Mt. Apatite
Mt. Apatite
4.4
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.4
25 reviews
Excellent
11
Very good
13
Average
1
Poor
0
Terrible
0
Meg G
Minot, ME35 contributions
Aug 2013 • Family
Go in at the ball field and national guard station off Garfield Rd. and park BEFORE the gate, take a hike up through some amazing trees and into an unused mine. Beware; on hot weekends there are lots of teenagers drinking and cliff jumping so going with small children might be best on weekday mornings. Keep a close eye, there is unsure footing and loose gravel. But, it's a super fun way to explore. The "hike" up is an access road and is easy. Bring picks and eye protection to chip away at the rock. Lots of mica and different kinds of rock, haven't found any tourmaline yet but I often see people up there with mining gear finding things. Good luck!
Also, if you drive around the back side of the mountain on Hatch Rd. then turn into Mine Rd. of Small rd. there is a trail that goes up to the top and connects all around there with a system of trails. many people use this, in the winter it connects to the snowmobile trails.
Also, if you drive around the back side of the mountain on Hatch Rd. then turn into Mine Rd. of Small rd. there is a trail that goes up to the top and connects all around there with a system of trails. many people use this, in the winter it connects to the snowmobile trails.
Written August 4, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
M-F_Trackers
Philadelphia, PA437 contributions
Sept 2013 • Couples
I had to literally drag my wife out of the rock pits on 2 different occasions. She would have been there until 10 or 11 pm and we would have needed SEARCH and RESCUE. She is a Rock HOUND / AHOLIC. If you are coming to get rich forget it. If you want to enloy nature and take something home (we took enough mica rocks to make a merry go round) and do geocaching and try your luck in the quarry ponds come on up
Written September 28, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rebecca H
Media, PA296 contributions
We had an awesome time hiking around the park at Mt. Apatite last Friday!!
We found a few small pieces of black tourmaline, a few tiny garnets and tons of mica. We didn't dig, everything we found was right on the surface or found by flipping over rocks.
We had only a few hours to visit as we were heading from Acadia to the Philly area, so we didn't get to check a lot of the quarries out.
We're definitely planning to go back on our next Maine trip!
If you go, take plenty of bug spray. The mosquitoes are very persistent.
We found a few small pieces of black tourmaline, a few tiny garnets and tons of mica. We didn't dig, everything we found was right on the surface or found by flipping over rocks.
We had only a few hours to visit as we were heading from Acadia to the Philly area, so we didn't get to check a lot of the quarries out.
We're definitely planning to go back on our next Maine trip!
If you go, take plenty of bug spray. The mosquitoes are very persistent.
Written July 22, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Katherine L
Auburn, ME51 contributions
Jun 2013 • Family
It was a little tricky finding the entrance to the trail- we felt like we were trespassing on government property! However, the hike was very pleasant and the quarries were very interesting.
Written March 22, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MsJenM
Cumberland Center, ME5 contributions
Nov 2019 • Family
This was a last minute trip with my 6 y/o twins. They love rocks and our initial reason for the visit was to check out the rock mining but they ended up loving the trails, scenery, and quite honestly, the mica and quartz they were finding on the trail itself. The entrance looks completely prohibited but rest assured, once you park by the ball fields, walk past the Army National Guard signage, and go directly into the woods. The trails, once there, are clearly marked. Open dawn until dusk on most days. Plenty of other walkers with dogs on these trails periodically.
Written November 4, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
cathy l
Auburn, ME46 contributions
Sept 2018 • Family
What a little gem in Auburn, nice little hike to do with kids. Gradual uphill grad , easy to negotiate, wide path. Small quarry at top offers ponds and many turtles and frogs. Still a great place to lol for amythest and other local stones. Also has bike trails.
Written November 11, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AltenStudio
South Bend, IN222 contributions
Jul 2016 • Friends
We came for the rock hunting. Got distracted by the tranquility and nature. There's a good mix of activities from dog walking, rock hunting, mountain biking, etc. A few families were using the area to teach science to their youngsters which was great to see (even if they scared off all the tadpoles). You can cover biology, ecology, and geology easily in the same park. The higher deeper water area has a lot of fish, think they are bull heads. Or cat fish? Not too sure. There's a ledge that is prefect to lay on and watch the fish and pond ripples. The lower shallower water has an incredible number of frogs/tadpoles. I think they are green frogs from the banjo sounding call. Also saw a few ground critters and several species of birds including a woodpecker. As for the rock hunting we found a lot of mica, some black tourmaline, some matrixed garnet but nothing jewel quality or green tourmaline. To get to this area you park near a military installation which is a bit unusual. The walk is uphill and has stray rocks in the path so be careful if walking is difficult for you.
Written July 8, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mark S
Salt Lake City, UT558 contributions
May 2015 • Solo
I came here for a nice little hike in nature. I read about bringing bug spray but totally forgot to bring some. It was a warm humid day, about 82 degrees. The mosquitos were out in full force. There are so many trails to take and I wasn't familiar with any of them. I even found a couple of small frogs on the trail. It was a great hike and I took some nice pictures, but I cut the hike short because I was bitten or landed on by mosquitos about 40 times. I would love to come back when I have more time to look for rocks and bring plenty of bug spray.
Written May 28, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ken B
Lewiston, ME133 contributions
Jun 2016 • Family
NOT Fancy, No Bathrooms or facility's and make sure you brink drinking water. Be prepared to carry out what you carry in.
GREAT "FREE" place to take the family for a hike or picnic.
1/3 mile steep hike sort of like walking up Goff hill in Auburn but you can rest often and go at your own passe,
Great place to feed wild small horn pout but watch your children on steep bank.
Great view of Auburn and Minot and yes you can find some nice quarts, red garnet and other stones.
Please be respectful and stay out of Indian burial grounds if you find them !!!!! >>>---PLEASE <----<<<
Only 15 from downtown Auburn whom it now belongs to.
I would not suggest swimming in the water as there is old junk and and pollution. STEEP HIKE !
GREAT "FREE" place to take the family for a hike or picnic.
1/3 mile steep hike sort of like walking up Goff hill in Auburn but you can rest often and go at your own passe,
Great place to feed wild small horn pout but watch your children on steep bank.
Great view of Auburn and Minot and yes you can find some nice quarts, red garnet and other stones.
Please be respectful and stay out of Indian burial grounds if you find them !!!!! >>>---PLEASE <----<<<
Only 15 from downtown Auburn whom it now belongs to.
I would not suggest swimming in the water as there is old junk and and pollution. STEEP HIKE !
Written May 16, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Laurie J
7 contributions
Jun 2016 • Family
Great hike. Lots of different trails. Quarry for finding many different rocks. Nice day in the woods. Not hard for younger children.
Written June 30, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
would you know where I could find info on hunting up on the mountain? just bow hunting that's mostly what I do
Written December 1, 2019
Sorry, my experience with Mt. Apatite is strictly on a mt. bike. I enjoyed the solitude and big country feeling of hunting up in the Andover area of East -B Hill Rd. Mostly patridge at the end of my barrel.
Written December 3, 2019
can I take a walker with me to help my balance and to rest on if needed I have parkensions and don't think I could walk a half mile
Written April 3, 2018
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