MAINE PUBLIC • June 25, 2021
State park officials are closing Tumbledown Mountain to informal camping, saying that overnight partiers have been trashing the popular 3,000-foot peak in western Maine. Bill Patterson, deputy director of the state Bureau of Parks and Lands says although there are no designated campsites there, there is a long history of informal camping. That accelerated during the pandemic and now, he says, it's gotten out of hand. “On almost any weekend there's a noticeable group with loud music, big coolers of beer, large fires. You've made a hard climb with your family to enjoy a beautiful view and the imagine finding that setting at the top," Patterson says. Not to mention improperly buried human waste. Patterson says the bureau considered installing latrines and creating formal sites, but decided that was not practical for the remote, sensitive terrain. Instead, all camping is barred on the mountain, effective immediately.