Join us at Moosehead Lake for the week of July 22-27!

PLEASE NOTE ~ Dates, times and locations may be subject to change.
Check back here for updates through the winter and spring ~

WEDNESDAY, JULY 22
12:30-3:30 pm, Location: Katahdin Cruises, Greenville, Maine
Made in collaboration between the Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail Festival and
Katahdin Cruises/Moosehead Marine Museum. For this special presentation aboard the Kate, a portion of the $60 cruise ticket will go directly toward Thoreau-Wabanaki programming, if it is purchased directly through the Festival. For this limited special offer, contact: info@thoreauwabanaki.org or call 207-534-7715.
PENOBSCOT SENSE OF PLACE & BIRCH BARK CANOES            
with Penobscot Cultural Director James E. Francis, Sr. and Penobscot Guide Jason Pardilla

PENOBSCOT SENSE OF PLACE, with James E. Francis, Sr. ~ Learn first-hand the Penobscot legend of Mt. Kineo and how moose are part of the creation story. At once funny and informative, Mr. Francis traces the Wabanaki origins of Maine geographic names that many people will recognize today.  

Explore the Penobscot relationship to the landscape and their home ties to these woods and waters. He also sheds light on how naturalist writer Thoreau’s experiences with Penobscot guides through the Moosehead Lake Region influenced his American classic “The Maine Woods.”

BIRCH BARK CANOES with Jason Pardilla ~ Jason will bring a traditional birch bark canoe aboard the Kate. He will share insights about its construction, historical significance, and differences compared to modern canoes. In 1853, Penobscot Guide Joseph Attien led Thoreau on a birch bark canoe journey along traditional Wabanaki water routes, first steaming up Moosehead Lake in a boat much like the Katahdin. 

To Order Your Specially Reserved Ticket, a portion of which directly supports this Wabanaki program, please contact: info@thoreauwabanaki.org or call 207-534-7715.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 22
Morning Symposium, Location: The Depot, Greenville, Maine
SPIRITUAL ESSENCE OF THE NORTH WOODS
with Maine Guide Wendy Weiger of Moosehead and The Thoreau Society

WEDNESDAY, JULY 22
7 pm, Location: The Depot, Greenville, Maine
KEN BURNS FILM ‘HENRY DAVID THOREAU’
with the filmmaker Erik Ewers
Join filmmaker Erik Ewers for a special evening screening of the newly released Ken Burns documentary about the life of naturalist writer Henry David Thoreau, whose journey with Penobscot guides through the Moosehead Lake region shaped his American classic “The Maine Woods.” Mr. Ewers, here by special arrangement for the screening, will help close the first day of the 20th Anniversary of the Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail Festival. Two of Thoreau’s three trips into the Maine woods were led by Penobscot guides, launched from Moosehead Lake in Greenville. Earlier in the day, the Festival opens with an afternoon cruise aboard the Kate with Penobscot cultural leaders James E. Francis and Jason Pardilla.

* Month of July
TRACING THOREAU’S JOURNEY: A PHOTOGRAPHIC RETROSPECTIVE
Location: Monson Arts Moore House Studio, Monson, Maine
An exquisite photographic story by turn-of-the-last-century photographer Bert Call of Dexter. Call traced a traditional Wabanaki canoe route through the North Woods, taken by Thoreau and his Penobscot guide. Exhibition is made in collaboration with Dexter Historical Society and Monson Arts

THURSDAY, JULY 23
8:30-10 am, Location: Greenville, Maine
MOOSEHEAD FORAGING WALK
with Moosehead Guide Alexandra C. Bennett

* THURSDAY – FRIDAY, JULY 23-24; start time, location to be set
MOOSEHEAD LAKE TO MT. KINEO CANOE CAMPING TRIP
with Master Maine Guide Kevin Slater and Penobscot Tribal Historian Chris Sockalexis

July 23-24, Moosehead Lake canoe trip to Mt. Kineo
Mt Kineo has been a very important place for the Wabanaki people since time immemorial. We will begin the canoe trip early Thursday, July 23rd, morning and paddle to Hardscrabble campsite near the base of Kineo. Chris Sockalexis, the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Penobscot Nation, will be joining us on the canoe trip up Moosehead Lake. On Kineo, he will give a talk about the importance of Kineo to his ancestors. We will do a short hike to the base of the Kineo Cliffs where flint was quarried to make arrowheads. Chris will demonstrate flint knapping and explain why kineo flint is ideally suited for percussion flaking arrowheads. After lunch on Friday we’ll paddle back across to our takeout in Rockwood mid afternoon.

