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Small-Burnham Conservation Area
KLT volunteers on the stone bridge which the Great Back Lots Trail passes over.
Photo: Theresa Kerchner
Location and Description:
Location: Litchfield, Maine
Property Description: The Smalls and the Burnhams have lived and worked on this land since the 1840s. As you hike the trails on the east side of the Pine Tree Road, look for these interesting natural and historical features: stone farm foundations and pasture walls; a unique black locust stand that was planted for field posts; a stone bridge built in the 1950s that provided access to the best farm soil; a glacial marine clay bank along a stream the family calls “The Nile,” where clay was dug for pottery; and the remnants of a sugar house where the family once boiled thousands of gallons of sap.
Directions: From Monmouth: Take the South Monmouth Road to Days Corner; Cross Route 126 and go over Oak Hill; Cross the bridge, and at the stop sign, turn left. Almost immediately take the first right onto the Libby Road. At the stop sign go straight onto the Plains Road. Take the Plains Road 1 mile to the Pine Tree Road. Turn left on the Pine Tree Road. After ~ 0.5 miles look for the KLT sign and parking area on the right.
Usage and Directions
Allowable Uses: hiking, nature observation, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing. Contact landowner for hunting permission. Snowmobiles allowed on designated trails. Dogs are allowed on a leash or under voice command. Please clean up after your pets.
Great Back Lots Trail: 0.5 mile, easy; starts at the KLT trailhead off Pine Tree Road. The bridge over the stream is 0.2 miles from the KLT registration box.
Main Loop Trail: 1.4 mile, easy; accessible from the Great Back Lots Trail.
Parking: Parking lot on the right, look for KLT sign.
Hikers walk through the beautiful hemlock forest at Small-Burnham Conservation Area.
Photo: Jane Davis
History:
In August, 2010, Ina (Hutchins) Small,Delmar Dustin Small and Teague Morris granted a conservation easement to KLT on 250 acres of woodlands, wetlands, hayfields, and ponds on the Pine Tree Road in Litchfield. This easement honors Granville Small (1915-2008) and the Burnhams, Delmar’s (Dusty) mother’s family, who once farmed here. Granville, Ina’s husband and Dusty’s father, loved farming and this land. On the west side of the Pine Tree Road across from the KLT sign, there are ponds that were once gravel pits. Granville Small devoted years of his life to reclaiming these wetlands. Ina, Dusty, and Teague still own this land. As landowners with a conservation easement, they can continue to garden, raise hay, manage their woodlands, and enjoy the beauty they find in the natural world. Their easement grants public access for low impact recreational activities and prohibits residential and commercial development.