PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 15, 2025
Great South Bay Trails is part of Cobscook Shores, a network of 20 waterfront parklands in the far Downeast region owned and managed by Butler Parklands. The private non-profit conservation organization was founded by Gilbert Butler, who has close ties to Maine dating back many decades. Butler Parklands’ work spans the Western Hemisphere from Maine, New York and South Carolina to Chile, Argentina and Uruguay. On a beautiful afternoon a while back, I join Matt Ells of Parklands for Butler Parklands for a pleasant 3/4-mile walk to the shore of South Bay. Ells is eager to showcase the preserve, a union of three properties, and their new trail, a roughly 4-mile lollipop loop that was built in response to the public’s desire for longer hikes in the Cobscook Bay neighborhood. ~ Carey Kish