely not a bear. And if there had been a bear around, it probably would have skedaddled before we even knew it was there. Bears are actually quite afraid of humans and tend to stay away. Still, my heart skipped a beat when my eyes caught glimpse of what closely resembled the profile of a Maine black bear.

I investigated further, only to find the “bear” was an old rotting stump from a fallen tree. I told the girls how sometimes your mind plays tricks on you. I told them how one time (actually, on several occasions), while I was out deer hunting, I too thought I’d caught a glimpse of a bear moving around in the last minutes of a hunting day. 

Kavanagh Bench

After we agreed that the horizon was bear free, we continued up the trail. It wasn’t long before we hit the first landmark on the map, The Kavanagh bench. All along this trail there are memorials and dedications to people who gave their time and resources to develop this area. This piece of land has quite a history to it, but it’s one that should be read and felt as one walks down the path. So I’ll try not to ruin too much of the story for you.

There's no keeping kids from running for the center of this great place!

Anthony Fireplace 

The next feature that we came across is called the Anthony Fireplace. When we rounded the trail and the girls saw this enormous fieldstone structure, they ran for it’s center. It’s focal point, the fireplace, was massive. Like something out of a midevel castle. Benches surrounded the fireplace. Massive benches that looked as if they’d been built for giant kings and queens.

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Mia ran over to the large bench directly across from the fireplace, and Eliza followed suit. Shouting at the top of her lungs that “This would be a great place to have Christmas Ashley and Mia!!” Ha! Kids say the funniest things. But I did find myself wondering how this place would look with a blanket of fresh white snow while Mia chased Eliza from one side of the bench to the other, giggling the entire time. So cute!



After the girls had their fill of this magnificent structure, we followed the path a bit further to find another fireplace. This one was much smaller than the first, but Mia still took quite an interest in it. I could tell that all of these items seemed out of place to her. It’s not often we find something man made along a hiking trail, and I’m sure she knew that these were not at all ordinary.

Miller Fireplace

We followed the yellow trail to the very end where the color markings turned green. The girls decided that they wanted to turn back the the Anthony Fireplace again. Eliza said that she wanted to play kings and queens on the big benches. But since there was no king with us, her and Mia would be princesses, and I’d be their person to do things for them. “You want me to be your servant?” I asked with a funny look on my face and an unbelievably goofy tone in my voice, which led to uncontrollable laughter for both of the girls. Eliza grabbed Mia's hand and they both ran down the trail together towards the fireplace.

After the girls got their fill of the fireplace, (and telling me what to do, lol), we headed back down the trail towards the entrance. We took a right at the intersection where Mia had wondered which way to go. I wanted to check out one other thing on the trail today before we left. There are two amphitheaters on this trail. One near the beginning, and one further up the trail. Amphitheaters are a great alternative to teaching indoors in a boring classroom. Especially if the topic being taught pertains to the outdoors! 

Amphitheater 

Thorncrag Nature Sanctuary is a great place to explore nature in the Lewiston/Auburn area! We spent half a day on the trail systems, and we still have so much more to explore here!