MATC maintains the trail east of Route 26, including four designated campsites. The Appalachian Mountain Club maintains the trail west of Route 26, also including four designated campsites.

The Grafton Notch/Mahoosuc area encompasses some of Maine’s most spectacular mountain terrain. The trail is a rugged, remote backcountry trail, and much of it is on private land. If you are interested in maintaining a section, please see the Baldpate District in the current vacancy section of our Trail Maintainer Page.

Southern Trail Head

From the junction of Routes 2 and 26 in Newry, Maine, travel North on Route 26 (towards Grafton Notch State Park) 4.7 miles and turn right into a gravel parking area; it is just north of the intersection of Eddy Road and Route 26 in Newry. Stewart Campsite is a five mile hike from the trailhead.

Northern Trail Head

From the junction of Routes 2 and 26 in Newry, Maine, travel North on Route 26 (towards Grafton Notch State Park) 12.0 miles and turn left into a parking area. It is 7.3 miles north of the southern trailhead.

Grafton Loop Trail Building History

This significant trail-building effort was done over a six-year period by members of the Grafton Loop Trail Coalition, which includes the Appalachian Mountain Club, Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, the Maine Appalachian Trail Club, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, the Maine Conservation Corps, Hurricane Island Outward Bound School, several timber management companies, Sunday River Ski Resort, and other private landowners. Funding was provided by several private donors and foundations, as well as by the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund and federal Recreational Trails Program funding.

This trail is partially within the 9,993-acre Mahoosuc Ecological Reserve, which, like all Maine State Ecological Reserves, is specifically set aside to protect and monitor natural ecosystems. More information about the reserve can be found at Maine Natural Areas Program’s Ecoreserve Fact Sheet for Mahoosuc Unit. The section of trail over Puzzle Mountain is mostly on land owned by the Mahoosuc Land Trust and permanently protected from development.