Northern Forest Canoe Trail

The Northern Forest Canoe Trail is a 740 mile marked canoeing trail in the northeastern United States and Canada, extending from Old Forge in the Adirondacks of New York to Fort Kent, Maine. Along the way, the trail also passes through the states and provinces of Vermont, Quebec, and New Hampshire.

Maine contains more miles of NFCT waters than any other state or province on the trail. The Rangeley Lakes are large and surrounded by conserved forests and mountains. The South Branch of the Dead River provides a whitewater run when it has enough water to be paddled. Flagstaff Lake spreads out beneath the dramatic ridgeline of the Bigelow Range. The Dead River is placid until it tumbles over Grand Falls. Spencer Lake and Stream are remote and scenic. The Moose River flows through many lakes and ponds as it meanders to Moosehead Lake, which is the largest in Maine and part of the Thoreau Wabanaki Trail. The West Branch of the Penobscot is wide and slow and ends in the open stretches of Chesuncook Lake. The Allagash Wilderness Waterway is a spectacular ribbon of lakes, ponds, rivers and streams winding through northern Maine. The St John River flows through a scenic, international valley to the eastern terminus of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail in Fort Kent.