Merritt Mountain Trail is a short and beautiful trail located in Sebasco Estates, Maine. The full loop is a total of 2.1 miles making it a good choice for a quick adventure alone or with family. Although the trail is short and the elevation gain is small, the views at the top are worth it because you can see Sebasco Harbor, coastal islands, and even the White Mountain in New Hampshire if it’s a clear day. It was decided last minute that when I was done working we would find a quick hike closer to home, hopefully catching the sunset at the summit. Spoiler alert, this trail did not disappoint.
Finding the trail was difficult at first as the AllTrails map we picked brought us down near the Sebasco Harbor Resort. Luckily, we found another trail/map that brought us to a small parking area on the side of Sebasco Rd. Here we saw the trail signs that even included QR codes to pull up trail maps which was super helpful. We followed the blue trail on the right to the summit, connected to the red trail, then the yellow trail, and back to the blue trail to finish the entire loop.
At the end April the trail was still damp and muddy in some areas, but it was easily avoidable. There were leaves on the ground and a lot of the trees were still bare indicating that Maine was slowly coming out of winter mode. The trail was well marked with multiple signs showing which direction you needed to go to make it to summit, to the resort, or to other trails nearby. The blue trail to the summit was pretty easy and quick to get to but it did not have any openings to see out into the harbor before reaching the summit. However, the sun was slowly setting behind the trees, covering the trail in a pretty golden hour color.
When we reached the summit, golden hour was in full swing. The sky was lit up with beautiful blue, orange and yellow colors which were reflected off of the harbor water. The sky colors in the distance along with the bright green colors of the trees made for a picture perfect moment on top of the mountain. There was a picnic table here so we sat down and watched the sun set lower, taking in the time together and the beautiful view in front of us.
After taking in as much as we could at the first summit area, we continued on the trail not knowing that there was another summit area up ahead. Had we known, we would have split our time between both, but we had to be quicker at the second summit to ensure that we got back to the car before the sun was fully set. Both of the summit areas were pretty similar as they both gave breathtaking views.
We continued along the red, yellow, and blue trail to follow the loop back to the parking lot. The closer we got to the end, the darker both the sky and the trail got. This side of the trail seemed to have more puddles, but again, they were easily avoidable. There were even a few fallen trees, possibly from some of the winter storms.
Overall, I think that this trail was worth it. It is short, but the views are incredible at the top, especially if you go at sunset. It would be great to do as a family since it would be easy for smaller children or for people who do not hike regularly. Plus, it is located near the Sebasco Harbor so there are plenty of other sights to see either before or after the hike so you could make it a full day of adventuring!
Post Hike Snacks
After we finished the trail and started to drive home we decided that we were tired, hungry and we didn’t want to cook so we stopped at Burano’s Pizza in Bath, ME for some dinner and a celebratory beer. At this time, my diet was not as restricted as it is now so I got The Burano “Specktacular” pizza which I highly recommend. Burano’s has a great rotating beer menu, mixed drinks, wings, and a very inviting atmosphere. If you are in the area, you should defiantly check them out!
