Members of the public are welcome to attend Baxter State Park Authority meetings. You may also view the archive of meeting agendas, minutes and updates on the Park’s website.

Donn Fendler's iconic story of perseverance is now a major Hollywood film! Please join Friends of Baxter State Park for a very special showing of Lost on a Mountain in Maine on November 8 in Ellsworth. 

Our special guest for the evening will be film producer Ryan Cook, who shared a close personal friendship with Donn and brought his story to the big screen. 

Doors will open at 6:00pm, with a cash bar, snacks, and Friends merchandise available for purchase. Please come early and catch up with other Friends members before the show! The film will start at 7:00pm, with a run time of 98 minutes. After the final credits roll, Ryan will speak about the process of making the film and take questions from the audience.

We are proudly partnering with The Grand to bring this special event to our members. The Grand is a beautiful, art deco theater – and fellow nonprofit – located at 165 Main St. in Ellsworth, Maine.

Tickets are $20 for adults, and $10 for children. This event is open to the general public, and we expect it to sell out quickly. We encourage Friends members to buy your tickets soon! Please click the link below to buy tickets through The Grand's online box office. 

Friday, November 8
Doors open at 6:00pm
Cash bar, food, and social time from 6:00 - 7:00pm
Film starts at 7:00pm, followed by Q&A

Members of the public are welcome to attend Baxter State Park Authority meetings. You may also view the archive of meeting agendas, minutes and updates on the Park’s website.

Please join Harpswell Heritage Land Trust and Friends of Baxter State Park for a forestry tour of the 228-acre Austin Cary Forest. This unique property is located on Sebascodegan Island (aka Great Island) in Harpswell, Maine. It includes 180 acres of woodland, 34 acres of saltmarsh, about 14 acres of freshwater wetlands, and extensive frontage on Long Reach and Doughty Cove.

This property was once owned by Austin Cary, one of Maine’s first forest researchers. Cary had a long and accomplished career as a forester both in Maine and in the southern United States. The property was purchased with funds from a trust established by Percival Baxter for land acquisitions by the State of Maine. In keeping with the trust, the 1973-74 deeds transferring this property to the State of Maine contain the condition “that the land be used for a demonstration forest, wildlife management area, or for other educational and scientific uses.” The Baxter State Park Authority is responsible for management of the Austin Cary Forest.

The tour will be led by Barrie Brusila of Mid-Maine Forestry. It is scheduled for 9:30am –12:00pm on Saturday, September 21, with a rain date of Sunday, September 22. Space is limited, and advance registration is required.

This event is currently full - please click here to join the waiting list.

If you are planning to attend this event, the 2019 Forest Management Plan provides very useful background reading and will help to familiarize you with the Austin Cary Forest ahead of time.

Members of the public are welcome to attend Baxter State Park Authority meetings. You may also view the archive of meeting agendas, minutes and updates on the Park’s website.

We invite you to join members of our Board of Directors and staff for an informal gathering of friendship. We encourage you to bring a friend or neighbor and introduce them to our community of Baxter State Park enthusiasts.

Various farm-to-table snacks will be served, and beer and wine will be available for purchase. Dress appropriately for the outdoors. The rain date is July 18.

Sweet Peas Cafe is located on the island's northern side, not near downtown. There is plenty of parking available.

Members of the public are welcome to attend Baxter State Park Authority meetings. You may also view the archive of meeting agendas, minutes and updates on the Park’s website.

We invite our members to attend our first in-person Annual Meeting since 2019!

This is our yearly opportunity to update our membership on our efforts to keep Baxter State Park forever wild. The Park’s Director, Kevin Adam, will join us and provide insight into their efforts to restore the Daicey Pond Cabins. Current Friends of Baxter State Park members will vote for their approval of the appointments of new board members and renewals, an essential role in our organizational governance.

Refreshments will be served. Registration is requested by March 29.

Members of the public are welcome to attend Baxter State Park Authority meetings. You may also view the archive of meeting agendas, minutes and updates on the Park’s website.

