When I tire of the summertime coastal crowds or I’m ready to hit the slopes, I head for Maine’s Western Lakes and Mountains—about 4,500 outstandingly scenic square miles of Franklin, Oxford, Androscoggin, and Cumberland Counties. The recreational variety is astonishing. In winter, the state’s two alpine powerhouses—Sunday River and Sugarloaf—entice skiers and riders from throughout the Northeast and even abroad. Six smaller, family-oriented ski areas—Saddleback, Shawnee Peak, Mount Abram, Black Mountain, Titcomb, and Lost Valley—deliver fewer on-mountain amenities but offer more wallet-friendly prices. Cross-country and snowshoeing trails also lace the region, dogsledding is increasingly popular, and snowmobiling is big business. There are trails for winter hiking and ponds for skating.
Still, winter is the off-season in much of this region. The multitude of lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams satisfy recreational boaters and anglers, while the mountains attract hikers and mountain bikers. One of the most rugged stretches of the 2,158-mile Appalachian Trail, which runs from Georgia to Maine, passes through this area.
Of Maine’s nine covered bridges (seven originals and two carefully built replicas), five are in the Western Lakes and Mountains—including the picturesque “Artist’s Covered Bridge,” near Sunday River, my favorite because you can ski through the forest and suddenly come upon it.
Sprawling, mountainous Oxford County, backed against New Hampshire, has fabulous trails for hiking and rivers for canoeing. There’s gold—and all kinds of other minerals—in the Oxford Hills; the official state gemstone, tourmaline, an intriguing stone that turns up in green, blue, or pink, is most prevalent in western Maine. Grab a digging tool or gold pan and try your hand at amateur prospecting. You’re unlikely to find more than a few flakes or some pretty specimens of sparkly pyrite (fool’s gold), but the fun is in the adventure.
LOOK FOR M TO FIND RECOMMENDED SIGHTS, ACTIVITIES, DINING, AND LODGING.
M Sugarloaf: The summit snowfields are the only lift-accessible skiing and riding above the tree line in the East (click here).
M Maine Huts and Trails: Hike, bike, paddle, ski, or snowshoe from hut to hut on this spectacular wilderness trail (click here).
M Rangeley Outdoor Sporting Heritage Museum: Learn about the sporting legends who made Rangeley famous (click here).
M Wilhelm Reich Museum: You don’t have to agree with the controversial scientist to enjoy the views from the estate (click here).
M Grafton Notch State Park: This is a spectacular chunk of real estate, with hiking trails, waterfalls, and picnic areas (click here).
M Willowbrook Museum Village: This village is preserved in time with 25 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places (click here).
M Songo River Queen II: Take in views to Mount Washington on a cruise across Long Lake (click here).
M Poland Spring: Tour through the history of famed Poland Spring Water and Hiram Ricker’s family empire (click here).
M Shaker Museum: Visit the world’s last inhabited Shaker community (click here).
M Paris Hill: Take a walk around this hidden hilltop National Historic District (click here).
East of Oxford County, Franklin County comprises Sugarloaf and the lovely Rangeley Lakes recreational area. Farmington is the county seat and a university town. Mostly rural Androscoggin, fourth smallest of the state’s 16 counties, takes its commercial and political cues from Lewiston and Auburn, the state’s second-largest population center.
Directly west of Portland, and partly in Cumberland County, are Sebago and Long Lakes, surrounded by towns and villages that swell with visitors throughout the summer. Also here are most of the state’s youth summer camps—some many generations old. During the annual summer-camp parents’ weekend in July, Bridgton’s tiny besieged downtown feels like Times Square at rush hour.
If you’re coming for warm-weather recreation—boating, swimming, hiking, and simply playing in the great outdoors—you’ll find it here in abundance. And in July-August, you won’t be alone on the Route 302 corridor stretching from Windham through Bridgton. Skip north to the Oxford Hills, Bethel, and the Kingfield region, and the crowds diminish. Bethel, home to Sunday River, and Kingfield, the nearest big town to Sugarloaf, come to life during the ski season, but otherwise are quiet places to escape, recreate, and especially to enjoy fall’s foliage. If winter sports are your priority, late February-mid-March usually brings the best combination of snow and temperatures.
While you can loop through this region in 3-4 days, to get the most out of the summer recreational opportunities, pick one spot and explore from there. Good hubs are Rangeley, Bethel, Bridgton, and Naples.
If you’re interested in Franco American culture, plan on spending the better part of a day in the Lewiston-Auburn area. For antiquing, slip over to Cornish. For fishing, make Rangeley your base. No matter where you stay, don’t overplan. The region’s riches demand that you get off the highways and byways and onto the back roads. Wander around and you’ll stumble on spectacular views, great hikes, country stores, and swimming holes.
Farmington is a sleeper of a town—home to a respected University of Maine campus, an easily walkable downtown, and an unusual opera museum. What’s more, mountain towns and scenery stretch out and beyond in every direction. Less than an hour’s drive north of town is the Carrabassett Valley, a recreation stronghold made famous by the year-round Sugarloaf alpine resort. Off to the northwest are the fabled Rangeley Lakes, and a drive southwest leads to Bethel, home of Sunday River Ski Resort, mineral quarries, and the White Mountain National Forest.
Farmington (pop. 7,760) was incorporated in 1794 and became the county seat for Franklin County 44 years later. It remains the judicial hub but also is the commercial center for the nearby towns of Wilton (pop. 4,116), Weld (pop. 419), New Sharon (pop. 1,407), Temple (pop. 528), and Industry (pop. 929). To the south and west are Jay (pop. 4,851), Livermore Falls (pop. 1,843), Livermore (pop. 1,795), Dixfield (pop. 2,250), Mexico (pop. 2,681), and Rumford (pop. 5,841).
In Rumford and Jay, your nose will tell you it’s paper-mill territory, part of Maine’s economic lifeline; locals call the sulfuric odor “the smell of money.” Residents have become inured to the aroma, but visitors may need a chance to adjust. Livermore is the site of the Norlands Living History Center, a unique participatory museum that rewards you with a real “feel” for the past.
And, lest we forget, Farmington’s leading candidate for favorite son is Chester Greenwood, who, in 1873, rigged beaver fur, velvet, and a bit of wire to create “Champion ear protectors”—called earmuffs these days—when he was only 15. The clever fellow patented his invention and then went on to earn 100 more patents for such things as doughnut hooks and shock absorbers. His early-December birthday inspires the quirky annual Chester Greenwood Day celebration in downtown Farmington.
Gem-encrusted gowns, opera librettos, lavish gifts from royalty, and family treasures fill the handful of rooms in the Nordica Homestead Museum (116 Nordica Lane, Farmington, 207/778-2042, www.lilliannordica.com, 1pm-5pm Tues.-Sun., June 1-Sept. 15, by appointment Sept. 16-Oct. 15, $2 adults, $1 children over age 5), birthplace of Lillian Norton (1857-1914), better known as Madame Lillian Nordica, the legendary turn-of-the-20th-century Wagnerian opera diva. Her influence still pervades the house, where scratchy recordings play in the background and newspaper clippings line the walls. No opera buff should miss this. A guide is on hand to answer questions. Even the kids get a kick out of the costumed mannequins, and there’s lots of space on the grounds for letting off steam. Take Route 4/27 north from Farmington and turn right (east) onto Holley Road; the farm is 0.5 mile down the road.
The fledgling Maine’s Paper and Heritage Museum (22 Church St., Livermore Falls, 207/592-1807, www.papermuseumofmaine.org, 10:30am-2:30pm, late May-early Sept.) aims to grow into an interactive experience where visitors can experience life in a papermaking community.
Mount Blue State Park (299 Center Hill Rd., Weld, 207/585-2261, www.parksandlands.com, campground 207/585-2261, www.campwithme.com), covering nearly 8,000 acres in two sections, is one of Maine’s best-kept secrets. Yes, it’s crowded in summer, but mostly with Mainers. It offers multilevel hiking, superb swimming, wooded campsites, mountain scenery, and daily interpretive natural-history programs in summer. There are movies on weekends, guided hikes, weekly guest speakers, even gold-panning expeditions—you’ll never be bored. Swimming and camping are on Lake Webb’s west side; the Center Hill section, including the trail to Mount Blue itself, is on the lake’s east side. The main entrance, with a two-mile access road, is eight miles from Weld, on the lake’s west side. Day-use admission is $6 nonresident adults, $4 Maine resident adults, $1 ages 5-11, nonresident seniors $1.50, resident seniors free. Canoe rentals are $3/hour. Winter activities include snowshoeing, snowmobiling, and more than a dozen miles of groomed cross-country ski trails.
Five miles northeast of downtown Farmington is the hamlet of Allens Mills (officially the town of Industry), where you can swim or paddle in aptly named Clearwater Lake. To get there from Farmington, follow Broadway (Rte. 43) until you reach the T junction and boat landing at the lake.
Another local swimming hole is at the Route 4 bridge in Fairbanks, just north of Farmington.
You’re getting into western Maine’s serious mountains here, so there are plenty of great hiking opportunities, running the gamut from a cakewalk to a workout.
In Weld, a deservedly popular hiking route goes up 3,187-foot Mount Blue, in the eastern section of Mount Blue State Park. From Route 142 in Weld village, follow signs and take Maxwell Road and then Center Hill Road about 2.5 miles to the parking area for Center Hill itself. You can stop for a picnic (sweeping views even at this level, plus picnic tables and outhouses), follow the 0.5-mile-long self-guided nature-trail loop (pick up a brochure here), and then go on. It’s also a great spot for sunset-watching. Continue up the unpaved road 3.5 miles to the parking lot for the Mount Blue trailhead. Allow about three hours for the steepish 2.8-mile round-trip (easy, then moderately difficult). In midsummer, carry plenty of water. Hope for clear air on the summit; vistas of the Longfellows and beyond are awesome.
Other good hikes around Weld, on the west side of Lake Webb, are Tumbledown Mountain (3,068 feet via several route options; nesting peregrines can restrict access in early summer) and Little Jackson Mountain (3,434 feet). Tumbledown, moderately strenuous, attracts the “been there, done that” set. A much easier hike, but likely to be more crowded, is 2,386-foot Bald Mountain, with a scoured summit fine for picnics if it’s not too blustery. Allow about two hours for the three-mile round-trip, including a lunch break. To reach the trailhead from Weld, take Route 156 southeast about 5.5 miles. There’s limited parking on the right; watch for the sign.
The 14-mile Whistlestop Trail, connecting Jay, Wilton, and Farmington, passes through rural scenery, crosses rivers, and bypasses quarries. The trail can be accessed from many points. One convenient downtown Farmington location is on Oak Street (off Rte. 2/4), adjacent to a CN Brown station.
A rainy-day godsend is the $4.5 million University of Maine at Farmington Health and Fitness Center (152 Québec St. at Lincoln St., Farmington, 207/778-7495, www.umf.maine.edu). It’s open to the public for weight training, indoor jogging, tennis, and swimming in a six-lane heated pool. Call for current hours and fees.
Throughout the year, something is always happening at the University of Maine at Farmington (207/778-7000, www.umf.maine.edu): lectures, concerts, plays, you name it. Contact the college for schedule and details.
The free, 1.5-hour Music on Main summer concerts begin at 11:30am Tuesday, in the green and white octagonal bandstand.
The two-day Wilton Blueberry Festival (www.wiltonbbf.com), in early August, is an always-crowded blueberry-oriented celebration that includes a parade, road races, games, crafts booths, a book sale, a museum open house, live entertainment, a lobster-roll lunch, a chicken barbecue, and a pig roast in downtown Wilton.
The third week of September is given over to the Farmington Fair, a weeklong country fair with agricultural exhibits, a parade, harness racing, and live entertainment at the Farmington Fairgrounds.
The first Saturday in December, Farmington honors a native son on Chester Greenwood Day. Festivities commemorating the inventor of earmuffs include a road race, an oddball earmuff parade, a polar-bear swim, and other activities.
Downtown Farmington has just enough options to entertain shoppers of all budgets.
Fans of fine craft simply must visit SugarWood Gallery (248 Broadway, Farmington, 207/778-9105), which features the work of more than 100 western Maine artisans. Furniture, pottery, weaving, art quilts, handmade teddy bears, and more fill this cooperative gallery.
It’s hard to resist the cheerful, welcoming ambience at Devaney Doak and Garrett Booksellers (193 Broadway, Farmington, 207/778-3454, www.ddgbooks.com), not to mention the children’s corner piled high with books, toys, and games. Owner Kenny Brechner does the ordering and the website’s book reviews; his eclectic taste is evident. And how many independent bookshops have a website with hilarious parodic reviews?
Around the corner, Twice-Sold Tales (155 Main St., Farmington, 207/778-4411) has a well-chosen and well-organized selection; Maine titles are a specialty, and prices are reasonable (paperback mysteries are only $1). Ask owner Jim Logan, an avid outdoorsman, about hiking options in Farmington and beyond.
I always introduce visiting friends to Renys (24 Broadway, Farmington, 207/778-4641), and they always leave with at least a bag or two. From clothing to cleaning supplies to electronics to food, Renys has it all. Part of a small statewide chain, this one is spread out on three floors—even the back corners have finds.
Surprisingly for a county seat that doubles as a college town, there are few lodgings in Farmington itself.
Just west of Farmington on Wilson Lake, Wilson Lake Inn (183 Lake Rd., Wilton, 207/645-3721 or 800/626-7463, www.wilsonlakeinn.com, $89-179) is a well-maintained family-owned property that’s been expanded over the years to include studios and extended-stay two-bedroom suites with kitchens, in addition to basic guest rooms; all were renovated in 2012 with upgraded bedding, 32-inch flat-screens, and new decor. The grounds are lovely, with gardens and a lawn leading to the lakefront. All rooms have free HBO, air-conditioning, mini-fridges, free Wi-Fi, data ports, and phones, and there’s a laundry on the premises. Rates include continental breakfast, and guests have free use of a canoe, paddleboat, and kayaks as well as outdoor grills. Sightseeing flights leave from the inn’s dock.
Step back in time at Kawanhee Inn (12 Ann’s Way/Rte. 142, Weld, 207/585-2000, www.maineinn.net, late May-mid-Oct.), a lakefront lodge-style inn and cabins tucked under the shelter of towering pines. Owners Chris and Jodi Huntington have renovated the cabins and updated the rooms, all while preserving the classic 1920s style. Don’t expect TVs, cell phone reception, or frills. Sunsets in this mountain-and-lake setting on six-mile-long Lake Webb are spectacular; loons’ cries add to the magic. Eleven second-floor guest rooms with shared and private baths in the large main lodge are $110-165/day with a two-night minimum stay on weekends. Cabins (rates begin at $1,350/week) vary in age, size, and facilities; all have lake views, fieldstone fireplaces, and screened-in porches. Pets are welcome for $35/dog/night plus a $200 security deposit (some restrictions, call). There’s free Wi-Fi. The sandy beach is great for kids, and superb hiking is close by. Guests have use of canoes and kayaks. The lodge’s lake-view dining room is open to nonguests for dinner (Wed.-Sun., $18-28) mid-June-early September. Devotees keep returning here, so book well ahead for midsummer. In mid-September, nights are coolish and it’s pretty quiet, but the foliage is incredible.
