Livermore, ME

At the northern reaches of the Sebago Lakes Region are three delightful ponds set in the hilly terrain of Livermore, Maine. Purchase lakefront property on any of the three: Long, Round and Bartlett's Ponds and you'll discover a variety of cultural and recreational activities await.

Home of the Washburn-Norlands Living History Center, Maine's Paper and Heritage Museum and the Livermore Birthday Party, history and tradition are part of the landscape.

A few weeks ago I mentioned Brettun's Pond in Livermore. These other three ponds also grace the area with their shimmering water and provide perfect places to get away from it all.

Long Pond is a long, narrow body of water, which its name implies and covers 208 acres. This is a shallow pond with a maximum depth of 18 feet. The water quality is slightly below average. A boat launch maintained by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW) is located on the west shore off Route 4. Anglers find Long Pond to provide very good habitat for brown trout, smallmouth bass, white perch and chain pickerel.

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North of Long and Round Ponds, off of River Road, Maple Lane becomes Tolly Wolly Road, and offers a 477-acre area for nature observation managed by the MDIFW. Lisa Kane, Natural Science Educator at Tolla Wolla Wildlife Management Area (WMA), describes the area as, "A lovely piece of property that parallels some of the rockier riffs of the [Androscoggin] River. Large hemlocks, oaks and white pine create a heavy over-story with a sparse, park-like understory on the river side." Well-used snowmobile and ATV trails maintained by the Livermore Trail Blazers Snowmobile Club run through the WMA, making hiking easily accessible. This is also a deer wintering area and thus is designated Significant Wildlife Habitat under the Natural Resources Protection Act.

Nearby is tiny Bartlett's Pond, which covers 26 acres, yet has a maximum depth of 26 feet. There is no formal parking or put-in at Bartlett Pond, but it is stocked annually with brook trout. Rainbow smelt are also caught here.

If you are interested in hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, hiking, cross-country skiing, bird watching and other forms of appreciation of our natural resources, or just want to get away from it all, then lakefront property on these three ponds may be just what the doctor ordered. They're easily accessed from Routes 4, 17 and 133, and not far from Lewiston/Auburn and points beyond, but still a world and lifetime away.

Round Pond, across Route 4 from Long Pond, is a bit smaller at 164 acres with a maximum depth of 32 feet. The water quality of Round Pond is above average. The pond supports good fisheries, similar to Long Pond. Off road parking for a state maintained boat launch is at a 17-acre parcel called Pines Conservation Area. The town maintains "The Pines," a beautiful wooded piece. Funds from Land for Maine's Future Program were to conserve this property and support the fishery management.

April 8, 8:15 p.m. "Made in China," film tells of migrants from rural China who comprise the backbone of the Chinese economic miracle, part of "Sustaining Spirits" Third Annual Justice Cinema Film Festival, free, open to public, Thomas Auditorium, Preble Hall, University of Maine, High Street, Farmington. FMI: 207.778.7433, www.umf.maine.edu.

April 9, 2 and 7 p.m. "Barbados, Island in the Sun," film narrated by producer Steve Gonser, free, Araxine Wilkins Sawyer Memorial, 371 Sawyer Road, Greene. FMI: 207.946.5311, www.sawyer-foundation.com.

April 9, 6 p.m. Comedy After Hours and Angel Auction, featuring Maine humorist Tim Sample, cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, music by Bates College Jazz Band, and a silent and live "Angel" Auction, proceeds benefit St. Mary's Regional Medical Center's Operating Room, Central Sterile, Lab and Pharmacy Expansion and Renovation Project, $50/person, reservations required, Hilton Garden Inn, 14 Great Falls Plaza, Auburn. FMI: 207.777.8863, www.stmarysmaine.com.

April 11, 2 p.m. Bellamy Jazz Band, Maine's favorite jazz band plays a variety of styles from New Orleans to Chicago, Jewett Auditorium, University of Maine, University Drive, Augusta. FMI: 207.621.3551, www.concertsatjewett.com.

April 11, 4 p.m. The Great Chili-Chowder Taste-Off, local vendors will offer a taste of the best of Maine's chili and chowder, cash bar and entertainment, a fundraiser to benefit Maine's Paper and Heritage Museum, early bird tix from 4-6 p.m. $12, from 6-8 p.m. $10, Murray Hall, 69 Main Street, Livermore Falls. FMI: 207.897.3177, www.papermuseumofmaine.org.

April 11, 5-8 p.m. Ameranouche, guitarists Richard Sheppard and Ryan Flaherty with bassist Xar Adelberg perform hot acoustic jazz, sometimes referred to as hot swing or Gypsy jazz, The Liberal Cup, 115 Water Street, Hallowell. FMI: 207.623.2739, www.theliberalcup.com.

April 13, 6:30 p.m. Music at the Library, performance by the Maranacook High School Show Chorus, under the direction of Larry Morrisette, jazz, pop and show tunes, free, Reading Room, Lithgow Library, 45 Winthrop Street, Augusta. FMI: 207.626.2415, www.lithgow.lib.me.us.

Brettun's Pond, "The Greatest Little Pond in Maine," is located between Routes 4 and 108 in the Belgrade Lakes Region. This four-season pond is situated in Livermore, a quaint, rural community with beautiful surroundings, many water resources and relatively low taxes.

Located only 20 miles from the twin cities, Lewiston and Auburn, Brettun's Pond encompasses 165 acres and has a maximum depth of 42 feet with an average depth of 15 feet. It's fed by several springs and two streams. Brettun's Pond is the headwater pond to Martin Stream, a major tributary to the Nezinscot River.

In 1975, the Brettun's Pond Association (BPA) formed. The BPA's mission is "to protect the quality of the pond, enhance the opportunities for a wide range of recreational activities, and establish a group of citizens that would act in a role of stewardship for the pond." In 1998, the BPA formed a Water Quality Committee. Members of the committee, including Churchill Barton, Dennis Mancini and Dot Young, have been trained by the Volunteer Lake Monitors Program to test the lake waters. The water quality of Brettun's Pond is considered average. Canoe or kayak around the pond and you'll soon realize that you can see the pebbles at the bottom of this clear body of water.

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The BPA has also recently completed a Watershed Survey, looking for areas of erosion that cause sediment to wash into the pond. From this survey, a Watershed Management Plan was developed.

Anglers will note that though stocking efforts by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife have made some coldwater fish available, Brettun's Pond is considered to be a warm water fishery. Sport fish including brown trout, brook trout, smallmouth bass, white perch and chain pickerel are the main catches. The shoreline brush, ledges, inlets and docks offer ideal fishing opportunities. Trolling, casting artificial lures and bait fishing are popular on the pond. An unimproved boat launch is located just off Route 4 near the outlet. It's suitable for trailerable boats.

Brettun's Pond was named for William H. Brettun, who once owned two sawmills and a gristmill at the outlet.

During the summer you can swim, fish and boat in anything from a canoe to a ski boat. Winter months mean it's time for ice fishing, cross-country skiing or snowmobiling, perhaps with the Bear Mountain Blazers Snowmobile Club. Plenty of hiking trails are nearby, plus downhill skiing at Jay's Spruce Mountain Ski Slope.

Why not let the pristine waters of this peaceful, wooded setting become your lakefront vacation getaway? On Brettun's Pond you can enjoy year-round activities and still be close to amenities.