For a place to be wild, to be teeming with life and scenery that overwhelm the senses, different species must coexist and flourish there. The partnerships and communities they form become the underpinnings of a vibrant ecosystem.

In the Maine Woods, a vast network of human partnerships has enabled a once-industrial forest to grow wilder with each passing year. People with strong ties to the region are at the root of AMC’s Maine Woods Initiative, a plan for land conservation that combines outdoor recreation, resource protection, sustainable forestry, and community partnerships in the 100-Mile Wilderness region.

Since AMC launched its initiative nearly five years ago with the purchase of its 37,000-acre Katahdin Iron Works property, an ever-expanding community of individuals and organizations has been working to ensure the Maine Woods remain healthy forests that people can visit and enjoy.

This year, that community includes thousands of AMC members who contributed to the Campaign for the Maine Woods and helped meet the Kresge Foundation Challenge, which will provide an additional $1.5 million to the Maine Woods Initiative. It also includes the dozens of chapter volunteers and staff members who helped with trail work and shelter construction, and educators from local schools who introduced their students to outdoor learning at AMC’s two sporting camps, Little Lyford Pond Camps and Medawisla Wilderness Camps.

Through these efforts, people are making new connections with the Maine Woods and strengthening old ones. What follows is a photo journal highlighting some of those bonds between people and place.

Launch Slideshow>>