RailTrailWxRailTrailWx
E-bikingBikingWalkingRunningHikingBirdingFishingHorseback ridingCross-country skiingand more
The Eastern Trail is southern Maine's coastal rail trail, following the old Eastern Railroad bed from Kennebunk through Arundel, Biddeford, Saco, Old Orchard Beach, and Scarborough to the Wainwright Recreation Complex in South Portland. It is rail-grade flat, mostly packed stone with paved stretches near town. The southern half runs through quiet woods, crosses the Maine Turnpike on the only footbridge over that highway, and bridges the Kennebunk River. The off-road trail pauses at Southern Maine Health Care in Biddeford and resumes at Thornton Academy in Saco, with city streets between. North of Saco the trail opens onto Scarborough Marsh, the largest salt marsh in Maine, and crosses the Nonesuch River with views across the tidal creeks.
Eastern Trail
Your comfort. Prognosticated.
-Cory
In a typical year the Eastern Trail has about 93 to 160 days of excellent weather for popular activities such as dog walking, hiking, running, biking, e-biking, birding, and walking, with May, June, and October the best months.
Hourly comfort scores for the next 15 days of weather, tuned to your activity and your own thresholds.
Plan your visit to this trail. Get the best windows for a comfortable outing.
Enjoy the Eastern Trail!
In half of past years, color along the Eastern Trail peaks October 16 to 27, typically around October 21. The trail has 27% deciduous coverage, with the majority being red maple and northern red oak.
The last Boston and Maine train between Kittery and Portland ran in 1945, after more than a century of service. The corridor began as the Portland, Saco and Portsmouth Railroad, which opened in 1842 from Portland through Saco to South Berwick. From 1843 the Eastern Railroad and the Boston and Maine shared its tracks to reach Portland from Boston, and in 1847 the two rivals leased it jointly for 99 years. The Eastern bought the line outright in 1872. In 1884 the Boston and Maine absorbed the Eastern and ran the route as its Eastern Division until 1945. Twenty years later Portland Gas Light bought much of the empty right of way and buried a natural gas pipeline in it. That pipeline still runs under the trail. In December 1997 trail advocates asked the pipeline owner, Granite State Gas Transmission, whether a path could share the corridor, and the company said yes. The group held its first public meeting as the Eastern Trail Alliance in March 1998. In 2001 the trail towns formed the Eastern Trail Management District to coordinate maintenance. The first off-road segment opened in 2008 between Pine Point Road in Scarborough and Old Blue Point Road in Old Orchard Beach. The Kennebunk to Biddeford section opened in 2010, and in 2011 the Maine Turnpike bridge and the Old Orchard Beach to Saco segment followed. On August 6, 2026 the Close the Gap project finished the last link between Scarborough and the Wainwright complex in South Portland.
South Portland Greenbelt WalkwayEast Coast Greenway
