GARFIELD PLANTATION, Maine — With below freezing temperatures expected, Saturday should be a good day to ski the Chase Farm ski trails for the Ashland Area Cross Country Ski Club’s Family Fun Day.
This Saturday, St. Patrick’s Day, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. the ski club will have free ski rentals and free lunch at the Garfield Plantation home and tree farm of Ed and Marilyn Chase, who each year open their land for school cross country teams and members of the community.
At a tree farm owned by Ed and Marilyn Chase, the Ashland Area Cross Country Ski Club maintains four miles of trails, including the not-so-steep Bear Hill along the Machias River. (Anthony Brino)
“The trails have been great this winter,” said Linda Milligan, the Ashland District School’s cross country ski coach and organizer of the community event.
With temperatures not expected to reach much above 20 degrees, the trails should also make for good, fast skiing.
One of Aroostook County’s lesser known cross country ski networks, the Chase Farm is a unique skiing experience, with a mixed, working forest bounded to the west by the Machias River near the confluence with the Aroostook River.
The trails at the Chase Farm’s 4 mile network are relatively narrow, unlike the wide trails at the Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle, the Fort Kent Outdoor Center or the Four Seasons Trails in Madawaska.
“They’re not wide trails. You’re really in the woods,” Milligan said.
“If you’re a beginner, there’s a good network of trails that are flat. But if you want hills, you’ll have them. It’s a neat experience that the trails aren’t too wide.”
One of the trails also runs along the border with a neighboring farm where beef cattle can often be seen enjoying the sun in an adjacent field.
The trails are used all winter by the Ashland school teams, the town’s youth recreation program and the general public. The Chase’s have been opening their land to skiers for more than a decade, Milligan said. “They love seeing the bus of kids come. They’re fantastic supporters of the ski club.”
The Family Fun Day runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at 267 Garfield Road in Garfield Plantation.