Mount Blue State Park (299 Center Hill Rd., Weld, 207/585-2261, www.parksandlands.com; campground 207/585-2261, www.campwithme.com) has 136 wooded sites but no hookups. Camping fees are $25/site for nonresidents, $15 for Maine residents. Reservations are handled through the state-park reservation system; from out of state call 207/287-3824 at least two weeks ahead or book reservations online from February 1 at www.campwithme.com. The reservation fee is $2/site/night, two-night minimum.
If you’ll be camping or staying in a condo or cottage with cooking facilities, swing by Whitewater Farm (28 Mercer Rd./Rte. 2, Mercer, 207/778-4748) for local naturally raised beef, lamb, chicken, turkey, rabbit, pork, cheeses, eggs, and produce.
There’s always a line at Gifford’s Ice Cream (Rte. 4/27, Farmington, 207/778-3617, 11am-10pm daily summer, 11am-9pm daily spring and fall), a longtime take-out spot. Besides about four dozen terrific ice cream flavors, it also has foot-long hot dogs. It’s open mid-March-early November.
My favorite stop in Farmington is the order-at-the-counter Soup for You! Cafe (222 Broadway, Farmington, 207/779-0799, 10:30am-7pm Mon.-Sat.), which oozes college-town funk and concocts some of the best soups you’ll ever taste; usually about six are made daily, with vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options. Also available are sandwiches, both named and create-your-own varieties. Smoothies and coffee drinks are very popular here too. Vegetarians will find plenty of choices, and kids can get PB&J. Nothing on the menu is more than $6.
The Sandy River Farmers Market sets up its tables in the parking lot of the Narrow Gauge Cinema (Front St., Farmington, 9am-2pm Fri., 2pm-6pm Tues. May-Oct.). You’ll find herbs, homemade bread, cheeses, and organic meats and produce.
Home-style fare, house-made desserts, generous portions, and all-day breakfast are the draws to Boivins Harvest House Restaurant (147 Pleasant St., Farmington, 207/778-6880, www.harvesthouserestaurant.com, 7am-9pm Mon.-Thurs., 6am-10pm Fri.-Sat., 6am-9pm Mon.-Sun., $6-18), an especially family-friendly spot. Don’t look for culinary creativity here, just solid American food ranging from liver and onions to baked stuffed haddock.
Just east of Rumford, the Front Porch Cafe (6 Hall Hill Rd., Dixfield, 207/562-4646, www.thefrontporchcafe.com, 8am-3pm Wed.-Mon. and 5pm-8pm Thurs.-Sat.) has earned a solid reputation for good food, generous portions, and friendly service. It’s also worth a stop to sign the covered bridge entry, see the dual handmade stone fireplaces, and visit the indoor uptown outhouse. Owners Clint Bailey and Sammie Angel make this place special, and Sammie, a professional musician, sometimes entertains in the evenings.
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, even tapas—The Homestead Bakery Restaurant (186 Broadway, Farmington, 207/778-6162, www.homesteadbakery.com, 8am-9pm Mon.-Sat., 8am-2pm Sun., $10-24) serves it all. There’s plenty of ethnic variety—Mediterranean, Mexican, Thai—as well as pub-style classics and even vegetarian. A martini and wine bar, with couches by a fireplace, provides cozier seating.
Step back in time and savor the views from the Kawanhee Inn (12 Ann’s Way/Rte. 142, Weld, 207/585-2000, www.maineinn.net, 5pm-9pm Wed.-Sun., hours vary spring and fall, $10-28). The lakefront setting is spectacular, especially at sunset. Reservations are recommended.
The former Bass Shoe factory now houses Calzolaio Pasta Co. (248 Main St., Wilton, 207/645-9500, www.calzolaiopasta.com, 11am-9pm daily, $9-24), which prepares decent Italian fare from pizzas and pastas to specialty entrées such a veal saltimbocca and Sicilian chicken. There are kids’, vegetarian, and gluten-free menus too. Opt for an outdoor riverside table if the weather’s fine.
Downtown Farmington (www.downtownfarmington.com) has local information and listings.
Check out Cutler Memorial Library (117 Academy St., Farmington, 207/778-4312, www.farmington.lib.me.us).
Farmington is roughly 40 miles or 50 minutes from Augusta via Route 27. It’s about 22 miles or 30 minutes to Kingfield via Route 27. It’s about 40 miles or one hour to Rangeley via Route 4.
The thread tying together the Sugarloaf area is the lovely Carrabassett River, which winds its way through the smashingly scenic Carrabassett Valley from the area more or less around Sugarloaf through Kingfield (pop. 997), to North Anson, where it tumbles over treacherous falls and flows into the mighty Kennebec River. On both sides of the valley, the Longfellow and Bigelow Ranges boast six of Maine’s ten 4,000-footers—a hiker’s paradise.
Flanking the west side of the valley is the huge Sugarloaf resort. In 1951, Kingfield businessman Amos Winter and some of his pals, known locally as the “Bigelow Boys,” cut the first ski trail from the snowfields above the tree line atop Sugarloaf Mountain, dubbing it “Winter’s Way.” A downhill run required skiing three miles to the base of the trail and then strapping on animal skins for the uphill trek. Three runs on wooden skis would be about the daily max in those days. By 1954 the prophetically named Winter and some foresighted investors had established the Sugarloaf Mountain Ski Club; and the rest, as they say, is history.
Sugarloaf is the megataxpayer in the relatively new town of Carrabassett Valley (pop. 781). It bills itself as a year-round resort, which is true, but winter is definitely the peak season, when the head count is highest and so are the prices. Everything’s open and humming November-late April; spring skiing has been known to extend even into June.
Before Amos Winter brought fame and fortune to his hometown and the valley, Kingfield was best known as a timber center and the birthplace of the Stanley twins (designers of the Stanley Steamer). Today it’s an appealing slice-of-life rural town, with handsome old homes and off-mountain beds and restaurants.
In Stratton, a village in Eustis (pop. 618), old-timers reminisce over the towns of Flagstaff and Dead River—already historic two centuries before they were consigned to the history books in the 1950s. That’s when the Long Falls Dam, built on the Dead River, backed up the water behind it, inundated the towns, and created 20,000-acre Flagstaff Lake. The hydroelectric dam now controls the water flow for spring white-water rafting on the Dead River.
Flagstaff owes its name to Col. Benedict Arnold, whose troops en route to Québec in 1775 flew their flag at the site of today’s Cathedral Pines Campground. After struggling up the Kennebec River to the spot known as the Carrying Place, the disheartened soldiers turned northwest along the Dead River’s North Branch at Flagstaff and then on through the Chain of Ponds to Canada.
Route 27, from Kingfield to the Canadian border at Coburn Gore, is an officially designated Scenic Highway, a 54-mile stretch that’s most spectacular in mid-late September. But there’s no pot of gold at the end; there’s not much to Coburn Gore except a Customs outpost, a convenience store (with fuel), and a few unimpressive dwellings.
Here’s a reason to go back to school: The small but captivating Stanley Museum (40 School St., Kingfield, 207/265-2729, www.stanleymuseum.org, 1pm-4pm Tues.-Sun. June-Oct., 1pm-4pm Tues.-Fri. Nov.-May or by appointment, $4 adults, $3 seniors, $2 under age 12), located in the town’s old schoolhouse, is dedicated to educating visitors about Kingfield’s most famous native sons, twin brothers Francis Edgar (F. E.) and Freelan Oscar (F. O.) Stanley. Although best known for the Stanley Steamer, the identical twins’ legacy of invention and innovation extends far beyond either the automobile or Kingfield. These versatile overachievers also invented the photographic dry plate, eventually selling out to George Eastman. Freelan Stanley, the first to climb Mount Washington by car, later became a noted violinmaker. He was also a talented portrait artist—one of his subjects was poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow—and he’s credited with inventing the first airbrush. Also in the museum are hundreds of superb photographs (and glass-plate negatives) by the twins’ clever sister, Chansonetta Stanley Emmons, and work by Chansonetta’s artist-daughter, Dorothy. The museum gift shop contains auto-related books, pamphlets, and other specialty items.
Established in 1995, the Ski Museum of Maine (256 Main St., Kingfield, 207/265-2023, www.skimuseumofmaine.org, 9am-5pm daily in winter, free) exhibits Maine-related ski artifacts and memorabilia documenting Maine’s role in the growth and development of the sport, from immigrant Swedes to manufacturing to resorts. Call ahead for off-season and summer hours.
A bold, in-your-face sign announces the driveway to Nowetah’s American Indian Museum (Rte. 27, New Portland, 207/628-4981, www.nowetahs.webs.com, 10am-5pm daily, free), an astonishing repository of hundreds of Maine Indian baskets and bark objects—plus porcupine-quill embroidery, trade beads, musical instruments, soapstone carvings, and other Native American esoterica. Übercollector Nowetah Cyr, a descendent of St. Francis Abenaki and Paugussett Indians, loves explaining unique details about the artifacts she’s displayed here since 1969; but be forewarned: She’s a talker. In the museum’s gift shop are many Native American craft pieces as well as books. It’s 16 miles north of Farmington.
Now here’s a most unusual landmark, about seven miles south of Kingfield and not far from Nowetah’s museum: Twenty-five-foot-tall shingled towers announce the entrance to the Wire Bridge suspended over the Carrabassett River in New Portland. Built in 1864-1866 at a cost of $2,000, with steel supports imported from England, the bridge is on the National Register of Historic Places. Locals often refer to it as “rustproof” for its stainless-steel construction, or “flood-proof” for its longtime survival despite nasty spring floods. To find the bridge from Route 146 in New Portland, turn north onto Wire Bridge Road and follow signs for less than a mile.
Unless you’re a rabid history fan or have an area connection, many local historical society museums can be a bit of a snore. Not so the Dead River Historical Society (11am-3pm Sat.-Sun. July-early Sept., donation), which contains fascinating memorabilia from the two villages submerged when the Dead River was dammed and Flagstaff Lake created.
In the fall of 1775, Benedict Arnold marched north from Augusta with the goal of capturing Québec. He followed the Kennebec River, then portaged to the Dead River, following it to Chain of Ponds near the Québec border. While there are dirt woods roads that ramble through this region, Route 27 roughly follows the route north from Kingfield, and there are roadside historical markers from Stratton north. It’s a gorgeous drive, especially in autumn, when leaves are turning and snow might fringe the peaks.
Several riverside and viewpoint rest areas on or near Route 27 make picnicking almost mandatory, especially in autumn, when the leaf colors are splendid. On Route 27, roughly halfway between Kingfield and the Sugarloaf access road, a picnic area is sandwiched between the highway and the Carrabassett River, just north of Hammond Field Brook.
Sugarloaf is the largest alpine ski area in the East.
About 12 miles north of the Sugarloaf access road, turn left (west) onto Eustis Ridge Road and go two miles to the Eustis Ridge picnic area, a tiny park with an expansive view of the Bigelow Range.
Finally, on Route 27, about 23 miles north of Sugarloaf, there’s another scenic picnic area, this one alongside the Dead River on the east side of the highway.
Best known as the king of alpine resorts in Maine, Sugarloaf (Carrabassett, 207/237-2000 or 800/843-5623, www.sugarloaf.com) is a four-season destination resort with alpine skiing and snowboarding, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and ice skating December-late April; golf, hiking, and mountain biking during warmer months; and zip-lining during both seasons. A compact base village has a hotel, an inn, and gazillions of condos as well as restaurants, a chapel, a handful of shops, and a base lodge housing a snow school and rental operations. The separate Outdoor Center, linked via shuttle and trails, houses cross-country skiing operations and has an ice-skating rink and an excellent, but very casual, café.
At 4,237 feet, Sugarloaf is not only Maine’s highest skiing mountain, it also has the only lift-serviced terrain above the tree line in the East. Well over 100 named trails and glades on more than 1,000 acres, served by 15 lifts that range from a T-bar to detachable high-speed quads, ribbon its 2,820 vertical feet. Even beginners can ski from the summit, a 3.5-mile descent via the longest run. Although the resort has produced national and international ski and snowboard champions (2006 and 2010 Olympic gold snowboard-cross medalist Seth Wescott calls it home), Sugarloaf has always been especially family-friendly, with day care and all kinds of children’s ski and entertainment programs. Full-day lift tickets are about $80 adults, $68 teens, and $56 ages 6-12 and 65-80; ages 5 and younger as well as ages 80 and older ski free. Most lodging packages include lift tickets; multiday tickets are less expensive, as are those purchased online.
On Route 27 about a mile south of the Sugarloaf access road is the entrance to the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center (207/237-6830), geared in winter toward cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and ice skating. Some sections of the 63-mile cross-country skiing trail network are on Maine Public Reserve Land, and some are on Penobscot Indian Nation land. Also at the Outdoor Center is an Olympic-size outdoor ice-skating rink, lighted on weekend nights and holiday weeks. The glass-walled lodge looking out on Sugarloaf Mountain has ski, snowshoe, and skate rentals, plus a casual café. Cross-country lessons are available. Call for current hours and fees for all programs, and ask about special events such as guided moonlight tours and snowshoe tours.
Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr., and regularly ranked in national golf magazines as Maine’s top course, the 18-hole, par-72 Sugarloaf Golf Club and Golf School meanders through woods and alongside the Carrabassett River in the shadow of the Longfellow Range. It’s actually a town-owned course but is managed by Sugarloaf. You get what you pay for; greens fees are steep. Tee times are essential; book a week or two in advance for weekends. Sugarloaf’s golf school offers multiday programs all summer, with special weeks designed for Women’s Golf School and Junior Golf Camp. Club rentals and private lessons are available; carts are mandatory. A driving range, a pro shop, and a café round out the facilities.
Summer activities at Sugarloaf include guided hikes, boat trips, moose-spotting tours, mountain biking, fly-fishing, scenic chair rides, and wilderness cookouts. Zip-line tours ($39 pp) on seven lines varying 160-260 feet in length are offered year-round.
A partnership between Sugarloaf, the town, and CVA (Carrabassett Valley Academy, a ski preparatory school at the mountain’s base that has produced many Olympians), the Antigravity Center (207/237-5566, www.carrabassettvalley.org), locally called the AGC, is the answer to a parent’s frustration when the weather doesn’t cooperate. It houses a gym, a climbing wall, a skate park, trampolines, a weight room, and more, and fitness classes are offered. Call for current hours and programs.
