The Future Is Now

As demand for Maine land grows, there’s increasing urgency to secure continued public access for outdoor recreation; to conserve open, shared community spaces; and to strengthen natural resource businesses that are critical to our economy. Support Land for Maine’s Future today.

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In 1987, Maine voters overwhelmingly approved a bond to purchase lands of significance for recreation and conservation. For over 30 years, LMF has successfully crossed ideologies, party lines and motivations to represent and protect the essence of Maine — yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Access

Public land access is the essence of Maine. LMF supports that legacy, securing perpetual land access statewide for recreation, farming, fishing and forestry.

Community

Maine communities rely on public land as a means to explore, to engage, to reset, and to survive. LMF exists because some places matter enough to preserve – for generations to come.

Economy

From acquisitions and easements to cooperative ventures, LMF projects are economic engines that produce measurable returns – with long-term benefits to the people of Maine.

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It’s your Maine. Start exploring.

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See how others are exploring LMF Destinations, land trust preserves, and other conservation areas in #MainesGreatOutdoors, and share photos of your own adventures. Post your image here.

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Passport to Maine’s Outdoors

Thanks to the LMF program, a network of land trusts, and our proud conservation traditions, Maine has hundreds of outdoor places for all of us to treasure and share. This year, invite your friends and family to discover some of the state’s most beautiful outdoor destinations, including thirty-six featured on the Passport to Maine’s Outdoors. LMF Coalition is partnering with the Maine Land Trust Network and L.L. Bean to sponsor this passport. Plan your next outdoor adventure today!

Passport to Maine’s Outdoors

Click here for the list of 2018 Winners of Our Passport to Maine’s Great Outdoors Contest

LMF works for ME

Since 1987, the LMF program has helped to protect more than 600,000 acres of land in Maine. Most of these special places are open for visitors — offering access to great activities like hiking, fishing, swimming, boating, and even ATV riding. Best of all, LMF’s work has been funded by the people of Maine for the past 30 years — which means LMF properties belong to all of us — forever.

Over 150 projects have been funded to date from the Land for Maine’s Future Program. Here are just a few:

Howard Hill

Western Maine · Kennebec County

Located in the heart of Augusta, the 164-acre Howard Hill conservation area forms the wooded backdrop to the Maine State House and features a cascading stream, an expansive ridgeline with sheer cliffs, and diverse wildlife habitat. The property is open to hiking, nature observation, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and bow hunting by permission.

Vinalhaven Fishermen’s Cooperative

Midcoast Maine · Knox County

On an island where nearly 50% of the year-round population earns a living from fisheries, the Vinalhaven Lobstermen’s Co-op is one of three important access properties in Carver’s Harbor. It serves about 60 boats, has 84 members, and supports 100 island families with income from the sale of lobsters and crabs.

Port Clyde Fishermen’s Cooperative

Downeast Maine · Hancock County

The Port Clyde Fishermen’s Cooperative wharf supports the lobstering activities of co-op members, and a portion of the property is also leased to a family-owned and operated bait processing facility that provides bait to fishermen throughout the area.

Marsh River Preserve

Midcoast Maine · Lincoln County

Located in Newcastle, the Midcoast Conservancy’s 70-acre Marsh River Preserve features a 0.9-mile nature trail that offers scenic overlooks of the river. The preserve’s beautiful salt marshes and mixed forests offer ideal habitat for birds and other wildlife.

Morong Cove

Downeast Maine · Washington County

Located in the town of Lubec, Morong Cove offers hikers, snowshoe enthusiasts, and birdwatchers 3.3 miles of moderate trails with scenic views of Cobscook Bay and access to the shoreline. Portions of the trail wind through historic farm fields and past former homesteads.

Roberts Farm

Western Maine · Oxford County

Western Foothill’s Land Trust’s 165-acre Roberts Farm Preserve offers a 7.5-mile network of multi-use trails, including a half mile universally accessible trail to a scenic outlook. The agricultural history of this land will reveal itself as you skirt the farm pond, passing through remnants of fields and pastures, through numerous stone walls, orchards, and groves.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Land for Maine’s Future (LMF) Program. It was 1987 when Maine voters first approved a $35 million bond to purchase lands of state significance for recreation and conservation. The goal of the program remains the same now as it did then: To secure public access for recreation, to conserve our most important habitats, to preserve Maine’s farming traditions and to protect the natural infrastructure vital to both our sense of place and our economic future.

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Latest news

Portland Press Herald: Coalition calls for state to borrow funds to get conservation ‘back on track’

Mar 6, 2019

There is strong, bipartisan support in the Legislature and from the administration of Gov. Janet Mills for a bond package to support the LMF program, which is geared toward protecting public access to recreational lands or preserving valuable farmlands and working waterfronts. Since 1987, the program has protected from development more than 1,200 miles of shoreline, 9,700 acres of farm land and more than 570,000 acres of conservation and recreation lands.

WCSH: Conservation groups asking for bond for land and parks

Mar 5, 2019

Maine voters may get the chance to decide if they want to put more money into protecting land and working waterfront. Several conservation groups, including the Sportsmen’s Alliance of Maine and Maine Coast Heritage Trust, have teamed up with legislators to propose new funding for Land for Maine’s Future.

Bangor Daily News: Land trusts get high marks from legislature

Mar 20, 2018

The Maine Legislature’s Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry Committee has released its report on conservation lands owned by nonprofit organizations, which it was authorized to undertake by a provision in the General Fund Biennial Budget for 2018 and 2019. The report gives high marks to our land trust community and includes some interesting recommendations.

New Report: Study of Conserved Lands Owned by Nonprofit Organizations

Mar 8, 2018

In 2017, the Maine Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry (ACF Committee) was authorized to “conduct a study of the financial and nonfinancial aspects of conserved lands owned by nonprofit conservation organizations, including property taxes paid, community benefits realized and value of lands to the State’s economy.” The ACF Committee’s findings are detailed in a new report: Study of Conserved Lands Owned by Nonprofit Organizations. In the report, all thirteen members of ...

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