Shore of Eagle Lake, Allagash Wilderness Waterway, Maine.

Allagash Wilderness Waterway

It has been my pleasure to collaborate with Allagash Wilderness Waterway Foundation (AWWF) and Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (BPL) on the following projects.

Allagash Explorer

Allagash Explorer

I collaborated with writer Julia Gray, designer Karen Zimmermann, illustrators Alison Carver and Jon Luoma, and the Allagash Wilderness Waterway Foundation and Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands to produce an interpretive pocket-guide that engages readers with the historical and natural features of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway in Maine’s North Woods.

The 94-page volume is filled with wonderful illustrations, and historical and contemporary photos. It is based on the interpretive plan I prepared for the Waterway in 2018, Storied Lands & Waters.

The Explorer is available in bookstores and online through the Northern Forest Canoe Trail.

Here’s What People are Saying

Allagash Explorer is a “must have” pocket guide for every visitor to the Waterway. It provides colorful and compelling information about the cultural history and natural resources of the Allagash from earliest times to the present.
Matt LaRoche, Superintendent, Allagash Wilderness Waterway

U.S. Senator Edmund Muskie once referred to the Allagash as “that most beautiful and wondrous wilderness area, the greatest remaining in the eastern United States.” Fifty years ago it was designated a National Wild & Scenic River. Today, the best way to appreciate its wonders is with Allagash Explorer in your pocket.
U.S. Senator George Mitchell

The Allagash’s wild landscapes and waterways speak to us while our hearts and minds are open. Allagash Explorer is packed with lore that will help you connect deeply with the heritage of all humans: the wild place within that recognizes home.
Alexandra Conover Bennett, Master Maine Guide

Storied Lands & Waters

I completed a 360-page Interpretive Plan and Heritage Resource Assessment for the Allagash Wilderness Waterway in northern Maine in 2018.

Storied Lands & Waters book cover

The interpretive plan articulates a purpose and thematic framework for communicating messages about “the Allagash.”

The heritage resource assessment identifies properties and objects associated with the Waterway in seven historic and cultural resource categories.

Print version, $8.78 plus shipping. 
> PLACE PRINT ORDER. The interior of the print version of Interpretive Plan and Resource Assessment is black and white; some images may appear pixelated or slightly blurry. 

PDFs, free (color interiors)
> DOWNLOAD Interpretive Plan and Heritage Resource Assessment.
> DOWNLOAD Allagash Wilderness Waterway Lesson Plans.
> DOWNLOAD Allagash Waterway Watersheds Map.
> DOWNLOAD Allagash Wilderness Waterway Bibliography.

Media prompted by the report

Here’s What People are Saying

Waters of the Allagash run deep. For hundreds of centuries before Europeans arrived, the Wabanaki people lived along its shores. In recent times, French, English, Irish, and Swedes lived and worked along its course. “Sports” hired local guides to partake its legendary hunting and fishing. Storied Lands & Waters will connect you to these many others who have plied these waters with you.
David Putnam, Archaeologist, University of Maine at Presque Isle

If the Allagash Wilderness Waterway had a voice, Storied Lands & Waters would be it. Never before have the heritage resources of the Allagash been so well documented and presented; nor has a blueprint for telling the story been so well conceived.
Bob McIntosh, National Park Service (retired)

When one travels by canoe, stories flow—vignettes of place by those who were here first, by those who made livings here, and by those seeking their own re-creation here. Storied Lands & Waters is a new vessel for those who travel the Allagash and wish to know more of it.
Ron Beard, veteran Allagash traveler; Extension Professor Emeritus, University of Maine

As a long-time visitor to the Allagash, I hope Storied Lands & Waters helps its wanderers discover the abiding wonders and sense of well-being the Waterway affords, and inspires their efforts to protect and maintain the Allagash for future generations.
Amanda Barker, Northern Maine educator; Allagash visitor for some 35+ years

The rich historical and cultural resources of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway have inspired visitors and staff for generations. The vision, thematic outlines, and recommendations of Storied Lands & Waters offer a clear path to sustain this inspiration, as well as to preserve the Waterway’s enduring values.
Sheila McDonald, Deputy Director, Maine State Museum

Storied Lands & Waters marks a milestone in the history of the Allagash. It offers the best possible assessment of the Waterway’s historic and cultural resources, as well as a decade’s worth of interpretive projects to deepen understanding of its enduring importance.
Don Hudson, President Emeritus, Chewonki Foundation


Creative Commons

This work by Bruce Jacobson is licensed under Creative Commons 4.0 International License—Attribution-ShareAlike.

Last Updated on 7 January 2022.

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