Sugarloaf is entertainment central in these parts. Every night in winter there’s live music somewhere here, so you can hopscotch from The Bag to Gepetto’s to The Rack (owned by double Olympic snowboard-cross gold medalist Seth Wescott) and back again.
The last full week in January is White White World Week, Sugarloaf’s winter carnival, with discount lift tickets, reduced lodging rates, ski races, fireworks, a torchlight parade, and other special events.
Sugarloaf meets the Caribbean during Reggae Fest with spring skiing, reggae bands day and night, and lots of boisterous fun over a mid-late-April weekend.
In early July, the annual Kingfield POPS concert features the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, an arts and crafts festival, a garden tour, and more.
Kingfield’s galleries and museums open their doors on the first Friday evening of each month for Friday Artwalk.
The town-owned Narrow Gauge Trail begins at Campbell Field on the east side of Route 27 near the foot of the Sugarloaf access road and continues seven miles, gradually downhill, to the Carrabassett Valley Town Park. The trail follows the abandoned narrow-gauge railway bed along the river. Pack a picnic and wear a bathing suit under your biking duds; you’ll be passing swimming holes along the way. In winter, it’s groomed weekly for cross-country skiing. From the trail, you can connect to the Maine Huts and Trails network.
Inch by inch, mile by mile: Imagine a 180-mile-long highway through the wilderness. When finished, the easygoing 12-foot-wide corridor through the wilderness will stretch from Newry in the Mahoosuc Mountains to Rockwood on Moosehead Lake, with offshoot dedicated hiking trails. It’s not a trail for motorized vehicles, but rather for hikers, mountain bikers, snowshoers, cross-country skiers (it’s groomed in winter), even paddlers.
Larry Warren, a former Sugarloaf manager, town founder, and preservation advocate, had the vision, and in 2008, after years of arm-twisting, persuasion, and major fundraising, the first section of the Maine Huts and Trails system (office 496 Main St., Kingfield, 207/265-2400, www.mainehuts.org) opened in Carrabassett Valley. By 2013, it had expanded to more than 50 trail miles with four full-service huts spaced roughly 10-12 miles—or a day’s hike—apart.
Comfy (practically luxe) off-the-grid backwoods lodges provide beds (including a pillow and fleece blanket, but not sheets) in dorms heated to 60°F in winter (private and family rooms available) and hot meals. The main lodges have composting toilets, hot showers, and gathering rooms furnished with leather sofas and chairs, braided rugs, and other nice touches. Rates begin at $84 pp in a shared room with breakfast and dinner.
Huts are located at Stratton Brook, with views of the Bigelow Mountains, Sugarloaf, and the Carrabassett Valley, accessed from a trailhead from a spur trail just north of the Sugarloaf Mountain access road; Poplar Falls, in the shadow of Little Bigelow Mountain, accessed from the Carrabassett Valley trailhead near the town recreation center off Route 27; on the shores of Flagstaff Lake, also accessed via a trailhead on the Long Falls Dam Road north of North New Portland or by boat across the lake; and at Grand Falls on the Dead River near The Forks, from which you can arrange a white-water paddle or raft trip. This is absolutely gorgeous territory, and the trail’s design makes it welcoming to beginning hikers and mountain bikers and especially families. Pricing varies by season and choice of accommodations. Trust me: Even if you only hoof in for lunch, this is an experience that should be incorporated into every vacation in this region.
The Sugarloaf summer website (www.sugarloaf.com/summer) has an excellent listing of area hikes under “Events & Activities.”
Cathedral Pines is a fine spot for a family hike, ski, or snowshoe. Maintained paths slice and loop through a majestic red pine stand and out a boardwalk over a bog. Find the trailhead and parking across from Cathedral Pines Campground, at the corner of Route 27 and Eustis Ridge Road, about 3.5 miles north of the intersection with Route 16 in Stratton.
An easy family hike, combining a picnic and swim, goes to the twin cascades of Poplar Stream Falls. Off Route 27 in Carrabassett Valley, leave your car at the Maine Huts parking lot and walk northeast 1.5 miles to the falls, veering off the Maine Huts trail. Pack a picnic and let the kids have a swim.
Just east of Stratton (eight miles northwest of Sugarloaf) is the dedicated hiker’s dream: 35,000-acre Bigelow Preserve is all public land thanks to conservationists who organized a statewide referendum and yanked it from developers’ hands in 1976. Within the preserve are the multiple peaks of the Bigelow Range—the Horns Peaks (3,810 and 3,831 feet), West Peak (4,150 feet), Avery Peak (4,088 feet), and Little Bigelow (3,040 feet), as well as 3,213-foot Cranberry Peak. In the fall when the hardwoods all change colors, the vistas are incomparable. In winter, snowmobilers crisscross the preserve, and cross-country skiers often take advantage of their trails, especially along the East Flagstaff Road, where you might be able to stop for hot chocolate at volunteer-staffed Bigelow Lodge. The trailhead for Cranberry Peak (6.6 miles round-trip, moderate to strenuous) is next to Route 27 at the southern end of Stratton village.
About five miles southeast of Stratton, the Appalachian Trail (AT) crosses Route 27 and continues north and then east across the Bigelow Peaks, the spine of the Bigelow Range. You can get to the AT here, or drive back northwest 0.5 mile on Route 27 and go 0.9 mile on rugged unpaved Stratton Brook Road to another AT trailhead. In any case, if you do the whole AT traverse, 16.5 miles from Route 27 to East Flagstaff Road, you’ll probably want to arrange a shuttle at East Flagstaff Road (via Long Falls Dam Rd. from North New Portland). The white-blazed AT route is strenuous; four free campsites with lean-tos are sited along the way. (The most-used campsite is Horns Pond, where space can be tight.) You can detour to the Maine Huts’ Flagstaff hut too.
Depending on your enthusiasm, your stamina level, and your time frame (and maybe the weather), there are lots of options for short hikes along the AT or on a number of side trails. Preserve maps are usually available at the Sugarloaf Area Chamber of Commerce, but for planning your hikes, request or download a copy of the Bigelow Preserve map-brochure from the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (22 State House Station, Augusta, 207/287-3821, www.parksandlands.com). Also helpful is the Appalachian Trail Guide to Maine.
Along the Carrabassett River between Kingfield and the Sugarloaf access road are half a dozen swimming holes used by generations of local residents. Several spots have natural waterslides and room for shallow dives. Not all are easy to find, and parking is limited, but a refreshing river dip on a hot day is worth the bother. Look for roadside pullouts with parked cars.
On mountain-rimmed Flagstaff Lake in Eustis, about 11 miles north of Sugarloaf, the town-owned beach next to the Cathedral Pines Campground has a playground and changing rooms. There are no lifeguards, but there’s also no admission fee. (Do not use the campground’s beach unless you’re staying there.)
Pines Market (927 Arnold Trail/Rte. 27, Eustis, 207/246-4221) rents single kayaks for $10/day and canoes or tandem kayaks for $20/day. You can put it right at the shop, which edges Flagstaff Lake.
Master Maine Guide Jeff Hinman’s Flagstaff Scenic Boat Tours (Eustis, 207/246-2277, www.flagstaffboattours.com) provides pontoon boat tours on the lake, detailing the story of the flooded villages below the surface and pointing out wildlife en route. Options include a 2.5-hour historic tour ($40 pp) and a 4.5-hour luncheon cruise to the Maine Huts and Trails Flagstaff Hut ($55 pp) that includes lunch. Boat minimum is four people.
Head up Route 27 to Route 16 and go west. Early or late in the day, perhaps en route to dinner in Rangeley, you’re almost guaranteed to see a moose in the boggy areas or near the sand and salt piles stored for winter use. Just remember to drive slowly and watchfully. No one wins when you hit a moose. Sugarloaf resort offers guided moose-spotting tours.
When you’ve had a long day on the slopes, a bed close by can be mighty tempting—plus you can be upward bound quickly in the morning. But such convenience doesn’t come cheaply, so your budget may dictate where you decide to stay. The choices are on the mountain at Sugarloaf, in Carrabassett Valley near the Sugarloaf access road, or farther afield in Kingfield, Stratton, Eustis, and beyond. On weekends and holiday periods, on-mountain beds are scarce to nonexistent, so reservations well in advance are necessary.
Many of the lodgings in the region around Sugarloaf provide discount passes for cross-country skiing out of the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center. It’s a nice little perk, so if you’re planning any cross-country skiing, ask when you’re inquiring about a room.
Accommodations are available all year at the resort (800/843-5623), and prices vary widely depending on the property and the dates. Possibilities include condominiums and two hotels. The winter-only Sugarloaf Inn (207/237-6837), conveniently situated adjacent to the Sawduster double chairlift, has 42 guest rooms (some in need of a face-lift) with rates in the same ranges as the condos. The imposing Sugarloaf Mountain Hotel (207/237-2222 or 800/527-9879), with 119 varied guest rooms and suites and two penthouses, is in the village center. Amenities include microwaves, refrigerators, and video players. Guests have use of a small health club. Pets and smoking are not allowed. All reservations booked by Sugarloaf include use of the Sugarloaf Sports and Fitness Club (207/237-6946), in the Sugartree condo complex on Mountainside Road, and both properties have free Wi-Fi. In winter, packages with lift tickets are best bet.
Just south of the mountain access road but on the shuttle route is Nestlewood Inn (3004 Town Line, Carrabassett Valley, 207/237-2077, www.nestlewoodinn.com, $150-245), a purpose-built log structure with seven guest rooms and spacious living rooms, including one with a stone fireplace. Rates include a full breakfast, afternoon snacks, and Wi-Fi. On-site massage is available. You can walk to Hug’s Restaurant and to the Narrow Gauge Trail.
Slumber in history at the 1918 Herbert Grand Hotel (246 Main St., Kingfield, 207/265-2000 or 800/843-4372, www.herbertgrandhotel.com, from $80), an antiques-filled, three-story, 26-room Victorian hotel in downtown Kingfield. Some will find it charming; the dated rooms and facilities will put others off. Rooms vary widely; some are a bit quirky. Rates include Wi-Fi access. Dogs are welcome for $10 each/night.
Next door to One Stanley Avenue restaurant and under the same ownership, Three Stanley Avenue (3 Stanley Ave., Kingfield, 207/265-5541, www.stanleyavenue.com, $70-80) has been a B&B since the early 1980s. The antiques-filled yellow Victorian (built by Bayard Stanley, younger brother of the famed Stanley Steamer twins) has three first-floor guest rooms with private baths and three second-floor guest rooms sharing two baths. It’s all very welcoming, with comfortable wicker chairs on the front porch and a traditional gazebo, formerly a bandstand, in the backyard. Rates include a full breakfast served at the adjacent restaurant.
You can launch a canoe or kayak into Flagstaff Lake from the backyard of Tranquility Lodge (Rte. 27, Stratton, 207/246-2122, www.tranquillitylodgebandb.com, $76-99), an especially peaceful bed-and-breakfast in a converted 19th-century post-and-beam barn just north of Stratton village. Old farming tools decorate the walls, and there’s a carriage, which keeps the feeling rural and rustic. Most rates include a continental breakfast. Free Wi-Fi is available.
A wonderful traditional sporting camp, Tim Pond Camps (Eustis, 207/243-2947, www.timpondcamps.com) has been operating since 1877, when guests took so long to get here that they stayed the whole summer. Harvey and Betty Calden have owned this idyllic lakeside retreat since 1981. Eleven rustic log cabins dot the woods on either side of a modern-rustic lodge (the original lodge burned down), where everyone gathers three times a day for great comfort food; the dinner bell rings promptly at 5:30pm. BYOB. Daily rates are $195 pp, including all meals and use of a classic Rangeley boat with a motor and gas, and a canoe; half price for ages 5-11. The pet fee is $10/visit. Be forewarned, though, that it’s worth your life to get a reservation here—about 90 percent of the guests are repeats, and most stay at least a week. Fly-fishing for brook trout is the prime pursuit (every spring a fly-fishing school is offered), but it’s a fine place just to relax and listen to the loons. Here’s how one avid fisherman describes the schedule: “Fish, eat breakfast, fish, eat lunch, fish, eat supper, fish, sleep.” A family discount is available in July-August. Cabins have full baths, electricity until 10pm, daily maid service, and fascinating guest journals. Tim Pond Camps is at the northern end of mile-long Tim Pond, on a dirt road about 10 miles west of Route 27. It’s open mid-May-mid-October, then again in November.
With 115 wooded sites (most with hookups) on 300 acres, nonprofit Cathedral Pines Campground (Rte. 27, Eustis, 207/246-3491, www.gopinescamping.com, $27-35) has one of Maine’s most scenic locations. It’s set amid gigantic red pines and surrounded by mountains on the shore of Flagstaff Lake. Look for the marker that designates this site as one of Benedict Arnold’s stops during his march to Québec City in 1775. Facilities include a recreation hall, a bathhouse, laundry, a swimming beach, basketball, a playground, canoe rentals, and paddleboat rentals. Pets are allowed. The campground is 26 miles south of the Québec border.
Just five miles south of the border, in the midst of pond-speckled, mountain-cradled wilderness, is Natanis Point Campground (19 Nantanis Point Rd., Chain of Ponds Township, 207/297-2694, www.natanispointcampground.com, $24), with 61 grassy sites, some waterfront on Nantanis or Round Ponds. Amenities include a sandy beach, a boat launch providing access to five miles of interconnecting lakes, and direct access to a 150-mile ATV trail.
You can bounce around to different Sugarloaf-area restaurants in the winter season and even catch a twofer night here and there. During holidays and winter weekends, make reservations.
Sugarloaf’s base lodge has a number of quick eating options. Standing out from the usual concession fare is Bob’s Clam Hut (207/237-3520), a seasonal outpost of the famed Kittery fried clam hot spot. Boyne, Sugarloaf’s corporate parent, owns and operates most of the restaurants on the mountain. These include: 45 North (Sugarloaf Mountain Hotel, 2092 Access Rd., 207/237-4220, 5pm-10pm daily, $16-28), a family-friendly restaurant with a rustic barn style and a menu that ranges from duck poutine to Scottish salmon; Bullwinkle’s Grill (207/237-2000, sometimes open for dinner), the only on-mountain venue, located off Tote Road on the mountain’s western side, with access via snowcat; and the ski-in/ski-out Shipyard Brew Haus (Sugarloaf Inn, Access Rd., 207/237-6834, 7am-10pm daily, $9-24).
In the base village, the independently owned Bag and Kettle (207/237-2451, www.thebagandkettle.com, 11am-close daily late Nov.-mid-Apr., $9-30), known locally as The Bag, is famous for its burgers, soups, and wood-fired pizzas, although the menu is much broader than that; Blues Monday features live music.
