Difficulty & Length: Moderate, 1 mile of trail network
Town: Lubec
The Klondike Mountain Preserve offers visitors a stunning view of the Cobscook Bay coastline. From the parking lot the trail, marked with blue blazes, cuts through an old cattle pasture with fruit-bearing apple trees. At the western edge of the field, two trails diverge and visitors can choose to hike the Fowlers Mill Pond Trail or the Klondike Mountain Trail.
In addition to being a fantastic spot to watch the sunset, this 46-acre preserve has an interesting backstory to its name:
In 1897, two strangers checked into the Lubec Inn. Mr. Charles Fisher and Reverend Prescott Jernegan were two men looking for a way to make a quick buck. They claimed that they could extract gold from seawater, and founded the Electrolytic Marine Salts Company. The two hired 100 workers to convert an old grist mill into their plant, and the following spring they sunk 240 “accumulators” into Cobscook Bay to collect gold. While they claimed that the high tides and rapidly flowing waters of the Lubec Narrows were perfect for their process, they likely set up shop in Lubec due to its remote location. When investors from New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut came to inspect the process, Fisher and Jernegan duped them by diving into the bay at night and planting gold in the accumulators. The two men were so successful in attracting investors that that they began construction of a second plant with the help of over 700 laborers, mostly Italian immigrants who had been working on a rail line in Machias. In July of 1898, as word spread that all was not well at the plant, Jernegen and Fisher fled the area and were never prosecuted for their deception.
Directions: Take US Route 1 to ME Route 189, leading to Lubec. After 9 miles, turn left on the North Lubec Road at McFadden’s Variety. Go 1 mile to the Klondike Mountain Preserve sign on the left and park in the parking area.