Lake Winnecook, (Unity Pond) Unity, Maine: Sail Away to Your Vacation Destination

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Lake Winnecook, (Unity Pond) Unity, Maine: Sail Away to Your Vacation Destination

Relax in Your Hammock Overlooking Unity Pond

Lake Winnecook, aka Unity Pond, includes the tri-town borders of Burnham, Unity and Troy, in the Belgrade Lakes Region of Maine. Lakefront property owners find their escape from the real world on the shore of this quiet and restful pond.


Spanning 2,569 acres, Unity Pond has a maximum depth of 41 feet, with a mean depth of 17 feet. It’s 4.1 miles long and 1.9 miles wide. A maintained boat launch is located by Sandy Stream at the end of Kanokolus Road in Unity, where you’ll need to pay a small fee. Boaters should be aware that there are a variety of navigational aids on the pond. Maps are available from local town offices and retail businesses.


The principal fisheries of the pond are brown trout, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, white perch and chain pickerel. In the words of one fisherman, you can “catch some monster bass” on Unity Pond. It’s popular with anglers, but never crowded.
Fish. Sail. Canoe. Kayak. Swim. Snowmobile. Ice Skate. Ski.
Water quality testing indicates that Unity Pond’s readings are below average. The pond has a long history of nuisance algae blooms in the late summer and fall.
Beginning in 1785, European settlers cleared the vast virgin white pine forests in the area. Following this period of deforestation, farming was extensive on the lakeshore for the next 150 years. This led to the development of the canning industry in the early 1900s to process local crops. Unfortunately, effluent from a cannery was disposed of through an underground conduit leading directly into the pond. Today, the Friends of Lake Winnecook, Inc. are working with a number of state and local agencies and Unity College to restore the watershed and improve the water quality through a variety of activities including landscape design, the replacement of malfunctioning septic systems and the installation of vegetated buffer strips.
Three tributaries feed Unity Pond: Meadow Brook, which originates in a Tamarac bog and flows from the northwest; Bithers (Bog) Brook, which flows from the east; and Carlton Stream, which originates from Carlton Bog and flows from the northeast.
The one outlet for this pond is located near the train trestle in Unity. This wetland is designated as the Sandy Stream Division of the Sunhaze National Wildlife Refuge managed by the USFWS.
The small villages of Burnham, Unity and Troy are set on the rolling landscape surrounding the pond. Unity College and Lakeview Golf Course overlook the pond.
The pond is only 15 miles from Waterville and thirty minutes from all the activities and sightseeing opportunities along the Maine coast. Own a waterfront cabin or cottage here and feed your appreciation of nature with daily doses of loons, deer, and other Maine experiences.
To view lakefront property listings for sale on Lake Winnecook (Unity Pond), just click on the green box above.

Other blogs about the Belgrade Lakes that may interest you:
Morrill Pond, Hartland, Maine: Where the Forest Meets the Pond
Lake Annabessacook in Monmouth and Winthrop, Maine: Home of Trophy Bass

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