For ample sandwiches, homemade soups, salads, and hearty breakfasts, D’Ellies (207/237-2490, www.dellies.net), another independent, is one of Sugarloaf Village’s most popular eateries. It’s open for breakfast and lunch daily during ski season. Seating is extremely limited—this is more of a to-go kind of place. To avoid the swarming noontime rush, call in your sandwich order in the morning before heading for the lift line. Name a time, and it’ll be ready for pickup at the express register, where you can also grab drinks, soups, and baked goods.
Two-time Olympic gold medalist is one of the partners in The Rack (Access Rd., 207/237-2211, from 3:45pm daily, $14-24), and you can view his memorabilia and, when he’s around, chat with him while enjoying hearty ribs. This is an especially popular après-ski spot, with frequent live music.
Reservations are a good idea at Hug’s (3001 Rte. 27, Carrabassett Valley, 207/237-2392, 4:30pm-9:30pm Wed.-Sun., entrées $15-24), a northern Italian restaurant, open in winter only, that’s always jam-packed. Be forewarned: Tables are tight and there’s little place to wait for a table. But who cares—the food is good, the atmosphere festive, the pesto breadsticks are addictive, and the family-style salad is delicious. Kids’ portions are available. Hug’s is a mile south of the Sugarloaf access road.
Six miles south of the Sugarloaf access road is Tufulio’s (Rte. 27, Valley Crossing, Carrabassett Valley, 207/235-2010, 5pm-9pm daily, $10-26), another Italian-accented family favorite and producers of the valley’s best pizza. The shrimp-and-artichoke pesto pie is tops. Also on the menu are seafood, chicken, and plenty of pasta dishes. Go on Sunday for the two-for-one specials. In summer you can eat on the deck. It opens at 4pm for a popular happy hour.
The Orange Cat Cafe (329 Main St., Kingfield, 207/265-2860, www.orangecatcafe.com, 7am-3pm Mon. and Wed.-Sat., 8am-3pm Sun.), in the “brick castle,” is a favorite for breakfast sandwiches and pastries, homemade soups, creative sandwiches, salads, and other goodies.
An old reliable, Longfellow’s (Rte. 27, Kingfield, 207/265-2561, www.longfellowsme.com, 11am-9pm daily, $10-18), serves a menu ranging from burgers to baked scallops, chicken enchiladas to steak. Service is friendly, prices are reasonable, and the best tables have views over the river out back. Owners Chris and Mel Doucette live on a dairy farm and grow many of the vegetables and produce their own maple syrup. Two-fer night is on Tuesday.
The area’s top fine-dining restaurant is One Stanley Avenue (1 Stanley Ave., Kingfield, 207/265-5541, www.stanleyavenue.com, 5pm-9:30pm Tues.-Sun. mid-Dec.-mid-Apr., entrées $21-35), a Kingfield magnet since 1972 with a menu that never changes (entrées are noted with the year they were added to the menu). Cocktails in the Victorian lounge precede a dining experience: unobtrusive service, understated decor, and entrées such as roast duck with rhubarb glaze, chicken with fiddleheads, and sage rabbit. Reservations are essential on winter weekends.
Much-better-than good home cooking at reasonable prices with some intriguing specials and an emphasis on using fresh and local products reels them into the humble Stratton Diner (161 Main St., 207/246-3000, 8am-2:30pm Sun.-Tues. and 8am-8pm Fri.-Sat.), which has been gussied up inside and also serves beer and wine.
The Coplin Dinner House (8252 Rte. 27, 207/246-0016, 5-9:30pm Wed.-Sun., 10am-2pm Sun., $19-28) occupies a restored farmhouse on the outskirts of Stratton Village. Expect entrées like roast half ducking, chargrilled rack of lamb, or sesame-encrusted tuna. Lighter fare is served at the bar.
Although woefully outdated, the Sugarloaf Area Chamber of Commerce (Rte. 27, Carrabassett Valley, www.sugarloafchamber.org) has information for the whole valley, including Sugarloaf.
Sugarloaf (5092 Access Rd., Carrabassett Valley, 207/237-2000, www.sugarloaf.com) provides information on anything and everything on the mountain. During the ski season, the free tabloid Sugarloaf This Week, published biweekly, carries comprehensive information about on-mountain activities. It’s available everywhere on the mountain and throughout the valley and beyond.
If you’re staying on the mountain or in the valley and have cable TV, tune to channel 17 (WSKI) for weather, snow, trail, and lift updates, plus an entertainment rundown.
For information about Kingfield visit www.kingfieldusa.com.
The Flagstaff Area Business Association (207/246-4221, www.eustismaine.com) has information about the Stratton-Eustis region.
Kingfield is roughly 22 miles or 30 minutes from Farmington via Route 27. It’s about 15 miles or 25 minutes to Sugarloaf via Route 27. It’s about 42 miles or one hour to Rangeley via Routes 27 and 16.
The free Sugarloaf Explorer shuttle service (207/237-6853, www.sugarloafexplorer.com) operates 8am-approximately midnight daily during the winter season; it’s on an on-call basis midweek and on a set schedule on weekends and during holiday periods. Various routes serve the condos, outdoor center, and valley.
Rangeley (pop. 1,168), incorporated in 1855, is the centerpiece of a vast system of lakes and streams surrounded by forested mountains. Rangeley is a catchall name. First applied to the town (formerly known as the Lake Settlement), it now also refers to the lake and the entire region. “I’m going to Rangeley” could indicate a destination anywhere in the extensive network of interconnecting lakes, rivers, and streams backing up to New Hampshire. The Rangeley Lakes make up the headwaters of the Androscoggin River, which technically begins at Umbagog Lake and flows seaward for 167 miles to meet the Kennebec River in Merrymeeting Bay, near Brunswick and Topsham.
Excavations have revealed evidence of human habitation in this area as long ago as 9000 BC. More than 8,000 stone tools and other artifacts were uncovered at the Vail site, on the edge of Aziscohos Lake. Native Americans certainly left their linguistic mark here, too, with tongue-twisting names applied to the lakes and other natural features. Mooselookmeguntic means “where hunters watch moose at night”; Umbagog means “shallow water”; Mollychunkamunk (a.k.a. Upper Richardson Lake) means “crooked water”; Oquossoc means “landing place”; and Kennebago means “land of sweet water.” The town’s more prosaic name comes from 19th-century landowner Squire James Rangeley.
The region has been a vacation magnet since the late 1800s, drawing sports who came first by stagecoach and later by rail and steamer to breathe in the unspoiled air, paddle and fish the clear waters, hike mountain trails, and hunt in vast wild lands. Folks still come today for many of the same reasons, but to these add golf, tennis, and winter sports that include skiing, snowshoeing, ice fishing, and especially snowmobiling. Recreation is the primary attraction, but there are also cultural events, old-fashioned annual festivals and fairs, the unique Wilhelm Reich Museum, and shops that carry antiques, books, sportswear, and crafts.
Southeast of Rangeley, the town of Phillips (pop. 1,028), was the birthplace of fly-fishing legend Cornelia T. “Fly Rod” Crosby (1854-1946), recipient of the first Registered Maine Guide license issued by the state—the imprimatur for outdoors professionals. Crosby, who wrote columns for the local paper, was a fanatic angler and hunter who always kept a china tea set neatly stowed in her gear.
Along Route 17 about 23 miles south of Oquossoc is Coos Canyon, in the town of Byron (pop. 145), where gold was found in the early 1800s on the East Branch of the Swift River. Amateur prospectors still flock to the area, but don’t get your hopes up—it’s more play than profits.
Don and Stephanie Palmer began collecting artifacts relating to the region’s rich sporting heritage back in the mid-1990s, and as the collection grew they realized they needed a museum to house it. Opened in 2010 after a major fundraising effort, the Rangeley Outdoor Sporting Heritage Museum (Rte. 17, Oquossoc Village, 207/864-5647, www.rangeleyoutdoormuseum.org, 10am-2pm Fri.-Sat. June and early Sept.-mid-Oct., 10am-2pm Wed.-Sun. July-early Sept., $5 over age 11) has engaging exhibits that tell the stories of Rangeley’s many sporting luminaries, including Fly-Rod Crosby; fly-tier Carrie Stevens; taxidermist, painter, and angler Herb Welch; and boatbuilder Herbie Ellis. You enter through a reconstructed 1890 log cabin, which sets the tone. An expansion in 2012 added more exhibits. This museum is a community treasure, and locals and summer residents are helping it grow its collections with finds from their attics. Don’t miss it. As a five-year-old remarked when I visited, “This museum is so cool.”
Controversial Austrian-born psychoanalyst and natural scientist Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957), noted expert on sexual energy, chose Rangeley for his residence and research. Hour-long guided tours of the Wilhelm Reich Museum (Dodge Pond Rd., Rangeley, 207/864-3443, www.wilhelmreichtrust.org, 1pm-5pm Wed.-Sun. July-Aug., 1pm-5pm Sat. Sept., $6 adults, free under age 13), his handsome fieldstone mansion, include a slide presentation covering Reich’s life, eccentric philosophy, experiments, and inventions such as the orgone accumulator and the cloudbuster. Reich is buried on the estate grounds. Views are spectacular from the roof of the museum, also known as Orgonon, so bring binoculars and a camera. A nature-trail system, including a bird blind, winds through the wooded acreage. The museum hosts free outdoor-oriented natural-science programs 2pm-4pm Sunday.
While most visitors reach Rangeley via Route 4 from the Farmington area, another popular route is Route 17 from the Rumford-Mexico area. When you reach Byron on the Swift River, you enter the 35-mile Rangeley Lakes Scenic Byway, stretching from Byron north to Oquossoc and then southward down Route 4 through Rangeley to Madrid. The label is unquestionably deserved, especially in autumn when the vibrant colors are unforgettable. The two-lane road winds through the rural woods of western Maine, opening up periodically to reveal stunning views of lakes, streams, forested hillsides, and the Swift River. You might even see a moose. Highlights are two signposted viewpoints—Height of Land and the Rangeley Scenic Overlook—surveying Mooselookmeguntic and Rangeley Lakes, respectively. Height of Land, 11 miles south of Oquossoc, adjoins the Appalachian Trail. An easy Conservation Walk, highlighting the natural beauty, is expected to be completed by 2014.
On the grounds of the three-story Rangeley Lakes Region Logging Museum (Rte. 16, Rangeley, 207/864-5595, www.rlrlm.org, 11am-5pm Wed.-Sun. July-early Sept. or by appointment) is an eclectic assortment of lumberjack paraphernalia, artifacts, and samples of traditional artwork created in the camps. Call first; I’ve found it closed even during posted open hours.
Every year on the last Friday-Saturday in July, the museum sponsors Logging Festival Days, complete with beanhole beans, music, and a woodsmen’s competition.
Spanning the Magalloway River beneath Aziscohos Mountain, the 93-foot-long, Paddleford truss-type Bennett Covered Bridge, built in 1901 and closed to traffic in 1985, sees far fewer visitors than most of Maine’s eight other covered bridges. The setting, in the hamlet of Wilsons Mills, makes for great photos, so it’s worth detouring on the unpaved road next to the Aziscohos Valley Camping Area, 0.3 mile west of Route 16 and 28 miles west of Rangeley.
The Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad (Mill Hill Rd., Phillips, 207/788-3621, www.srrl-rr.org) dates to 1879, when the first section was constructed to connect northern Franklin County with Farmington, the terminus of the Maine Central Railroad. Since 1969, volunteers have been working to restore and reopen a section of the original two-foot narrow gauge track. Visit the small shop and station, then board a restored 1884 passenger car for the quick ride to the museum and roundhouse. The round-trip excursion takes about 50 minutes. The train operates June-mid-October on an erratic schedule. Fares are $6 adults, $1 ages 6-12. Call or check the website for current season info and schedule; even then, it’s dependent on the availability of equipment and operators. Rail fans might also want to check out the Railroad Room of the nearby Phillips Historical Society (Main St., Phillips). It’s open 1pm-3pm on the first and third Sunday June-early October.
The highlight of the Rangeley Lakes Scenic Byway is the Height of Land viewpoint.
Do-it-yourself moose-spotting is a favorite pastime in this area. The likelihood of spotting one of these gangly critters can be quite high, if conditions are ripe. Route 16 between Rangeley and Stratton is well known as “moose alley,” especially in the boggy areas close to the road. Sunrise and sunset are the best times for sighting moose. Keep your camera handy, and drive slowly; no one wins in a moose-car collision, and fatal accidents are not uncommon on this unlighted stretch.
The best way to put the region in perspective is from the air. Acadian Seaplanes (2640 Main St., 207/252-6630, www.acadianseaplanes.com) offers tours of the Rangeley region via floatplane (beginning at $65 pp for 15 minutes). Also available are moose-spotting tours ($184 pp) and Fly & Dine trips ($300/couple plus meal costs) to a remote sporting camp for dinner.
The great outdoors is the Rangeley region’s biggest source of entertainment, but there are some options for rainy days and evening fun.
Rangeley Friends of the Arts (RFA, 207/864-2958, www.rangeleyarts.com) is a local cultural organization that promotes the arts in the region through concerts, events, scholarships, and school programs.
Once a week, avid readers gather for a book discussion hosted by Books, Lines & Thinkers (Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-4355). Call the shop for details.
Lakeside Theater (2493 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-5000) screens major films year-round (weekends only off-season). On Sunday nights during summer, independent films are shown.
Hungry for a good time? Check out Moose Alley (2809 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-9955), with a 10-lane bowling alley, an arcade, a billiards room, live music on Friday and Saturday nights, sporting events on 22 HD screens, and a menu heavy on sandwiches, salads, burgers, and pizza ($6-8). On winter weekends, there’s frequently après-ski entertainment at Saddleback.
Hardly a day goes by in July-August without something scheduled. At other times, events are less frequent.
Avid snowmobilers shouldn’t miss the annual January Snodeo. Events at the family-oriented festival include competitions, food, games, an auction, raffles, live entertainment, radar runs, children’s events, a snowmobile parade, antique snowmobile displays, fireworks, and more.
The last weekend in July, Logging Museum Festival Days includes a parade, a beanhole bean supper, lumberjack events, and the Little Miss Woodchip contest. It’s held on the Rangeley Logging Museum grounds on Route 16.
The juried Arts in August festival takes place in Lakeside Park. Downtown Rangeley comes alive the third Thursday in August for the Annual Blueberry Festival, a daylong celebration of the blueberry harvest, with sales of everything blueberry.
Held the first Saturday in October, the Logging Museum Apple Festival is a daylong apple-themed celebration that includes cider pressing. It’s held on the Rangeley Logging Museum grounds on Route 16.
The new-book selection is distinguished at Books, Lines & Thinkers (Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-4355, bltbooks@rangeley.org) thanks to owner Wess Connally, a former high school English teacher in Rangeley. The small user-friendly shop has lots of great reading; trust me, you won’t leave empty-handed. Wess organizes and leads a book-discussion group year-round, and visitors are welcome.