Meet Baxter’s Leaders

Over the last several years, Baxter State Park was not immune to the challenges of the labor market and has transitioned nearly every position in its leadership, including the Park Director. We are grateful that the new team is dedicated to Governor Baxter's wish to keep the Park forever wild while understanding today's many challenges balancing conservation and a dramatically increased interest in visitation.

On November 28, join us to welcome the leadership team for an informal gathering of food and friendship. Registration is required by November 21.

Join us for an in-person tour of the Scientific Forest Management Area with members of the Baxter State Park leadership team. Natural Resource Director Nava Tabak and Lands Manager Shane Miller will join board members Jensen Bissell and Carla Ritchie on an exploration of this vital research area.

Registration is required. Tour times are approximate. We’ll meet beforehand and travel into the park in vans as a group. Some walking on uneven terrain will be required. We will supply more information as it becomes available.

Spanning approximately thirty thousand acres in the northwest corner of Baxter State Park, the Scientific Forest Management Area (SFMA) was designated by Percival Baxter to promote the implementation of advanced forestry techniques. It serves as a demonstration site for students and professionals from around the world, showcasing the Park’s state-of-the-art forestry practices.

Our first speaker, Alec Giffen, former Maine Forest Service Director, served on the Baxter State Park Authority and is Maine’s foremost forestry and land management expert. Alec will share a presentation on the history of forestry in Maine when Baxter was acquiring land in the ‘20s and ‘30s and Percival Baxter’s perspective on the forestry practices of that time.

Next, we are honored to present Jensen Bissell, a legendary Baxter State Park figure who served the park for 30 years, first as the director of the SFMA and later as the Park’s Director. No one is more knowledgeable on the topic he will present: Baxter’s motivation to create a working forest within the Park, his vision for the forest, and what he hoped to create in the SFMA.

The topic will then turn to the present day as Alec Giffen discusses current issues in forestry in Maine: what’s going on at the State level and where he thinks we are headed.

Last but not least, we are joined by BSP staff members Nava Tabak, Natural Resources Director, and Shane Miller, Land Manager, who will present a view of what is happening in the SFMA now and in the future.

Registration is required.

We’re thrilled to invite you to our first in-person gathering this season! Please join FBSP staff and other members for social time, updates on the Park, and great views of Katahdin. Craft beer and wood-fired pizza will be available for purchase.

Celebrate Earth Day while helping Baxter State Park!

Join Baxter State Park staff for their annual spring Roadside Litter Patrol from Millinocket to the Togue Pond Gate. Each individual, family, or team is responsible for ½ mile of road clean-up. The clean-up will take place rain or shine, so dress for the weather.

After clean-up, BSP staff will host a BBQ for all Litter Patrol volunteers at Park Headquarters in Millinocket!

Email Georgia Manzo at georgia.manzo@baxterstatepark.org with questions.

You must complete the volunteer application in order to attend!

We invite you to join us for our virtual Annual Meeting!

We look forward to sharing updates on Friends of Baxter State Park, our programs and outreach efforts, and our continued support of Baxter State Park. We are excited to welcome a senior member of the Park staff, who will provide highlights and reminders for the 2023 season.

Click here to download a meeting agenda and packet.

Advance registration is required to attend!

We’re thrilled to invite you to our first in-person gathering in three years! Dan Rinard, Acting Director of Baxter State Park, will speak on the future of the Park. Beer and pizza will be available for purchase.

Twenty framed photographs will be available in a silent auction, with starting bids of only $30. The images, including the cover photo, were taken by Emma McGraw during her Baxter Youth Conservation Fellowships in 2020-2021 and were exhibited at the Boreal Theatre in Millinocket this summer. You can preview some of the available photographs here.

Join us via Zoom for the final presentations of the Baxter Youth Conservation Fellows of 2022. This year’s projects included identifying invasive plants and XXX. The Fellows also helped build and design our new website. Those attending will receive a sneak peek of the redesign!

Applications for the 2022 Baxter Youth Conservation Fellows program are due by midnight on June 10, 2022. For more information, click Apply below.