Gambo Property and Shaw Park

A network of three trails owned by two different entities, The Presumpscot Regional Land Trust (PRLT) and the Town of Gorham, the Presumpscot River, Gunpowder Mill, and the Canal Towpath Trails offer a nice diversion from the Mountain Division Rail Trail or a great historic and recreational destination. The Presumpscot River Trail serves as a link between the Mountain Division Rail Trail, Shaw Park, and the Gambo Property of the Presumpscot Regional Land Trust. Starting on the west side of the Presumpscot River at its intersection with the Mountain Division Rail Trail, the paved Presumpscot River Trail heads south into Shaw Park, which has numerous recreation facilities including a boat launch and canoe rentals, picnic tables, and parking for any of the connecting trails. South of the parking area, the trail winds around an old sand pit which was excavated by the former quarrying operations. The trail continues to follow Gambo Road east to a pedestrian bridge above the Gambo Dam. Along the way there are visible remnants of the Cumberland and Oxford Canal and a submerged ruin of the Oriental Powder Mill. Those wishing to complete the Curtis Loop will need to travel uphill slightly, turn left onto the gravel road and reenter the Mountain Division Rail Trail at the end of this road. The second half of the Presumpscot River Trail also provides access to the Presumpscot Regional Land Trust's Gambo Property and the Gunpower Mill Trail and Canal Towpath Trail trailheads. The property was once the Oriental Powder Mill, the first (1824) and largest gunpowder mill in Maine. During the Civil War, the Oriental Powder Mill supplied the Union Army with a quarter of its gunpowder! The mill closed in 1905, just prior to the construction of the adjacent Gambo Dam. Starting near the dam on old Gambo Road, the Gunpowder Mill Trail tours the entire grounds of the former mill. Numerous ruins dot the trail, and wayside markers describe the significance of each ruin. The quarter-mile long Gunpowder Mill Trail ends at the Canal Towpath Trail. The Canal Towpath Trail follows the old route of the Cumberland and Oxford Canal. In addition to the still visible canal prism, the trail also crosses an old weir (a water overflow structure) and passes along one of the now ruined canal locks.