Ecopelagicon: A Nature Store (3 Pond St., Rangeley, 207/864-2771) emphasizes eco-oriented gifts, books, toys, games, and cosmetics.
The flavors of the lakes and woods are captured at The Gallery at Stony Batter (Rte. 4, Oquossoc, 207/864-3373), which sells regionally themed artwork, furnishings, and antiques, from moose merchandise to fine art.
With 1.2 miles of lake frontage and panoramic views toward the mountains, 869-acre Rangeley Lake State Park (S. Shore Dr., Rangeley, 207/864-3858, www.parksandlands.com, $4.50 nonresident adults, $3 Maine resident adults, $1.50 ages 5-11 and nonresident seniors, free for Maine seniors) gets high marks for picnicking, swimming, fishing, birding, boating, and camping. The swimming “beach” is a large patch of grass. None of the 50 campsites is at water’s edge, but a dozen have easy shore access. (For camping reservations, visit www.campwithme.com; from out of state call 207/287-3824 at least two business days in advance—MasterCard and Visa only. Maine residents call 800/332-1501.) If you’re doing any boating, stay close to shore until you’re comfortable with the wind conditions; the wind picks up very quickly on Rangeley Lake, especially in the south and southeast coves near the park. Camping is $25/site nonresidents, $15 for Maine residents, plus $2/site/night for a reservation; there are no hookups, but there are hot showers. The park, four miles off Route 17, is open mid-May-September, but it’s accessible in the winter for cross-country skiing and snowmobiling.
In downtown Rangeley, overlooking both lake and mountains, lovely, grassy Lakeside Park has a tiny beach and a safe swim area, grills and covered picnic tables, tennis courts, a playground with plenty of swings, lots of lawn for running, and a busy boat-launching ramp. Restrooms are open when a lifeguard is on duty. Access is from Main Street (Rte. 4) near the Parkside and Main Restaurant and the chamber of commerce office.
One of Maine’s most accessible cascades, Smalls’ Falls is right next to Route 4 at a state rest area 12 miles south of Rangeley. Pull into the parking area and walk a few steps to the overlook. Bring a picnic. Locals love to swim in the pools between the falls. For more of a challenge, ascend a bit farther to Chandler’s Mill Stream Falls. The rest area is officially open mid-May-October, but it’s easy to park alongside the highway early and late in the season.
Since its founding in 1991, Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust (RLHT, Rte. 4, Oquossoc, 207/864-7311, www.rlht.org) has preserved more than 12,800 acres, including 45 miles of water frontage, 15 islands, and Bald Mountain. Trail maps can be printed from the website.
Loons, ducks, and other waterfowl are the principal residents of RLHT’s Hunter Cove Wildlife Sanctuary. While walking the three miles of easy blazed trails, best covered in a clockwise direction, keep an eye out for the blue flag iris, which blossoms throughout the summer. You may even spot a moose. If you launch a canoe into Hunter Cove and paddle under the Mingo Loop Road bridge early in the season, you’ll come face-to-face with nesting cliff swallows. To reach the sanctuary, take Route 4 west of downtown Rangeley for about 2.5 miles, turning left into the preserve across the road from Dodge Pond. It’s signposted. The preserve is open sunrise-sunset daily, and admission is free.
Hiking opportunities in this region are plentiful, and indeed there are numerous hiking guidebooks that provide details on more serious endeavors. Here’s a sampling of a few hikes that reap big rewards for basic efforts. Wear appropriate footwear and carry water, snacks or lunch, and bug repellent.
Centerpiece of a 1,953-acre parcel of Maine Public Reserve Land, Bald Mountain is a relatively easy two-hour round-trip hike that ascends less than 1,000 feet, yet the minimal effort leads to stunning views of Rangeley, Cupsuptic, and Mooselookmeguntic Lakes—not to mention the surrounding mountains. Even three-year-olds can tackle this without terrifying their parents. Pack a picnic. The trailhead is on Bald Mountain Road in Oquossoc, about a mile south of Route 4 and roughly across from the entrance to Bald Mountain Camps. Park well off the road.
Dropping 90 feet straight down, dramatic Angel Falls is one of New England’s highest cascades, reached after a fairly short easy-to-moderate hike. Even in midsummer, you’ll be fording running water, so wear rubberized or waterproof shoes or boots. The best time to come is autumn, when most of the rivulets have dried up and the woods are brilliantly colorful. Allow 1-1.5 hours for the 1.4-mile round-trip hike. The trail is mostly red-blazed, with the addition of orange strips tied at crucial points. From Oquossoc, take Route 17 south 17.9 miles to the unpaved Houghton Road, on the right. Follow the road to a T intersection, then turn right on Bemis Road for another 3.4 miles. Park on the left before the trailhead marker. This is a popular hike, so you should see other cars. The trail leads off to the left.
A distinctive landmark on the western slope of Saddleback Mountain, Piazza Rock is a giant cantilevered boulder 600 feet off the Appalachian Trail (AT). The hike up is easy to moderate, not a cakewalk but fine for families, along the white-blazed AT from Route 4. From downtown Rangeley, go seven miles southeast on Route 4 and park in the lot on the south side of the highway. Piazza Rock is 1.2 miles northeast of the highway.
If you continue on the AT from Piazza Rock, it’s another four miles to the summit of 4,116-foot Saddleback Mountain, but most hikers take the shorter route up the mountain from the ski area’s Base Lodge. To get there from Rangeley, go south on Route 4 to Dallas Hill Road and then go 2.5 miles to Saddleback Mountain Road. From the lodge, follow the orange trail markers. Expect a stiff breeze and 360-degree vistas. A trail map is available at the lodge.
A 16-foot cascade, a 2,000-foot gorge, and well-placed picnic tables are the rewards for this short but sometimes steep trail. Allow about 30 minutes for the one-mile round white-blazed trail without stops. From downtown Rangeley, head south 3.5 miles on Route 4, turning left on Cascade Road, left on Town Hall Road, then right up a steep drive, bearing right again into the parking area.
Other excellent hikes west and north of Rangeley are Aziscohos Mountain and West Kennebago Mountain. Both are easy to moderate, have terrific views from their summits, and require 3-4 hours round-trip from their trailheads. West Kennebago has a fire tower.
In August 2012, the first 20 miles of the Fly Rod Crosby Trail opened. Eventually, the trail, named for Maine’s first registered guide, Cornelia “Fly Rod” Crosby, will stretch 45 miles from Strong to Oquossoc. The first section begins at Phillips and continues northwest through Madrid and Sandy River Plantation, first following an abandoned railroad bed and then veering into the backcountry before ending at Saddleback Mountain. The sections from Strong to Phillips and continuing from Saddleback to Oquossoc are under development. The trail is being developed by the nonprofit High Peaks Alliance (www.highpeaksalliance.org); find a trail map on the website with directions to current trailheads.
Cruise the waters of Rangeley Lake aboard the 1947 antique launch Oquossoc Lady with Rangeley Region Lake Cruises (207/864-2038, www.rangeleylakecruises.com). Most cruises last one hour and cost $25 adults, $10 under age 11.
The Rangeley Lakes area earned its vaunted reputation for world-class fishing. Diehard anglers will always show up in May-early June, lured by landlocked salmon and brook trout. The region boasts of being the birthplace of contemporary fly-fishing, and indeed many famous flies originated here. The best fly-fishing correlates with the waves of fly hatches late May-early July. Both the Kennebago River and Upper Dam on Mooselookmeguntic Lake are hot spots for fly-fishing. If you’re very serious about fishing, arrange to be flown into a wilderness pond.
The best local source of information on fly-fishing is Rangeley Region Sport Shop (2529 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-5615, www.rangeleysportshop.com), where the enthusiastic owners will get you outfitted, point you in the right direction, or help you find a guide.
Canoeing and kayaking are splendid throughout this region. Be forewarned, though, that Rangeley and Mooselookmeguntic Lakes are much larger than they look, and they have wide-open expanses where fluky winds can kick up suddenly and mightily and swamp boats. Fatalities have occurred in just such circumstances. Check on wind conditions before you head out. Do not take chances.
If you’re looking for pristine waters where motorboats are banned, opt for Saddleback Lake, Loon Lake, Little Kennebago Lake, or Quimby Pond, all fairly close to Rangeley.
Choices for canoeing near Rangeley are Rangeley Lake (especially around Hunter Cove), the Cupsuptic River, the lower Kennebago River, and Mooselookmeguntic Lake. Slightly farther afield are Upper and Lower Richardson Lakes, both wonderfully scenic, as is Umbagog Lake (um-BAY-gog), straddling the Maine-New Hampshire border. The Cupsuptic, Kennebago, and Magalloway Rivers are all easy Class I waters. The Rangeley Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce has produced a suggested canoeing itinerary for the Rangeley Lakes chain, including information about wilderness campsites en route. Some of the campsites require reservations and fire permits.
Besides being a fishing-gear supplier and a place that has camping and hunting gear as well as water toys, outdoor clothing, and unique gifts, River’s Edge Sports (Rte. 4, Oquossoc, 207/864-5582, www.riversedgesports.com) also rents canoes and kayaks. Rates start at $25/day or $125/week. For $45, including canoe rental, River’s Edge will shuttle you and the canoe up the Kennebago River to the start of an idyllic 2-3-hour downstream paddle to Route 16 and your car; go at sunrise for the best chance of spotting a moose.
Ecopelagicon (7 Pond St., Rangeley, 207/864-2771, www.ecopelagicon.com) rents kayaks for use on Haley Pond for a short paddle or to take to your camp. Single kayaks rent for $32/day, $25/half day, or $12/hour; doubles are $36, $28, and $15. Long-term rates are available. Delivery and pickup are available for a fee. Mookwa at Ecopelagicon offers guided kayak tours beginning at 8am on most Thursdays. Each week’s trip visits a different waterway. The four-hour, half-day tours are $65-75 pp with a snack; full-day tours are $85 pp with lunch. Minimum age is 12. By the way, mookwa is a Cree word for loon.
Of course, the easiest way to explore these massive lakes is by motorboat. Most lakes have public access points, but these may be busy. Put-ins for Rangeley Lake include the state park, Lakeside Park, and off Route 4 in Oquossoc. The best one for Mooselookmeguntic is Haines Landing, at the end of Route 4. There’s another ramp off Route 16 west, approximately four miles from the intersection with Route 4. Also off Route 16 is the Mill Brook access for Lake Richardson and the Black Cove Campground access for Aziscohos (be careful, as it’s extremely shallow in places). Maine has strict rules about boating. For information, contact the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (www.maine.gov/ifw) or a local outfitter.
The best place to rent a sturdy motorboat is Saddleback Marina (Rte. 4, Oquossoc, 207/864-3463, www.saddlebacksummer.com). Prices begin at $160/day; half-day rates begin at $100; hourly rental is $35; gas and oil are extra. Restroom and picnic facilities are available.
In downtown Rangeley, the multiuse Railroad Trail Loop begins on Depot Street. The 12.5-mile circuit travels over mixed terrain, including paved and unpaved roads and an abandoned railroad bed, and has some steep sections.
The Rangeley Lakes Trails Center (524 Saddleback Mountain Rd., 207/864-4309) has seven miles of trails on lower Saddleback Mountain; two are easy, and the rest cater to advanced cyclists.
Rent mountain bikes from River’s Edge Sports (Rte. 4, Oquossoc, 207/864-5582, www.riversedgesports.com) for $25/day or $125/week.
Noted golfers have been teeing off at Mingo Springs Golf Course (Country Club Rd., Rangeley, 207/864-5021) since 1925, when the course started with nine holes. Today’s 18-hole, par-70 course boasts panoramic vistas of lakes and mountains—and sometimes an annoying breeze. Golf-and-lodging packages are available at the adjacent Country Club Inn.
“Gold bought, sold, and lied about here” proclaims the sign outside Coos Canyon Rock and Gift Shop (472 Swift River Rd., Byron, 207/364-4900, www.cooscanyonrockandgift.com), a family operation since 1956. Check out the exhibits of some of the nuggets found in the Swift River and then rent equipment and try it yourself. A pan and trowel for use on-site are free, with a $5 deposit. Off-site use is $2/day for a pan and screen, $1 for a trowel, or $15 for a fancier sluice box ($85 deposit). It’s a relatively inexpensive lesson in patience.
Saddleback (207/864-5671 or 866/918-2225, www.saddlebackmaine.com) is the yin to nearby Sugarloaf’s yang. Although it deserves its reputation as a low-key, wallet-friendly, family-oriented area, it’s beginning to be discovered. This is big-mountain skiing, with a 2,000-foot vertical drop off a 4,116-foot summit laced with classic New England narrow and winding trails and some of the East’s best gladed terrain. The base area has a full-service lodge with food service, condominiums, equipment rentals, day care, and snowsports school.
The volunteer-operated nonprofit Rangeley Lakes Cross Country Ski Club (524 Saddleback Mountain Rd., 207/864-4309, www.xcskirangeley.com) operates the Rangeley Lakes Trails Center, with 55 km of mapped trails lacing through the Saddleback preserve on lower Saddleback Mountain. Maps are available at the center, where a yurt serves as the lodge. Trails are open 9am-4pm daily. Full-day trail passes are $18 adults, $10 ages 7-18.
The summer nature trails at Orgonon, the Wilhelm Reich Museum (207/864-3443), west of downtown Rangeley, are accessible for free cross-country skiing or snowshoeing 9am-4pm weekdays.
For cross-country ski or snowshoe rentals, visit The Alpine Shop (2504 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-3741).
A local skating club maintains an ice rink on Haley Pond. Free skate rentals are available from Ecopelagicon (3 Pond St., Rangeley, 207/864-2771). Haley Pond is also home to a winter pond hockey tournament in February.
Snowmobiling is big business in Rangeley, and in winter most accommodations and lodgings cater to it. The Rangeley area, linked to the state’s Interconnected Trail System (ITS) via ITS 84, 89, and 117, has its own well-marked 150-mile groomed network thanks to the diligent efforts of the local Rangeley Lakes Snowmobile Club (www.rangeleysnowmobile.com). A family club membership is $45; individual membership is $30. Club gatherings and events are a good way to get the local scoop. The club also operates a conditions hotline (207/864-7336). Popular rides include a 65-mile lake loop; all or part of the 300-mile Black Fly Loop, which circles through Franklin and Somerset Counties; Kennebago Mountain; and even into Canada on the 12,500-mile international circuit. There are no local trail fees, but support at local fundraisers is appreciated.
Rental sleds are available from Camp Do What You Wanna (2419 Main St., Rangeley, 207-864-3000, www.campdowhatyouwanna.com, from $200 half-day).
