A Trail of Two Cities

How Calais, Maine & Key West, Florida celebrated National Trails Day together

At sunrise, the sky was clear and the sun shined on the DownEast Sunrise Trail. The weather forecast called for constant rain starting Friday night and continuing all day Saturday, June 2. However, this front was late in arriving to DownEast Maine. Congressman John Baldacci, who flew into Calais that morning for the event, said, "This is the only place in Maine that is not raining."

Key West welcomed the sunrise a bit later. And as the sun rose in the sky, the heat descended on the southernmost city of the continental U.S. Even the feral chickens were hunting for Panama hats and sun block.

That morning, Key West and Calais were designated Gateway cities of the 2,600-mile East Coast Greenway, the multi-use trail for bicyclists, walkers, equestrians and the physically challenged, which will stretch along the east coast between the two cities.

Not only were the two cities designated as 'Gateways,' but their sections of trail were officially designated as parts of the ECG. The Calais Waterfront Walkway, a stunning yet hidden gem along the St. Croix River, was designated as the sixth off-road ECG segment in Maine. This short trail was off-limits to bicyclists up until this year but due to an extension and improvements, bicyclists can now use this route. And 2600 miles away, the Key West Bicycle Path, the southern terminus of the Overseas Heritage Trail, was designated as an official segment of the East Coast Greenway.

Calais and Key WestÕs joint event made this National Trails Day event unique. Local radio stations in both cities broadcast the simultaneous ceremony. As Congressman Baldacci said, "This special event symbolizes the connection between these two communities which will begin and end the East Coast Greenway. I look forward to the impact this trail will have on the economy and quality of life from Maine to Florida." Eric Hinson, Mayor of Calais, bantered back-and-forth with George Neugent, his counterpart in Key West, about other 'connections'. Twenty DownEast businesses sent locally-made goods to Key West to promote Maine. Compliments were received for the blueberries, maple syrup and even the venison mincemeat. The folks in Florida sent up locally produced aloe skin products, Jimmy Buffet hats and hand-wrapped cigars, all distributed free to the 150 people who attended the event in Calais. Linda Stinson, a Miami native now living in Topsham, prepared 12 Key lime pies (with Key lime juice from Key Largo) for the crowd to sample.

The key point of the morning was the unveiling of another connection, the East Coast Greenway trailhead markers. The base for the plaque that will reside in Calais is a piece of limestone used in the construction of the Overseas Railroad that extended from Miami to Key West. This now abandoned railroad provides the corridor for the Overseas Heritage Trail, the first segment of which was designated in Key West. The City of Calais sent down a piece of Red Beach granite for use as the trailhead marker in Key West. This granite came from the same quarry used in the construction of the Calais branch of the Maine Central Railroad, the corridor to be used for the DownEast Sunrise trail.

Calais is not only a 'Gateway' for the East Coast Greenway but it is the gateway for Canada. Canadian Member of Parliament, Greg Thompson, said, "The next step is the linkage from your country to ours and the Canadian trail system, to not only link the cities of America, but this city with another country." The planned 2,500 km New Brunswick, Canada trail system is 45% complete and will connect across the bridge from Calais at St. Stephens. The Calais region is fast becoming a great international bicycling destination.

John Balicki, Maine's Bike/Ped coordinator, led 15 bicyclists on a tour of the planned extension to the Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge. Only after their return and the consumption of the remaining blueberry muffins and hot dogs provided free by the Calais Waterfront Committee, did the afternoon rain begin. And to close out the event in Key West, Jim Porter, Key WestÕs bicycle coordinator, led a group on a tour of the Key West Bicycle Path. As the event closed on the Gateway cities, with oppressive heat on one end and torrential rain on the other, one more connection had been made along the East Coast Greenway.

Return to the East Coast Greenway page