This trip is guided by Kevin Slater, co-owner of Mahoosuc Guide Service (MGS). MGS will provide all food (Thursday lunch through Friday lunch), canoeing and camping equipment. We’ll be paddling wood-canvas canoes similar to the E.M. White design which was based on Wabanaki style canoes. Participants will receive a personal clothing and equipment list after signing up. Transport to the put in and back from the takeout will be provided.

Pre-registration is required through Mahoosuc Guide Service at the website listed below. Cost is $495 per person.  For questions call: 207.824.2073 or email us at info@mahoosuc.com.

To make a reservation for this trip go to the Mahoosuc Guide Service website: www.mahoosuc.com.

THURSDAY, JULY 23
7-9 pm, Location: The Depot, Greenville, Maine
ALL ABOUT BEARS
with Maine Bear Expert Caitlin Drasher, Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife
Black bears are a defining part of Maine’s landscape – come spend some time learning about these fascinating animals. Caitlin Drasher, State Black Bear Biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, will share firsthand stories and insights drawn from years of field research across the state.

Learn about black bear ecology and behavior, how biologists track and study bear populations, and how decades of research have informed bear management in Maine. Caitlin will also discuss practical ways to avoid conflicts with bears and live safely alongside them.

FRIDAY, JULY 24
9 – 10:30 am, Location: Meet at The Depot, Greenville, Maine
MOOSEHEAD FORAGING WALK
with Master Maine Guide Alexandra Bennett & Ecologist Amy Wilszek

* FRIDAY, JULY 24, Mid-Day
Time to Be Set, Location: Mt. Kineo, Rockwood, Maine,
We will meet at the Rockwood Boat Landing to be shuttled over to Kineo
PENOBSCOT STORY OF MT. KINEO
with Penobscot Tribal Historian Chris Sockalexis
We will meet at the Rockwood Boat Landing, where a shuttle will take Fest-goers from the village of Rockwood over to Mt. Kineo. Join Chris Sockalexis, Penobscot Tribal Historic Preservation Officer, archeologist, and flintknapper will provide an on-site presentation about the importance of Mt. Kineo’s rare rhyolite to Indigenous tool-making, a history of his ancestral home, and demonstration about flintknapping.

FRIDAY, JULY 24
11 – 12:30 pm, Location: The Depot, Greenville, Maine
THOREAU IN THE MAINE WOODS
with Thoreau Historian Richard Smith

FRIDAY, JULY 24
7 – 9 pm, Location: The Depot Historic Train Station, Greenville, Maine
THOREAU UNSETTLED  
with Dr. John Kucich, President Thoreau Society

SATURDAY – MONDAY, JULY 25-27, Location: Penobscot Nation’s Sugar Island
PENOBSCOT WAYS IN THE WOODS AND WATERS
with Penobscot Cultural Director James E. Francis, Guides and Cultural Keepers

Location: The Penobscot Nation’s Sugar Island
Advance registration is required. There is a limited number of places for this intimate, popular weekend. Cost is $550.00 per person, includes all except personal items. A recommended personal list will be sent upon registering. For details or a registration form, contact: info@thoreauwabanaki.org.

Like Thoreau, participants learn under the wing of Penobscot guides about Wabanaki ways and the Penobscot life connection to the Maine woods and waters. Trip features easy canoe/camping. Days feature guided activities and may include learning plant identification and traditional medicinal uses; history, archeology, flintknapping, Indigenous ways of being a part of the natural world; the importance of the ash tree to Wabanaki culture; sweetgrass weaving; exploratory walks; learning about birch bark canoes. Cultural immersion includes demonstrations of traditional drumming and singing; campfire circle talk, including open conversations on any topic or question about Penobscot ways of life. Monday after breakfast, paddlers move downstream to Indian Island, load out, have lunch, and gather into a closing circle before saying goodbyes. 

For all program details, contact: info@thoreauwabanaki.org

2026 Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail Festival programs are made in collaboration with Penobscot Nation Cultural and Historic Preservation, The Thoreau Society, Katahdin Cruises & Moosehead Marine Museum, Monson Arts, Dexter Historical Society, Mahoosuc Guide Service, Maine Woods Forever, and Shaw Public Library.