Next to the stunning Mingo Springs Golf Course, the Country Club Inn (56 Country Club Rd., Rangeley, 207/864-3831, www.countryclubinnrangeley.com, mid-May-mid-Oct. and late Dec.-Mar.) claims the same fabulous lake-and-mountain panorama as the golf course. Nineteen 1960s-style lake-view guest rooms are $143 with breakfast, $218 with breakfast and dinner, or $125 room only; ask about golf packages. Decor is classic lodge: two huge fireplaces in the living room accented by wildlife trophies, lots of pine paneling everywhere. There are no in-room TVs or phones. The inn is superbly maintained and run, and there’s an outdoor pool. Pets are $10/night. The inn is 2.2 miles west of downtown Rangeley.
Owner Travis Ferland acquired the venerable Rangeley Inn (2443 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-3341, www.therangeleyinn.com, $109-165) in 2013 and began updating the rambling, downtown Victorian-era hotel to restore its former glory. Rooms in the main inn retain Victorian charm, those in pet-friendly ($15/night) Haley Pond Lodge have mini-fridges and pond views. All rooms are being updated with flat-screen TVs and Wi-Fi; some rooms have whirlpools and/or fireplaces or woodstoves. The main building also houses a restaurant serving contemporary pub-style fare. Guests have free use of kayaks on Haley Pond. The main building houses a tavern (5-9pm Thurs.-Mon., $10-18) serving contemporary pub fare such as a cubano sandwich, seared duck breast, and gnocchi.
Completely renovated in 2007, the Rangeley Saddleback Inn (2303 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-3434, www.rangeleysaddlebackinn.com, from $135) is a family pleaser thanks to an indoor pool and jetted tub, on-site restaurant and pub, in-room TVs, microwaves, and mini-fridges, and four pet-friendly guest rooms.
The sunset views over Rangeley Lake are sigh-worthy from Loon Lodge (16 Pickford Rd., Rangeley, 207/864-5666, www.loonlodgeme.com, $85-150), which also houses a popular restaurant and pub. Beyond the back deck, the lawn rolls down to the lake, so you can wake with a morning swim. Some guest rooms are small with shared baths; the nicest are huge, have private baths, and have access to the back lawns. Although the inn has a restaurant and lounge open most nights for dinner, you’ll have to go into town for breakfast.
On a quiet hillside less than half a mile from downtown, Rob Welch, a retired principal, and his wife, Jan, a schoolteacher, are the enthusiastic hosts at M Pleasant Street Inn B&B (104 Pleasant St., Rangeley, 207/864-5916, www.pleasantstreetinnbb.com, $145-175). The Welches have completely renovated and expanded a traditional Maine farmhouse to include five good-size guest rooms, all with Wi-Fi and satellite TV, two with whirlpool tubs. It’s bright, airy, and comfy. Guests have plenty of room to spread out in the guest parlor with a TV, spacious living room, and dining area, where a full breakfast is served. Guests also have access to a pantry stocked with afternoon refreshments as well as a guest computer. The inn is on the in-town snowmobile route, and there’s plenty of parking for snowmobile trailers. Children younger than 12 and pets are not allowed. In the winter, you can watch Rob feed the deer in the backyard.
Right downtown, with views over Rangeley Lake, is the North Country Inn B&B (2541 Main St., Rangeley, 800/295-4968, www.northcountrybb.com, $99-149). The two front guest rooms have the best views, but the two in back are quieter. All have queen beds and cable TV. The front porch is an inviting place to relax and watch the parade and fireworks during special events. Rates include Wi-Fi and a full breakfast.
Rangeley still too bustling for you? Buddy and Jeanne Conroy offer three cozy rooms at The Conroy House Bed and Breakfast (82 Dodge Rd., Phillips, 207/639-3000, www.conroyhouse.com, $75), in the very quiet town of Phillips. Breakfast is a treat.
On a quiet cove about four miles west of town, Hunter Cove on Rangeley Lake (office 334 Mingo Loop Rd., cabins Hunter Cove Rd., Rangeley, 207/864-3383, www.huntercove.com) has eight rustically modern well-equipped waterfront cabins on six acres. Each has one or two bedrooms, a screened porch, a woodstove, a phone, and a TV. Rates are $160-220 nightly or $1,000-1,250/week. Rates cover up to four people; pets are $10/day. It’s open year-round, with lower rates off-season and midweek. From here, it’s an easy paddle to the western edge of the Hunter Cove Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mingo Springs Golf Course is nearby.
Far more remote is Nioban Camps (South Shore Dr., Rangeley, 207/864-2549, www.niboban.com). Although the sporting camp is historical, the original cottages were replaced in 2001 with nice two-bedroom lakefront cabins, each with a screened porch and a well-equipped kitchen. Table tennis, a phone, a TV, and games are available in the main lodge. Moose and deer sightings are frequent; beavers and ducks swim along the shore; and eagles fly overhead. The camps are open year-round for snowmobiling, snowshoeing, and skiing. Rates are $950/week June-August. In May and September-March, cabins are available with a two-night minimum stay for $190-210/night. Pets are $10/day. A one-bedroom honeymoon cabin is $160/night or $700/week.
Stephen Philbrick is the third-generation owner of M Bald Mountain Camps (Bald Mountain Rd., Oquossoc, 207/864-3671, www.baldmountaincamps.com), a family-oriented traditional sporting camp on the shore of Mooselookmeguntic Lake. Established in 1897, the superb operation has more than 90 percent repeat guests, some of whom have been returning since the 1930s. It’s tough to get a reservation, especially in peak summer. Fourteen recently winterized, rustic waterfront log cabins can accommodate 2-8 people. Cabins are furnished, each offering a private porch, a fireplace, a living room, individual bedrooms, full housekeeping services, a mini-fridge, a microwave, and porter service. Three meals a day are served daily during peak season in the lake-view lodge. A highlight is the Friday night cookout, with lobster, ribs, corn, steamed clams, and blueberry pancakes for dessert. The informal dining room is open to nonguests for dinner year-round (book well ahead) by reservation only. Among the activities are swimming at the sandy beach, fishing, tennis, boating, and waterskiing. There’s a playground for kids. May-October, meal-inclusive rates are $160-185/adult/day, $100-130/child ages 5-13; cottage rentals range $125 efficiency to $375 housekeeping per night or $650/$2,200/week. Winter rates, effective December-April, do not include meals and begin at $165/night. Pets are $15/day. Motorboat, canoe, kayak, pontoon boat, tube, and waterski rentals are available.
Grant’s Kennebago Camps (Kennebago Rd., Rangeley, 207/864-3608 or 800/633-4815, www.grantscamps.com, mid-May-mid-Oct.) is a classic sporting camp built in 1905 on remote five-mile-long Kennebago Lake. Expect to hear lots of loons and see plenty of moose—if you can get a reservation. Seriously dedicated fly-fishers fill up the beds in May and September; families take their places July-August (check the family packages). Daily rates for the 18 rustic cabins, with private baths and hot showers, are $135-170/adult, including three meals daily in the water-view dining room and use of boats and bikes mid-July-mid-Sept. Children ages 7-12 are $60/night; children under 6 are free. Pets are $15/night/pet. The main lodge’s lake-view dining room is open to nonguests for all meals by reservation, but the hearty cuisine makes it a popular place, so call well ahead; BYOB. Canoe, kayak, and motorboat rentals range $30-60/day. Grant’s arranges a daily moose run ($40 pp) on the Kennebago River July-August. (Nonguests can also go on the moose run for a higher fee.) Access to Grant’s is via a gated nine-mile road from Route 16, west of Rangeley. The gate is open 7am-6pm only; if you’re coming just for dinner, Grant’s will arrange for access.
Avid fly-fishers have been heading to Lakewood Camps (207/243-2959, www.lakewoodcamps.com, no credit cards) for more than 150 years. The lakefront cabins are by Middle Dam, which separates Lower Richardson Lake from the famed Rapid River, and are accessible only by boat. The cold and wild Rapid River, which falls nearly 1,100 feet in less than eight miles, is restricted to fly-fishing. Landlocked salmon and brook trout are found in both the lake and river, but the lake is also home to togue (lake trout). Much of this area is protected Maine Public Reserve Land. Walk the Carry Road, which parallels the river, and you’ll pass the home where Louise Dickinson Rich lived when she wrote We Took to the Woods. The daily rate ($165 pp, $120 ages 12-16, $70 ages 6-11) includes all meals and boat transportation as well as use of canoes and kayaks; row boats are $25; a motorboat with gas is $95. Guests stay in simple lakeside cabins that have Franklin fireplaces, generator-powered electricity, and full baths. Dogs are $22/night.
In addition to the nonprofit and commercial campgrounds described here, the Rangeley Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce maintains a list of no-fee and low-fee remote wilderness campsites throughout the Rangeley Lakes.
The Maine Forest Service (Rte. 16, Oquossoc, 207/864-5545), responsible for more than a dozen no-fee primitive campsites, will provide a copy of its list on request. The office also issues fire permits.
Here’s a find: The Stephen Phillips Memorial Preserve Trust (Oquossoc, 207/864-2003) oversees 60 primitive tent sites on both the east and west shores of Mooselookmeguntic Lake and on Students, Toothaker, and other islands, all part of a 400-acre charitable preserve that includes more than four miles of lakefront. Mainland sites are large and private; each has a fire ring, picnic table, and water access. Island sites and those on the west shore are accessible only by boat. Canoe rentals are available for $20/day. Nightly cost is $16/site for two people, teens or extra adults are $8, ages 6-12 are $5, dogs are $5 each. Two nature trails cross and circle Students Island.
At the southeast corner of Aziscohos Lake, Black Brook Cove Campground (Lincoln Pond Rd., Lincoln Plantation, 207/486-3828, www.blackbrookcove.com, from $25) provides three different kinds of camping experiences. The main campground has 30 tent and RV sites with hookups; the secluded east shore area has 26 wooded waterfront sites for small, self-contained units and tents. These wooded waterfront sites are 3.5 miles from the main campground and 100 feet from the water. Twenty-acre boat-accessible Beaver Island, out in the lake, has nine wilderness sites, and there are another seven wilderness sites around the lake. The remote sites include outhouses. The main campground facilities include coin-operated hot showers, a private beach, a convenience store, and rental boats and canoes.
The Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust owns and operates Cupsuptic Lake Park & Campground (Rte. 16, Oquossoc, 207/864-5249, www.cupsupticcampground.com). The lakefront campground has 42 RV sites with varied hookups, 23 tent sites, 4 fully equipped cabin tents, and 6 day-use sites. Options include wilderness, island, and wooded sites, with rates beginning at $24. Rental boats are available, and dogs are permitted ($3/day). Also on-site are a recreation hall, a sandy beach, rental boat slips, and Wi-Fi hotspots. Plan to stay on a Friday night for the baked beans.
The Morton and Furbish Agency (207/864-5777 or 888/218-4882, www.rangeleyrentals.com) has a wide selection of daily, weekly, and monthly rental cottages, camps, houses, and condos for winter and summer use. The chamber of commerce can also assist with seasonal rentals.
Check the local newspaper for announcements of public suppers, featuring chicken, beans, spaghetti, or just potluck. Most suppers benefit charitable causes, cost under $10 pp, and provide an ample supply of local color.
While bagels are the specialty at Moosely Bagels (2588 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-5955), there’s plenty more on the menu. For breakfast, choose from a full range of baked goods and simple to fanciful egg concoctions; lunch options include sandwiches, wraps, soups, and hot specials. There’s seating inside or on the back, lake-view deck.
“Meet me at the Frosty” is Rangeley’s summertime one-liner, a ritual for locals and visitors alike. Pine Tree Frosty (Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-5894), a tiny takeout near Haley Pond and the Rangeley Inn, serves ever-popular Gifford’s ice cream in dozens of flavors along with good-size lobster rolls and superb onion rings.
Far more than the usual produce is available at The Farmer’s Wife (Rte. 17 and Rangeley Ave., Oquossoc, 207/863-2492), a farm stand that also sells gourmet foods, fresh-baked breads and pies, salads, and wine. Nearby Oquossoc Grocery (Rte. 4, Oquossoc, 207/864-3662) has fresh-baked doughnuts, hot and cold sandwiches, and pizza.
Watch the game while chowing good burgers, nachos, hand-cut fries, and similar fare at ever-popular Sarge’s Sports Pub and Grub (Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-5616, from 11am daily). More substantial entrées ($10-17) are served after 5pm, and there’s even a kids’ menu, although this place has more of a bar atmosphere. Weekends there’s often live entertainment.
Several sporting camps in the Rangeley area open their dining rooms to nonguests, primarily for dinner, during the summer. Grab the opportunity to sample the sporting-camp ambience and the retro comfort food that brings guests back from one generation to the next.
A notable exception to the retro comfort-food theme is the lakefront restaurant at Bald Mountain Camps (Bald Mountain Rd., Oquossoc, 207/864-3671, www.baldmountaincamps.com). Choose from sandwiches and burgers ($12-16) or entrées such as white fish or rib eye ($12-30). Especially popular is the Friday night cookout, with lobster, spare ribs, chicken, burgers, dogs, and all the go-withs. Make reservations well in advance, and aim for sunset.
The Red Onion (Main St./Rte. 4, Rangeley, 207/864-5022, $10-20) is a barn of a place where you can also get award-winning chili and pizza made on homemade dough. Portions are large. The Onion is open 11am-9:30pm daily year-round, unless, as the staff say, “High winds, low humidity, and plain laziness” inspire them to close the doors.
Try to snag a table on the deck overlooking the park and lake at Parkside and Main (2520 Main St./Rte. 4, Rangeley, 207/864-3774, 11:30am-11pm daily, $8-22). The menu varies from burgers to steak; stick with the homemade soups and salads or simpler preparations, and don’t miss the homemade blue cheese dressing. In summer there’s often entertainment on the deck.
Tall Tales Tavern (207/864-9737, from 11am daily, $8-20), a local favorite, is an offshoot of a meat, fish, and lobster market and a farm market, so everything’s very fresh.
Huge windows frame dramatic views of Rangeley Lake from the dining room of the hilltop M Country Club Inn (56 Country Club Rd., Rangeley, www.countryclubinnrangeley.com, dinner 6pm-8pm Wed.-Sun., $10-32). White tablecloths drape the well-spaced tables, and the food complements the view. Entrées range from a portobello burger to roast duck. If the weather’s fine, begin with cocktails on the deck overlooking the lake. The restaurant is open to nonguests by reservation for dinner, but tables for nonguests can be scarce when the inn is fully booked. Call well ahead, especially for summer weekends. In winter, the dining room is open Friday-Saturday.
Cozy and inviting, Forks in the Air Mountain Bistro (2485 Main St., Rangeley, 207/864-2883, www.forksintheair.com, 4pm-9pm Sun.-Thurs., 4pm-10pm Fri.-Sat.) serves small and large plates ($7-28) that may include flatbreads, baked Atlantic haddock, or grilled pork tenderloin.
