Eastern Trail

Eastern Trail Document Library

We are now offering (starting fall 2005) a Pocket-Sized Guide to the whole Eastern Trail ! This is bargain at $10/copy - Click here to order.  

• Pocket size with spiral wire binding for easy on-trail use. 

• 17 newly redrawn maps 

• Shows historic Eastern Railroad corridor, the proposed Greenway from South Portland to Kittery 

• Maps show optional scenic byways 

• Maps include two 50-mile loop rides:  Amtrak-Eastern Trail loop trip, Portland to Wells by Amtrak. Bike back 50 miles on Eastern Trail

• Bike Wells to Saco River on ET. Bike back to Wells along shore. A 50-mile loop ride. 

This new guide replaces the former on-line versions of the On-Road Trail Guide for the Eastern Trail.

March 2005 - Great article from the Portland Press Herald on March 18 - Old Orchard to get biking, walking trail, which opens with "Nearly three miles of new trail to be built in Old Orchard Beach this summer will help complete the Eastern Trail Alliance's vision of a recreational greenway from Kittery to South Portland." Read the complete article here.

November 2004 - They made it! After 52 days, 2,800 miles and 23 flat tires, seven cyclists, led by a team of ETA trustees and friends, arrived in Key West after traveling the entire length of the East Coast Greenway while helping to raise critically-needed funds to develop and sustain the ECG trail system. Click here to read the November 7 story in the Portland Press Herald.

July 2004 - Jim Gailey sent us the latest South Portland Greenbelt Trail Map - this map shows the entire trail accessible to all forms pedestrian/bicycle transportation. Click here to view this map.

June 2004 - Great coverage of the Scarborough Bridge ground breaking. Click here to read a Brunswick Times Record Story.   Click here to read a Scarborough Leader Story.

April 2004 - New Bridge to Fill Key Link in Cycling Trail article by Deirdre Fleming which appeared April 11 in the Maine Sunday Telegram   - click here to read

April 2004 - Many Deserve Accolades for Pioneering Eastern Trail - great editorial posted April 6 by the Portsmouth Herald

March 2003 - John Andrews posts a report on a Statewide ATV conference that he attend on the growing ATV problem. The Sportsman's Alliance of Maine (SAM) this ATV conference on March 18, 2003, in Augusta. Click here to read John's report on this conference*.

November 2002 - John Andrews posts two recent articles on ATV use and its effect on trails like the ETA.  First, a recent editorial which appeared in the Journal Tribune entitled "Unwelcome at any speed? Irresponsible ATV riders create hostile climate for all operators" - click here to read this article.

August 2002 - John Andrews provides an interesting link for a just-released study entitled Rails-with-Trails Lessons Learned; including Literature, Current Practices, and Conclusions, prepared by the U.S. Department of Transportation and dated August 1, 2002.. The entire report is available for download The U.S. Department of Transportation has released a study entitled here,  Especially check out the Executive Summary (this is a pdf file).

April 2002 - John Andrews posts two recent articles on ATV use and its effect on trails like the ETA.  First, a recent editorial which appeared in the Journal Tribune entitled "Unwelcome at any speed? Irresponsible ATV riders create hostile climate for all operators" - click here to read this article. 

December 2001 - Maggie Warren posts an article on "Sidewalks, Parks Could Boost U.S. Exercise Rates" - click here to read this article.

November 2001 - John Andrews posts some League of American Bicyclists information on U.S. obesity trends, and the role that bike paths, parks and connecting sidewalks can play - click here to read his report.

October 2001 - John Andrews reports on a few highlights from his trip to the St. Louis Rails-to-Trails Conservancy convention in St. Louis. He learned a lot that can help build a happy Eastern Trail - click here to read his report*.

July 2001:  John Andrews points out an article on bike patrols from the New England Mountain Bike Association

June 2001:  Bicycle Tourism in Maine: Economic Impacts and Marketing Recommendations Report released in April 2001 by the Maine Department of Transportation! Click here to view or download the Executive Summary* (4 Pages). Click here to view or download the complete report* (42 Pages).

May 2001:  Copies of the ETA annual reports from the May 20 Eastern Trail Alliance Annual Meeting held in Ocean Park.

April 2001:  The final Eastern Trail Engineering Feasibility Study: Final Report has been published by Wilbur Smith Associates; Terrence J. DeWan & Associates.  Copies of the Engineering Study are available on this web site, though these are large pdf format files.  Click here to see the files that are available. 

:John Andrews posted this recent article from the New York Times, The Outsider: Meandering Along Old Railroad Trails on a Bike, by James Gorman.

On March 22, 2001, Verizon donated its section of the Eastern RR corridor to the Eastern Trail Alliance!! - Another critical step toward fulfilling our dream. The land is located in OOB from the OOB-Scarborough town line westerly for more than 1000 feet. Click here for the PDF file* containing the press release with more details.

Copy of the Eastern Trail Municipal Agreement, which will oversee and coordinate the construction and operation of the Eastern Trail. See the News page for more details.

ALSO:

Eastern Trail Purpose and Needs Statement*

Worried about Crime on the Eastern Trail?*

Other documents which should be included here? Click here to let the ETA webmaster know.

Call us (207.284.9260) or e-mail the ETA office