Magalloway Wilderness Preserve - Northeast Wilderness Trust

Parmachenee & Lynchtown Townships, ME 11,273 acres Visitor Guidelines Download Map

Large-Scale Wilderness Conservation in the Northern Appalachian Forest

In a remote corner of western Maine lies the Magalloway lands and waters—a vast and spectacular landscape teeming with wildlife. For decades, a 78,000-acre parcel of these lands has been owned and managed by private landowners for forestry and other purposes. Thanks to a collaboration between Northeast Wilderness Trust, The Nature Conservancy in Maine, Forest Society of Maine, and Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust, these lands were conserved in 2026. Northeast Wilderness Trust now owns and manages 11,200 acres in the northern portion of this landscape as Magalloway Wilderness Preserve.

A Haven for Wildlife

Magalloway Wilderness Preserve secures connectivity of wildlife habitat in the Northern Appalachians—a major pathway for the movement of eastern North America’s species.

The land in this region supports habitat for migratory songbirds, including more than 20 species of warbler, Ruffed Grouse, waterfowl, wading birds, endangered Canada lynx, black bear, moose, and white-tailed deer.

The forests of Magalloway run the gamut from lowland spruce swamps and more typical mid-elevation northern hardwood forests at mid-elevation to high-elevation spruce-fir forests. Mapping suggests that some areas of older forest likely remain in the more remote areas of Magalloway Wilderness Preserve.

Fostering Climate Resilience

Magalloway Wilderness Preserve includes Rump Mountain and Ledge Ridge, both of which rank very high for their climate resilience.

According to United States Geological Survey projections, the Magalloway River, which runs through the Preserve, is one of four rivers in the United States that will still host a sustainable population of native wild brook trout given a 4-degree Celsius temperature increase. Trout Unlimited has named the Magalloway River as one of its national priority trout streams.

Magalloway Wilderness Preserve map

Ruffed Grouse by Janelle Jones.

The Power of Conservation at Scale

Magalloway Wilderness Preserve is an example of the power of conservation in context. When combined with nearby conserved lands in New Hampshire at the headwaters of the Connecticut River (Connecticut Lakes Nature Preserve), Magalloway Wilderness Preserve brings the total lands conserved for biodiversity in the area to nearly 25,000 acres. Research by The Nature Conservancy and Sweet Water Trust found that in the Northern Appalachians, 25,000 acres is the optimal size threshold to ensure maximum ecosystem resilience against increasingly frequent and severe natural disasters. This parcel size also supports healthy breeding populations of species that thrive in the region’s unfragmented forest habitats.

Size: 11,273 acres

Context: Part of the 78,000-acre Magalloway Collaborative conservation effort, Northeast Wilderness Trust’s 11,273-acre wilderness preserve complements nearby lands conserved for recreation and forest management, and is part of a larger network of 500,000 acres of contiguous conserved lands.

Location: Parmachenee and Lynchtown Townships, Maine

Objective: Forever-wild ecological preserve with high biodiversity and climate benefits.

Visitor Guidelines
Magalloway Wilderness Preserve is open to the public for quiet exploration and enjoyment. The Preserve lies in a remote and difficult-to-access part of Maine. For a comprehensive guide to exploring the Maine Woods safely, visit magalloway.org/know-before-you-go/. Please respect the plants and animals who live here, show consideration to wildlife, other visitors, and neighboring landowners, know and obey the law, and leave the natural environment as you found it.

Enjoy your visit and respect the following Northeast Wilderness Trust guidelines while on Magalloway Wilderness Preserve:

Welcomed Activities

– Walking, hiking, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing

– Photography, wildlife observation, and Nature study

– Swimming, fishing, paddling, and non-motorized boating

– Hunting with permission (NO trapping, hounding, or predator hunting, including bears)

– Dogs under voice or leash control

Prohibited Activities

– Motorized vehicles (ATVs, dirt bikes, 4x4s, snowmobiles, or other motorized or mechanized vehicles)

– Bicycles

– Horses or pack animals

– Fires, and fireworks

– Loud music or radios

– Trapping, hounding, or predator hunting

– Cutting or damaging plants or trees

– New trails or unauthorized trail maintenance

– Launching and landing drones

Click here to read Northeast Wilderness Trust’s Preserve & Sanctuary General Visitation Guidelines

Camping

We welcome the public to camp at Magalloway Wilderness Preserve. Campers must follow Leave No Trace principles and Northeast Wilderness Trust’s specific visitation rules:

– Campfires are strictly prohibited.

– Plan ahead; this is a very remote area. Be fully prepared to camp without creating impacts on the land, water, and wildlife.

– Camp only on durable surfaces and in locations where overnight use will not damage vegetation and soils. The creation of new campsites, tent pads, fire rings, trails, or other site modifications is prohibited.

– Properly dispose of all waste. All trash, food waste, fishing line, and other refuse must be packed out. Solid human waste must be buried in a cathole 6–8 inches deep located at least 200 feet from waterbodies, wetlands, trails, campsites, and other areas of concentrated use. Catholes must be covered and disguised upon completion.

– Leave natural features, vegetation, rocks, wood, and cultural resources undisturbed. Cutting, breaking, clearing, collecting, or otherwise altering natural materials is prohibited.

– Respect wildlife by securing food and attractants, and avoid actions that disturb, harass, and feed wildlife.

– Preserve opportunities for solitude and a primitive wilderness experience by minimizing noise, light, visual impacts, and other disturbances to the natural environment.

– Leave no evidence of your presence. Upon departure, the site should appear as though no camping or overnight use occurred.

– If you are hunting, please secure hunting permission online.

Magalloway Wilderness Preserve is Northeast Wilderness Trust’s only wilderness area open to dispersed, Leave No Trace, primitive camping. This pilot program is intended to provide opportunities for solitude and primitive, self-reliant wilderness recreation on one of Northeast Wilderness Trust’s most remote preserves while maintaining the its wild character and conservation value. Camping is permitted solely at the discretion of Northeast Wilderness Trust and may be modified, suspended, or discontinued at any time if the Wilderness Trust determines that camping is causing, or has the potential to cause, impacts to the Preserve’s ecological integrity and wild character, or if camping activities are inconsistent with Leave No Trace principles.

Permission to camp on the Preserve is a revocable privilege, not a right. Continued access depends upon full compliance with all camping requirements and stewardship standards established by the Wilderness Trust.

Photography and video by Jerry Monkman.