The sunset view over Rangeley Lake with the White Mountains as a backdrop is reason alone to reserve a table at Loon Lodge (16 Pickford Rd., Rangeley, 207/864-5666, www.loonlodgeme.com, 5pm-9pm Tues.-Sat., $22-31), where the restaurant menu might include lobster ravioli Florentine or country cassoulet. Or settle into the pub, and dine off either the restaurant or pub menu ($10-12).
The Rangeley Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce (Lakeside Park, Rangeley, 207/864-5364 or 800/685-2537, www.rangeleymaine.com) produces annual guides to lodgings and services; the useful Maine’s Rangeley Lakes Map costs $4. Public restrooms are located in a building adjacent to the chamber.
The Rangeley Public Library (7 Lake St., Rangeley, 207/864-5529, www.rangeleylibrary.com) is housed in a wonderful old stone building just off Main Street.
Rangeley is roughly 42 miles or one hour from Kingfield via Routes 27 and 16. It’s about 65 miles or 1.5 hours to Bethel via Routes 17 and 2.
Bethel (pop. 2,607) is a sleeper. It’s a classic New England village tucked in the folds of the White Mountains. White-steepled churches, an ivy-covered brick prep school (Gould Academy), lovely antique homes, a main street dotted with shops and restaurants, and a sprawling inn on the common are all easily explored on foot. Six miles away, Sunday River, one of New England’s hottest alpine resorts, draws skiers and snowboarders to its modern slopes and lodges. The Ellis, Bear, and Androscoggin Rivers wind through the region, and in the river valleys are two covered bridges, a handful of ponds, and many working farms. Framing the region on two sides are two spectacular notches, Evans Notch, part of the White Mountain National Forest, and Grafton Notch, a state park, as well as the city of Rumford (pop. 5,841), a paper-manufacturing center whose favorite son was former Secretary of State Edmund Muskie. Rumford Point, Center Rumford, and Hanover (pop. 238) are don’t-blink villages and towns between Rumford and Bethel, and each has its calling cards.
Thanks to Sunday River, winter is peak season here. In addition to skiing and riding, there’s snowshoeing, snowmobiling, dogsledding, skijoring, ice skating, ice fishing, even ice climbing. Spring brings canoeists and anglers. Summer is lovely, with hiking for all abilities, biking, boating, fishing, rockhounding in local quarries, golfing, even llama trekking.
Autumn is still surprisingly undiscovered. It’s perhaps the region’s prettiest season, when visitors can take advantage of all the summer activities and do so under a canopy of blazing crimson, gold, and orange backed by deep evergreen.
But let’s back up a bit. Bethel’s “modern” history dates from 1774, when settlers from Sudbury, Massachusetts, called it Sudbury Canada, a name reflected in the annual August Sudbury Canada Days festival. Another present-day festival, Mollyockett Day, commemorates one of the area’s most intriguing historical figures, a Pequawket Indian woman named Mollyockett. She practiced herbal medicine among turn-of-the-19th-century settlers, including a baby named Hannibal Hamlin. Her remedies proved effective in snatching Abraham Lincoln’s future vice president from death in 1809. (The incident actually occurred in the Hamlin home on Paris Hill, southeast of Bethel.) Mollyockett died August 2, 1816, and is buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery on Route 5 in Andover.
Meanwhile, the name Bethel surfaced in 1796, when the town was incorporated. Agriculture sustained the community for another half century, until the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad in 1851 connected Bethel to Portland (and later to Montreal) and access to major markets shifted the economic focus toward timber and wood products, which remain significant even today.
North of Bethel, Andover (pop. 821) has become a word-of-mouth favorite among through-hikers and section hikers on the Appalachian Trail (AT), which snakes by about eight miles to the west. It’s Maine’s southernmost town near the AT, and the hikers pile into Andover for a break in August-September after negotiating the Mahoosuc Range, one of the AT’s toughest sections.
East of Bethel are the tiny communities of Locke Mills (officially in the town of Greenwood, pop. 830) and Bryant Pond (in the town of Woodstock, pop. 1,277), both with summer and winter recreational attractions.
When the Maine Mineral and Gem Museum (57 Main St. Bethel, 207/824-3036, www.mainemineralgemmuseum.org) opens in late 2014, organizers promise it will showcase one of the world’s most extensive collections, exhibits, and archival documents relating to Maine mining, minerals, and gems. In addition, meteorite, fossils, and other minerals will be displayed and explained. Tours of area mines will be available. Call or check the website for its current status.
Often called the Artist’s Covered Bridge because so many artists have committed it to canvas, an 1872 wooden structure stands alongside a quiet country road north of the Sunday River Ski Resort. Kids love running back and forth across the disused bridge, and in summer they can swim below it in the Sunday River. The bridge is 5.7 miles northwest of Bethel; take Route 2 toward Newry, turn left at the Sunday River Road, and then bear right at the fork. The bridge is well signposted, just beyond a small cemetery.
The Artist’s Covered Bridge crosses the usually sleepy Sunday River in Newry.
About 20 miles north of Bethel in South Andover, the Lovejoy Bridge, built in 1867, is one of the lesser-visited of Maine’s nine covered bridges. It’s also the shortest. Spanning the Ellis River, a tributary of the Androscoggin, the 70-foot-long bridge is 0.25 mile east of Route 5 but not visible from the highway; it’s about 7.5 miles north of Rumford Point. In summer, local kids use the swimming hole just below the bridge.
The Bethel Historical Society (Bethel Common, 14 Broad St., Bethel, 207/824-2908, www.bethelhistorical.org) maintains two downtown properties. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the 1813 Federal-style Dr. Moses Mason House (1pm-4pm Tues.-Sat. July-Aug. or by appointment, $3 adults, $1.50 ages 6-12, $7/family) is a beautifully restored eight-room museum. Particularly significant in the museum are the hall murals painted by noted itinerant muralist Rufus Porter or his nephew Jonathan Poor. Dr. Moses Mason, a local physician, was elected to Congress a dozen years after Maine achieved statehood and served two terms as a Maine congressman. The Mason House is adjacent to the 1821 O’Neil Robinson House (10am-4pm Tues.-Fri. year-round and 1pm-4pm Sat. July-Aug., donation), which has exhibit galleries and a small museum shop.
Bethel Historical Society interns and volunteers lead free Guided One-Hour Walking Tours of Bethel Hill at 10am Saturday early July-late August. The tour departs from the bell tower on the north end of the common. Or do it yourself, armed with the society’s free Walking Tour of Bethel Hill Village brochure, available from the society or chamber of commerce. It provides detailed information on 29 buildings and monuments in the downtown area’s Historic District. Officially, more than 60 structures are included in the district. Allow an hour to appreciate the 19th- and 20th-century architecture that gives real cachet to Bethel’s heart.
The Mahoosuc Arts Council (MAC, 207/824-3575, www.mahoosucarts.org) sponsors more than a dozen performances throughout the year, plus about a dozen art residencies and other cultural events in local schools.
Free concerts take place every Sunday in August at 4pm on the Bethel Common; rain location is Bingham Auditorium, 45 Church St.
At Sunday River Ski Resort there’s live entertainment in several locations weekends and during school vacations. The resort also runs the Black Diamond Family Entertainment series, with performances such as vaudeville, marionettes, storytelling, and circus acts.
The hot spots for après-ski into the night are the Foggy Goggle at Sunday River; The Matterhorn (Sunday River Access Rd., 207/824-6836, www.matterhornskibar.com), a classic ski bar accented with cool alpine memorabilia and featuring live weekend entertainment; Suds Pub (207/824-6558, www.thesudburyinn.com) at the Sudbury Inn, where Hoot Night has been an open-mic tradition on Thursday since 1987; and The Jolly Drayman (Rte. 2, 207/824-4717, www.briarleainn.com), which attracts an older clientele who appreciate its English pub style.
In mid-June the annual three-day Trek Across Maine: Sunday River to the Sea draws nearly 2,000 cyclists for the 180-mile bike expedition from Bethel to Rockland, proceeds from which benefit the Maine Lung Association. Registrations are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis, and the trek is usually fully booked by April. Pledges are required, and there’s a registration fee. Call 800/458-6472 for details.
Don’t like cycling? Perhaps the Androscoggin River Source to the Sea Canoe Trek is more your style. The annual 20-day paddle (spread over four-day weekends in midsummer) from the New Hampshire headwaters to Fort Popham near Bath—about 170 miles—is open to all canoeists, who can participate on any leg of the journey. A contribution is requested to benefit the Androscoggin Land Trust (207/583-2723, www.androscogginlandtrust.org).
Bethel’s Annual Gem, Mineral, and Jewelry Show is a long-running mid-July event with exhibits, demonstrations, and sales of almost everything imaginable in the rock and gem line—even guided field trips to nearby quarries.
The third Saturday in July, on Bethel Common in downtown Bethel, Mollyockett Day commemorates a legendary turn-of-the-19th-century Native American healer with a parade, children’s activities, a crafts fair, food booths, and fireworks. There’s also usually an oddball race—a couple of years it was wheeled beds; another year it was spouse-carrying.
Andover presents a parade, live entertainment, children’s games, art and flower shows, antique cars, a barbecue, and a beanhole bean supper the first weekend in August as part of Andover Old Home Days. The second weekend that month at the Moses Mason House in Bethel, Sudbury Canada Days commemorates Bethel’s earliest settlers with traditional crafts, an art show, a parade, croquet, a bean supper, and a contra dance.
Maine artisans take center stage in the annual display and sale at the Blue Mountains Arts and Crafts Festival, held the second weekend in October at the Sunday River Ski Resort in Newry.
During winter, Sunday River’s calendar is chock-full of events.
While Bethel doesn’t have tons of shops, the ones it does have are not the run-of-the-mill variety.
Check out the strikingly unusual designs and glazes at Bonnema Potters (146 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-2821), in a handsomely restored studio across the street from the Sudbury Inn. Best of all are the earth colors used on tiles, dishes, vases, and lamps.
Maine Line Products (297 Main St., Greenwood, 207/875-2522) is a source of whimsical, Maine-made souvenirs for your whimsical friends, as well as serious gifts such as jams, syrup, fudge, and wind chimes.
Shoppers entering Linda Clifford—Scottish and Irish Merchant (91 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-6560, www.lindaclifford.com) are almost always overwhelmed by the quality and selection. Pottery, crystal, clothing, jewelry, tartans, and more are all elegantly displayed. Be prepared to drool or part with some serious bucks.
Shaker-reproduction furniture and a home store filled with decorative items and accessories and wood ware can be found at Timberlake Home Store (158 Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-6545 or 800/780-6681, www.stimberlake.com). Ask about lectures, demonstrations, and workshops.
Handcrafted wood products fill Maine Artisans Wood Gallery (1180 Rte. 2, Rumford, 207/364-7500), which sells hardwood goods, including furniture and accent pieces.
The Nature Conservancy’s first Maine acquisition, in 1962, the 24-acre Step Falls Preserve is ideal for family hiking—an easy one-hour round-trip through the woods alongside an impressive series of cascades and pools. Pick up a trail map at the box in the parking area. Bring a picnic and have lunch on the rocks along the way. The waterfalls are most dramatic in late spring; the foliage is most spectacular in fall; the footing can be dicey in winter. The trailhead for the preserve is on Route 26, eight miles northwest of Route 2 and 10 miles southeast of the New Hampshire border. Watch for The Nature Conservancy oak-leaf sign on the right, next to Wight Brook.
Nestled in the mountains of western Maine, 3,192-acre Grafton Notch State Park (Rte. 26, Grafton Township, 207/824-2912 or 207/624-6080 off-season, www.parksandlands.com, $3 nonresident adults, $2 Maine resident adults, $1 ages 5-11 and nonresidents over age 64; payment is on the honor system) boasts splendid hiking trails, spectacular geological formations, and plenty of space for peace and quiet. It’s hard to say enough about this lovely park, a must-visit. Bring a picnic. Highlights include Screw Auger Falls, Mother Walker Falls, and Moose Gorge Cave.
The best (but not easiest) hike is the Table Rock Loop, a 2.4-mile moderate-to-strenuous two-hour circuit from the main trailhead (signposted Hiking Trails) at the edge of Route 26. The trailhead parking area is four miles inside the park’s southern boundary and 0.8 mile beyond the Moose Cave parking area. Part of the route follows the white-blazed Appalachian Trail; otherwise, the trail is orange- and blue-blazed. Some really steep sections are indeed a challenge, but it’s well worth the climb for the dramatic mountain views from aptly named Table Rock.
Another favorite moderate-to-strenuous hike goes up Old Speck Mountain (4,180 feet), third highest of Maine’s ten 4,000-footers and part of the Mahoosuc Range. The 28-foot-high viewing platform on the recently restored fire tower gets you above the wooded summit for incredible 360-degree views of the White Mountains, the Mahoosuc Range, and other mountains and lakes. Allow a solid seven hours for the 7.8-mile round-trip from the trailhead on the west side of Route 26 in Grafton Notch. The route follows the white-blazed Appalachian Trail (AT) most of the way; the tower is about 0.25 mile off the AT. Although there’s a route map at the trailhead (at the same location as for the Table Rock hike), the best trail guide for this hike is in John Gibson’s 50 Hikes in Southern and Coastal Maine.
If you’re driving along Route 26 early or late in the day, keep a lookout for moose; have your camera ready and exercise extreme caution. You’ll usually spot them in boggy areas munching on aquatic plants, but when they decide to cross a highway, watch out—unlike us, they don’t look both ways. And their eyes don’t reflect headlights, so be vigilant after dark. Moose-car collisions are too often fatal for both moose and motorists.
South and east of Grafton Notch State Park is a 27,253-acre chunk of Maine Public Reserve Land (Bureau of Parks and Lands, 207/287-3821, www.parksandlands.com) known as The Mahoosucs, or the Mahoosuc Range, where the hiking is rugged and strenuous but the scenic rewards are inestimable. The Appalachian Trail traverses much of the reserve, and its hikers insist that the mile-long Mahoosuc Notch section, between Old Speck and Goose Eye Mountains, is one of their biggest challenges on the 2,158-mile Georgia-to-Maine route, requiring steep ascents and descents with insecure footing, gigantic boulders, and narrow passages. If you’re an experienced hiker, go for it, and use reliable guidebooks and maps, preferably USGS maps. The best overview of the reserve is Spectacular Scenic Touring Loop in the Mahoosucs (www.mahoosuctouringmap.org). The helpful map and brochure provides info on trails, culture, campgrounds, outfitters, guides, and information sources.
