The Little Lyford Pond camps is a historic

logging camp A logging camp (or lumber camp) is a transitory work site used in the logging industry. Before the second half of the 20th century, these camps were the primary place where lumberjacks would live and work to fell trees in a particular area. Many ...

located in the Maine Woods.

Early history

The camps were opened in 1874, bordering the West Branch of the Pleasant River in northern

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. They included a main lodge and 13 cabins as well as satellite camps for housing loggers. The camps are a 2.2 mile hike from

Gulf Hagas Gulf Hagas is a gorge located in the mountains of northern Maine woods and is often referred to as the Grand Canyon of Maine. The West Branch of the Pleasant River cuts through the earth for three miles creating a vertically walled slate gorge w ...

and a 5.2 mile hike from the

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tr ...

's famed

100-Mile Wilderness The Hundred-Mile Wilderness is the section of the Appalachian Trail running between Abol Bridge just south of Baxter State Park and Monson in the state of Maine. It is generally considered the wildest section of the Appalachian Trail, and one ...

. They are located approximately east of Greenville and northwest of Brownville.

Leased to private individuals 1960–2003

In 1960 Gale and Mary Torrey of Poland, Maine leased the camps and land from several paper companies. There were very few roads in the area at that time and access was via a 4-wheel drive road starting from a parking lot at Big Lyford Pond near Kokadjo and proceeding southerly along the west side of the Pleasant River. The camps were open only in the warm months and catered primarily to fly fisherman looking for brook trout. Electricity was via a generator. The "Clean Waters Act" of the 1970s was responsible for the creation of miles of logging roads in this area and the camps became much less remote. In 1977 the Frantzman family leased of land and around 14 wood dwellings from the paper company that owns the camps. There are two lakes and a river within a mile of the site. There is no electricity, and water is gravity fed from a spring. The Frantzmans made renovations on the site, which they ran as the Little Lyford Pond Lodge.

Outhouse An outhouse is a small structure, separate from a main building, which covers a toilet. This is typically either a pit latrine or a bucket toilet, but other forms of dry toilet, dry (non-flushing) toilets may be encountered. The term may als ...

s were constructed and placed on skids so they could be moved and the manure put to use. A greenhouse was built that used

photovoltaic Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commercially us ...

cells (

solar cell A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect, which is a physical and chemical phenomenon.

s) to power a hot water heater for a shower. There is a

sauna A sauna (, ), or sudatory, is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a ...

and a root cellar. The cabins were next leased by the Fackelman family in 1987 and was later leased to the Leroys in the 1990s. The camps still exist and are maintained by the

Appalachian Mountain Club Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) is the oldest outdoor group in the United States. Created in 1876 to explore and preserve the White Mountains in New Hampshire, it has expanded throughout the northeastern U.S., with 12 chapters stretching from Ma ...

AMC Ownership

The camps are maintained by the

. "When we learned the LeRoys were looking for new owners for the camps, we saw it as a rare opportunity to continue the tradition of providing quiet recreational opportunities while protecting this special place for generations to come," said Director Walter Graff. "The camps are an ideal place to continue our commitment to outdoor recreation, education, and backcountry stewardship for the benefit of the public." The AMC purchased the wilderness camps in June from Bob and Arlene LeRoy, who have managed the

Moosehead Moosehead may refer to: * Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad * Dartmouth Moosehead Dry *Halifax Mooseheads, a team in the Canadian hockey League that plays in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada *, the name of more than one United States Navy ship *Moose ...

-region camps for six years The current manager of the lodge is Matthew Ward of Bucksport, Maine.http://www.outdoors.org/pdf/upload/Press-Release-2003-AMC-Buys-Little-Lyford-Pond-Camps.pdf

References

External links

Little Lyford Pond Camps – AMC website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Little Lyford Pond Camps Tourism in Maine Appalachian Mountain Club