Thomas Pond in South Casco and Raymond is only minutes from Sebago Lake. It's much, much smaller than the big lake, yet large enough to provide great boating and fishing.
The mood on Thomas Pond is relaxed. In fact, this is where Nathaniel Hawthorne, the famous 19th century author of The Scarlet Letter and many other works, used to enjoy relaxing as a kid. There is even a granite rock known as Inspiration Chair located along the shoreline that it is said he enjoyed sitting on.
Hawthorne spent some off his boyhood only a stones throw from Thomas Pond at his Uncle Richard Manning's home. According to the Hawthorne in Salem Web site, "Nathaniel and his friends could walk along broad Dingley Brook as it flowed down from its source, Thomas Pond, a half mile away. On its shores was the brickyard run by Jacob Watkins, which made the bricks necessary for the chimneys of the houses. From Thomas Pond, Nathaniel could see Rattlesnake Mountain, several miles away, a view which he loved." Today, family names in the area still include Dingley and Watkins. And in the summertime you can visit Hawthorne's home on nearby Raymond Cape Road in South Casco.
Tall white pines surround the 7.5 miles of shoreline. The lake covers 497 acres and has a maximum depth of 64 feet. The outlet, Dingley Brook, drains directly into Sebago Lake. Seasonal and year-round homes dot the shoreline.
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A public access boat launch is available at the Casco/Raymond town line on Route 302. Because of the low clearance under the Route 302 bridge, its limited to only small boats.
Shallow weedy coves and a rocky shoreline provide a quality bass and pickerel fishery. "Adult hatchery salmon brood were stocked in waters where smelt are insufficient to provide rapid salmon growth, including Thomas Pond," according to Francis Brautigam, Fisheries Biologist, Gray.
Thomas Pond provides a quiet Maine getaway only a few miles from a myriad of activities in Windham and Naples.
You'll even find Blacksmiths Winery just up the street. The Winery is open Friday through Monday from 11-5 during the winter months of January - April. From May - December it's open daily from 11-6. Stop by for a wine-tasting. Their blueberry wine is made with native Maine berries.
The water quality is average. Recent watershed projects were completed to reduce erosion and export of sediment and phosphorus into the pond. Thomas Pond is monitored by Raymond Waterways Protective Association and the Thomas Pond Improvement Association.
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