Situated between Dennys Bay and Cobscook Bay, the 191-acre Reversing Falls Preserve provides spectacular views of the largest set of tidal falls on the Maine coast.
Difficulty & Length: Easy, 0.6 miles of trail network
Town: Pembroke
After following signs for the falls scattered along the roadway, visitors will end up on a dirt road that goes 1.5 miles before opening up to the Town of Pembroke’s 32 acres of fields and parking areas overlooking looking the falls. Here visitors can explore, have a picnic or head to the water edges to watch this unusual phenomenon of small whirlpools and swirling currents that occurs on the Maine coast.
Our Downeast Coastal Conservancy’s trail begins at the eastern parking lot. Marked with blue blazes, this trails continues along the wooded shore and around a small cove. The trail leads to a large rocky viewpoint, with several short spur trails along the way offering views of the water. In the cove, visitors will discover remnants of old ship wreck that remains on the preserve. Hikers should be on the lookout for seals playing in the falls, bald eagles perched high in the evergreens lining the water, and for a variety of waterfowl and migratory birds out in the water.
The word ‘Cobscook’ is the aptly described Maliseet-Passamaquoddy tribal word for “boiling tides”. Although the water is cold throughout the year, the churning tides often provide a visual illusion that they are boiling. Between the Reversing Falls Preserve and Falls Island a huge underwater ledge creates the falls. The channel here provides a different experience at each stage of the tidal cycle. As the tide dramatically rises or falls (up to 24 feet every 6.4 hours), the channel transforms from peaceful, still water to a raging torrent and back again.
Directions: Take U.S. Route 1 to Pembroke. Turn east onto the extension of Route 214, immediately beside the Irving gas station. From the Route 214 extension, turn right at the stop sign and then take an immediate left up a small hill onto the Leighton Point Road (some maps call this the Leighton Neck Road.) Continue 3.3 miles, then turn right onto Clarkside Road (paved road, look for the wood Reversing Falls marker) and continue 1.2 miles. At the end of Clarkside Road, turn left onto a dirt road and go 1.5 miles to the Town of Pembroke land and parking area. Downeast Coastal Conservancy’s trail begins at the eastern parking lot.