Maine water access to lakes and ponds

Boat launches
Providing boat access has always been important at both the State and town level. An interesting tool: http://www.maine.gov/doc/parks/programs/boating/googlemaps.html

Wonderful! Thank you!
Another example of why I say Maine is a citizen-friendly state.

Not always

– Last Updated: Jan-31-12 7:14 PM EST –

in the sense you might think of. Some ramps allow parking daytime only. Others have restrictions. The one at the south end of Richardson Lake is on private property and they do allow launch..but pay too.

Looking at the previous reference in my area there are a number of errors. Most of the errors are omissions. There are carries to Heath Pond and Thompson Lake not on that map. And a carry to Crescent Lake on the north end. Entirely missing is a launch to Panther Pond. Also missing is a launch though not formal at the Frye Island ferry in Raymond.

Looking at the Androscoggin river.. most of the launches for paddlecraft are absent. That is because many are town owned.

I am just NE of Sebago Lake.

If you have questions about a specific area feel free to ask.

The map is a good guide but far from inclusive and in some rare cases (like on Richardson) you need a wallet.

Interesting
Glad to hear there are a lot of launches that aren’t shown.






Great Ponds Act

– Last Updated: Jan-31-12 11:34 PM EST –

Maine is governed by the Great Ponds Act, which goes back to colonial times. Any natural pond greater than 10 acres is public.

It would appear that the public has a right of access on foot to great ponds over any "unimproved land". Anyone who denies this right of access can be prosecuted and fined or imprisoned.

http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/17/title17sec3860.html

In ambiguous cases a court will probably have to determine what constitutes unimproved land, but I don't know that just putting up a "Posted" or "No Trespassing" sign would suffice. There's probably more specific guidance from the case law available to diligent researchers.

then we get into the definition of pond
IIRC its a body of water 25 feet or less at its deepest point.



So I will throw anyone out of accessing my lake (not a pond) through my backyard without permission. Ask and ye shall be granted. Taketh and you will get grief.



Just come and ask I am amenable. It is the civil way.


Like that’d happen…
If a local sheriff or whoever has to choose between prosecuting one of their own residents who feels trespassed upon, versus strongly suggesting that a stranger with out of state plates should relocate… I can see that law being upheld in a dust-up between locals. But I can’t imagine the county legal offices of any state taking up a case for a non-resident. And that describes many of the paddling incursions in Maine - tourism is a pretty big part of the picture.

Access to ponds in maine
I have often wondered about that statute - seems that perhaps if you have a pubic body of water surrounded by private land there might be an implied public right of way to access the public water. I think about this each time I plunk down my wallet to get through the gate at the North Maine Woods gates. I figure it is up to residents, not outa staters like me. But I wonder, has anyone every litigated that issue in Maine?

no difference
From a regulatory viewpoint there is no distinction between a lake and a pond. Both are surface

waters of the state and subject to the same water quality standards. From a naming convention

there is no precise difference between a lake and pond, although waterbodies named “lakes” are

generally larger and/or deeper than waterbodies named “ponds.” From an ecological or

limnological perspective, there is a difference between the two. The difference, however, is

somewhat arbitrary and not consistent or precise.





FWIW - I’ve lived in Maine for over 20 years and I have never had an issue accessing any inland body of water for which I did not have to cross private land. If you drive by it and can reach the shore from the road then it is a fair game.

Not that I know of for NMW
Its a privilege that the landowners grant to anyone to access the woods.



Access on tidal areas is of course dictated by the Moody decision.



I can see litigation coming though I am not aware of any existing. We had to post our road with No Lake Access signs because of poor behavior of non residents. Got tired of picking up trash and tired of non residents tearing up the dirt roads, which are private and entirely maintained by the pocketbooks of residents. It costs some ten grand a year to maintain, grade and plow a mile of dirt road…and the cost is divided by six residents.



There is no provision as in NMW for tolled entry for road maintenance. The real access issue is the roads.

Splain please
"I’ve lived in Maine for over 20 years and I have never had an issue accessing any inland body of water for which I did not have to cross private land. If you drive by it and can reach the shore from the road then it is a fair game. "



If you didn’t have to cross private land, you were on public land, correct? If you can reach the shore from the road, why does that make it fair game if it’s private property?



My question is more: Are the majority of lakes and ponds in Maine completely surrounded by private land, and does this make access difficult?



Comparing that to a state where the state tries to buy up a small access point on each body of water, indicating that public access is a priority.

But -
I have never understood why there is not an implied easement benefiting the public to have a free access to public waters. It has never made any sense to me that a private landowner can prohibit or regulate access to public waters. I do understand that the landowner would want that power for the reasons you point out. But, what do I know? Can you land a float plane on Chamberlain and paddle down steam to Allagash without paying fees? If so, it might be worth it for non residents on a long trip given the daily fees.

Article on access
http://www.umaine.edu/waterresearch/outreach/pdfs/Coastal_Inland_Waters.pdf



University of Maine, 16 pages, comprehensive review of the history of access

read the law
did you not read the Maine law requiring public access for bodies of water over certain acreage?



Majority og ponds in Maine have a road passing by or are on public land or are on paper company land for which you paid entrance fee [golden road].



pretty much any lakes/ponds worth visiting are accessible.



do not worry about it. just go.

Great pond access
Keep in mind that the GPA allows access only across unimproved lands and only by foot.



If there is a maintained road or a building on the land that is an improvement. So, practically, the access right to a great pond will only apply to an empty lot, and you will have to start your access from a public road or land.



You will have to walk. I would assume this would include walking with a canoe on your shoulders. It would disallow ATV’s and even bikes. Whether it would allow pulling or pushing a Swedish boat cart made in China would probably have to be litigated in a court in Norway, Poland, Mexico or Peru.

No
Seaplanes are prohibied from landing within one mile of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.



It sounds like the right thing to do to always allow public access to public waters no matter what the ownership of the land is that needs to be crossed…but things like vandalism…broken fences and general bad behavior and littering spoil things.



That said if any of you contacted me I would be happy to provide parking (and that is a real issue on camp roads…sometimes people block emergency access) and allow you to use my land. But just ask.

HA! Good one!
The above-referenced article points out that access is a matter of both custom and law. It appears that traditionally the custom in Maine has been to allow access across private land in some areas of the state, but that this custom has been dying out as lakes become more built up in some areas and as tourism has increased. In other words, in the past the custom has at times been more liberal than the law.



While spending time in Oregon it was a blessing to have full access to the publically owned coast.

I’m not being clear -
Personally I totally understand your point of view - I’m really just wondering about the legal issue - not the right or wrong of it. I would never go on water without asking and don’t advocate anyone else do so. Sorry for my lack of clarity.

no courts in any of those towns
they are all in Oxford county. The courts are in Paris.

It’s not just the tourists
The taxes on waterfront property have been a huge problem in Maine, driving out long term families and allowing a window for new owners, mostly seasonal and wealthy, to come in. It is why anyone visiting should buy seafood from the nearest cooperative, because those are the last bastion of an organized bunch that is holding onto shore access for working fishermen in many areas.



Unfortunately, the new owners often have a very different attitude about allowing access than the original families. The problem is worse as you go further south - thank heavens for awkwardly long drive times - but it is creeping north.