Bradbury Mountain State Park is a wonderful place to spend a day or afternoon exploring trails, taking in the magnificent view from the summit, or enjoying a picnic under a canopy of trees. Situated on Route 9 about halfway between Portland and Lewiston-Auburn, the park attracts visitors who enjoy picnicking, hiking and camping on its 800 acres of forested land. Bradbury Mountain is the only state park in southern Maine to offer shared-use trails for horseback riders, mountain bikers and snowmobilers. Snow shoe rentals are available.

Spring is best time to watch hawk migration. Mid-March through mid-May the annual Hawk Watch takes place. Initiated by Jeannette and Derek Lovitch in 2007, the annual count provides quantitative data about the extent and duration of the northbound raptor flight over Bradbury Mountain State Park.

Before the first Europeans arrived, Wabanakis camped on the mountain on trips to the coast. In the early 1800's, the Cotton family raised grapes on terraces still visible on the mountain. To hold stray cattle, sheep, and pigs, the early settlers built the cattle pound that still stands on Rt. 9 near the Northern Loop Trail. Near the ball field visitors can still see where feldspar was mined in the 1920's to make crockery and china.

Acquired from the Federal Government in 1939, Bradbury Mountain became one of the five original state parks. In the 1940's, it offered downhill skiing with a rope tow. In the 1990's, the park added 250 acres, thanks to the generosity of the Spiegel family, funding from the Lands for Maine's Future Fund, and the efforts of many people. These groups continue to work on expanding the park to eventually link to the Pineland Public Land parcel in New Gloucester.

Natural Heritage Hikes are narratives that guide hikers through the rich ecological, geological, and cultural elements encountered on 25 of Maine's most popular hikingtrails. These descriptions provide the hiker with the what, how, and why of the natural environments they are walking through.