About 49,800 acres of the 770,000-acre White Mountain National Forest (www.fs.usda.gov/whitemountain) lie on the Maine side of the border with New Hampshire. Route 113, roughly paralleling the border, bisects the Caribou-Speckled Mountain Wilderness, the designated name for this part of the national forest. It’s all dramatically scenic, with terrific opportunities for hiking, camping, picnicking, swimming, and fishing.
A drive along Route 113, north to south between Gilead and Stow, is worth a detour. It takes about 30 minutes without stops, but bring a picnic and enjoy the mountain views from the tables at the Cold River Overlook, about a mile south of the Evans Notch highpoint. Route 113 is too narrow for bikes in midsummer, when logging trucks and visitor traffic can be fairly dense. Save this bike tour for a fall weekday, and take it south to north for a good downhill run from Evans Notch. The road is closed in winter. If you plan on stopping or hiking, Evans Notch requires a parking permit ($5 for 7 days). Some locations have an “iron ranger” allowing payment of $3/parking place/day.
An easy family hike is the Albany Brook Trail, one mile each way between the Crocker Pond Campground (at the end of Crocker Pond Rd.) and the northern shore of Round Pond.
These companies provide rentals, guide services, and support for many of the sports detailed below. They’re also great resources if you’ve brought your own equipment.
The Maine Guides at Bethel Outdoor Adventure (BOA, 121 Mayville Rd./Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-4224 or 800/533-3607, www.betheloutdooradventure.com) are pros at canoeing, kayaking, and bicycling. They also offer snowmobiling tours and rent machines.
Sun Valley Sports and Guide Service (129 Sunday River Rd., Bethel, 207/824-7533 or 877/851-7533, www.sunvalleysports.com) provides Orvis-endorsed wading and drift-boat trips, fly-fishing instruction, wildlife safaris, canoe and kayak rentals, and guided ATV tours in addition to equipment. It also provides shuttle services for those with their own boats and operates a full-service fly shop.
Veteran professional guides Polly Mahoney and Kevin Slater of Mahoosuc Guide Service (1513 Bear River Rd., Newry, 207/824-2073, www.mahoosuc.com) lead wilderness canoe trips not in the Bethel area but on the Allagash, Penobscot, and St. John Rivers as well as in Québec. With extensive wilderness backgrounds in such locales as Labrador and the Yukon Territory, management experience with Outward Bound, a flair for camp cooking, and a commitment to Native American traditions, Polly and Kevin are ideal trip leaders.
Much of the hiking in this area is within the various parks and preserves, but a fun family hike not in that category is the easy-to-moderate ascent of Mount Will in Newry, on the outskirts of Bethel. The Bethel Conservation Commission has developed a 3.2-mile loop trail that provides mountain and river views; allow about 2.5 hours to do the loop. At the chamber of commerce information center, pick up a Mount Will trail-map brochure, which explains three different hiking options. There also may be maps at the trailhead, which is on the west side of Route 2/26, 1.9 miles north of the Riverside Rest Area—a terrific spot, incidentally, for a posthike picnic next to the Androscoggin River.
The wheelchair-accessible Bethel Recreational Path is about 1.5 miles long and parallels the Androscoggin River. It begins at Davis Park (Rte. 26 and Intervale Rd.), where there’s also a skateboard park, picnic tables, a boat launch, and a playground, and ends near Bethel Outdoor Adventure on Route 2. Expect to share it with joggers, in-line skaters, and cyclists. The Androscoggin River Recreational Walking Trail covers 1.5 miles, beginning at the lovely Riverside Rest Area on Route 2, just east of the Sunday River access road, and continuing to the River View Resort.
The rivers in the Bethel area are a paddler’s dream, varying from beginner and family stretches to white-water sections for intermediate and advanced canoeists. Fortunately, the major artery, the Androscoggin River, seldom has low-water problems, and you’ll see lots of islands as well as eagles, moose, and a beaver dam. West of Bethel there’s an old cable from a onetime ferry crossing.
The 42-mile Androscoggin River Canoe Trail, created in 2001 by the Mahoosuc Land Trust (207/824-3806, www.mahoosuc.org), provides access points to the river spaced about five miles apart, from the Shelburne Dam in New Hampshire to Rumford. The Map and Guide to the Androscoggin Canoe Trail is available from the trust for $4.95 plus $1 postage.
The annual, nine-day, 170-mile, Androscoggin River Source to the Sea Canoe Trek (http://arwc.camp7.org) celebrates the river’s revival from years of unbridled pollution caused primarily by paper-mill runoff.
The best source of information on the Androscoggin is Bethel Outdoor Adventure (BOA, 121 Mayville Rd./Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-4224 or 800/533-3607, www.betheloutdooradventure.com). It offers canoe rentals, maps, shuttle service, and trip-planning advice. In addition, the BOA staff can advise on canoeing the Ellis, Little Androscoggin, and Sunday Rivers.
Just east of Locke Mills, before the Littlefield Beaches Campground (207/875-3290, www.littlefieldbeaches.com), you can put in at Round Pond, on the south side of Route 26, and continue into North and South Ponds. Bring a picnic, and before you head out, enjoy it across the road at the lovely state rest area, which has grills and covered picnic tables in a wooded setting.
The 26-mile stretch of the Upper Androscoggin River between the New Hampshire border and Rumford Point, its tributaries, the Wild, Pleasant, Sunday, and Bear Rivers, and local brooks are popular with anglers seeking rainbows, brookies, browns, and landlocked salmon. Even during the peak of summer, it’s possible to catch smallmouth bass on the Andro.
Pick up a copy of A Guide to Local Fishing at the Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce and also check the resources of the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance (www.upperandro.com).
The Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce has sheets detailing about a dozen rides in the region, with lengths varying from a five-mile Village Restaurant Ride (don’t be deceived; it takes in Paradise Hill, a killer for Sunday cyclists) to the 53-mile covered bridge cruise. For an easy pedal, follow the Sunday River Road as it continues out past Artist’s Covered Bridge. It’s mostly level and winding, paralleling the river and providing beautiful mountain views. No matter where you ride, do follow the rules of the road, keeping right and riding single file.
Hybrid-bike rentals are available from Bethel Bicycle (53 Mayville Rd., Bethel, 207/824-0100, www.bethelbicycle.com) and Bethel Outdoor Adventure (BOA, 121 Mayville Rd./Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-4224 or 800/533-3607, www.betheloutdooradventure.com), a full-service shop. Expect to pay $25-30/day.
Looking for a real mountain biking adventure? Sunday River’s bike park (800/543-2754, www.sundayriver.com, 10am-5pm Fri.-Sun., $29 adults, $18 under age 13; trail only $20) has 20 miles of lift-serviced mountain biking on 25 trails, accessed from its South Ridge Lodge. Terrain ranges from dirt roads to single tracks with jumps, features, and even a log ride. You’ll need a bike with front and rear brakes and ideally with full suspension. Rental bikes with full suspension are $80.
Thanks to its spectacular setting, the 18-hole championship course at the Bethel Inn and Country Club (Bethel Common, Bethel, 207/824-2175, www.bethelinn.com) wows every golfer who plays here. Starting times are definitely required, and caddies are available. Also based here is the Guaranteed Performance School of Golf (800/654-0125, www.gpgolfschool.com). It includes five hours of on-course instruction and video analysis with PGA professionals, with a maximum of three students per instructor.
The newest course in the area is the spectacular Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed 18-hole course at Sunday River Ski Resort (207/824-3000, www.sundayriver.com), which opened in 2005.
When the weather doesn’t cooperate—and even if it does—and the kids need to let off steam, BIG Adventure Center (12 North Rd., Bethel, 207/824-0929, www.thebigadventurecenter.com) is just the ticket. Outdoor activities include two giant waterslides and an 18-hole miniature golf course; indoor possibilities include rock climbing and laser tag.
Sprawling octopus-like over eight connected mountains, Sunday River (Sunday River Rd., Newry, 207/824-3000 or 800/543-2754, snow phone 207/824-6400, www.sundayriver.com) defines the winter sports scene in this area, with downhill skiing and snowboarding, ice skating, cross-country skiing, phenomenal snowmaking capability, slope-side lodging, and plentiful amenities that include a spa, night skiing, entertainment, restaurants, and lodging. Its 743 acres are laced with 132 designated trails and glades, terrain parks and pipes, a snow-tubing area, and three base lodges (South Ridge is the main one). Serving it all are 16 lifts, including a chondula (combination gondola and chairlift) and four high-speed quads. Don’t even consider leaving the base without a trail map, and make sure everyone in your party knows exactly where to meet for lunch or at day’s end.
Sunday River is also home to Maine Handicapped Skiing (800/639-7770, www.maineadaptive.org), which provides free lessons and tickets for alpine and cross-country skiing and snowboarding for people with physical disabilities. Reservations are required.
Sunday River has day-care facilities in three locations (reservations are advised), a ski school, rental equipment, a free on-mountain trolley-bus service, and plenty of places to grab a snack or a meal at a wide range of prices. Call or check the website for current ticket prices; one-day tickets purchased at the window are priciest, so be smart and buy online in advance for the best price.
The ski season usually runs early November-early May, weather permitting; the average annual snowfall is 167 inches. There’s only one road on and off the mountain, so expect delays early and late in the day during weekends and holidays.
Sunday River also has a zip-line park open both summer and winter.
Right in downtown Bethel, the Bethel Inn Touring Center (Bethel Common, 207/824-6276, www.caribourecreation.com, $19 adult day pass, $15 students and seniors) has about 25 trails groomed for classic and skate skiing and five miles of snowshoe trails on the inn’s scenic golf course. The ski shop has a wax room and a snack bar with seating areas. Ski and snowshoe rentals and half-day tickets are available.
About 30 miles of trails wind through 1,000 acres along the Androscoggin River at Carter’s Cross-Country Ski Center (Middle Intervale Rd., Bethel, 207/539-4848, www.cartersxcski.com, $14 adults, $10 children), owned and managed by Carter’s Cross-Country Ski Center in Oxford (207/539-4848). In winter, the Bethel location operates a lodge and ski shop with a snack bar and rents skis and snowshoes.
Picture an old-fashioned Currier and Ives winter landscape with skaters skimming a snow-circled pond and you’ll come close to the scene on Bethel Common in winter. Bring a camera. The groomed ice-skating area, in the downtown Historic District, is usually ready for skaters by Christmas vacation. Sunday River Ski Resort also has rink; skating is free, and rental skates are available.
When they’re not off leading multiday dogsledding trips in the Mahoosucs or on Umbagog Lake (rates begin around $600 pp), or even with the Inuit in Canada’s Nunavut Territory ($6,150 pp) or the Cree in Québec (from $4,260 pp), Kevin Slater and Polly Mahoney of Mahoosuc Guide Service (1513 Bear River Rd., Newry, 207/824-2073, www.mahoosuc.com) will bundle you in a deerskin blanket and take you on a one-day dogsled trip on Umbagog Lake, beyond Grafton Notch State Park. Wear goggles or sunglasses; the dogs kick up the snow. Insulted parkas and footwear, a campfire lunch, and warm drinks are included in the $275 pp fee. Trips are limited, and they’re very popular; book well in advance. Also on the premises are Mahoosuc’s Mahoosuc Mountain Lodge and Farmhouse Bed & Breakfast (207/824-2073, www.mahoosucmountainlodge.com). Bunk rates range $40-60 pp. For more privacy, opt for one of the three shared-bath guest rooms ($50 pp with breakfast), in the nicely renovated 1903 farmhouse.
In winter, there is a three-day Learn-to-Mush package at Telemark Inn Wilderness Lodge (591 King’s Hwy., Mason Township, 207/836-2703, www.newenglanddogsledding.com, $1,025 pp d, $1,250 s, plus 10 percent gratuity) that includes three half-day guided mushing experiences, three nights’ lodging, and all meals.
Snowmobile rentals are available from Northeast Snowmobile (800/458-1838, www.northeastsnowmobile.com). Expect to pay about $150 for a half day.
Conveniently, the Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce Reservations Service (800/442-5826, www.bethelmaine.com) provides toll-free lodging assistance for more than 1,000 beds in member B&Bs, motels, condos, and inns in Bethel, at Sunday River Ski Resort, and farther afield. If you’re planning a winter visit, however, particularly during Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, February school vacation, or the month of March, don’t wait until the last minute. Procrastination will put you in a bed 40 miles from the slopes.
Join Mahoosuc Guide Service on a dog-sledding trip.
Keep in mind that peak season (ergo the highest room rates) in this part of Maine is in winter, not summer. Some lodgings also have higher rates for fall foliage in September-October.
On-mountain lodging options at Sunday River (207/824-3000, reservations 800/543-2754, www.sundayriver.com) include 425 guest rooms and suites in two full-service hotels—the Grand Summit and the Jordan Grand Hotel—as well as hundreds of slope-side condos and town houses in seven different clusters. Both hotels have restaurants and cafés, indoor and outdoor heated pools, tennis courts, video game rooms, and lots of extra amenities; the Jordan Grand is in an isolated location. Most guest rooms have full kitchen facilities. Except for the dorm rooms, lodging packages include lift tickets. Prices for accommodations and activity packages vary widely.
Bethel’s grande dame, The Bethel Inn and Country Club (21 Broad St., Bethel, 207/824-2175 or 800/654-0125, www.bethelinn.com), is the centerpiece of a classic New England village scene. It faces the Bethel Common in the historical district; out the back door is the golf course backed by the White Mountains. Rooms are spread out between the traditional main inn and outbuildings. Also on the premises are 1-3-bedroom condominiums. Guest rooms vary widely in decor and quality; be forewarned that some are tired, to put it kindly. The best choices are in the new wing of the main inn and the newly updated ones in the main inn. This is a full-service resort, and amenities include golf, tennis, a health club with a saltwater pool and a sauna, a game room, a lakeside outpost for swimming and boating, and a summer children’s program. Inn rates, including breakfast, begin at around $100/person. Children under age 12 stay free in the same room. Rates with dinner are available, but do check packages, which provide the best bang for the buck. Some accommodations permit dogs for $20/night. It’s open year-round, but the restaurant may be closed some nights during the off-season, although the tavern remains open.
The Bethel Inn celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2013.
Bethel’s other longtime country inn, The Sudbury Inn (Main St., Bethel, 207/824-2174 or 800/395-7837, www.thesudburyinn.com), is best known for its dining room and pub, but it’s a classic B&B too. Guest rooms and suites (and even a three-bedroom apartment with a full kitchen and a fireplace) are spread between the main house and the dog-friendly carriage house ($15/dog/day). The two-bedroom suites are especially good for families. All are comfortably furnished and have cable TV, air-conditioning, and phones. A full breakfast is included in the rates, which begin at $89-129 for a standard.
Architect Stuart Crocker designed the lovely Shingle-style Crocker Pond House (917 North Rd., Bethel, 207/836-2027, www.crockerpond.com, $125-150) so that it fits naturally into its setting on 50 mostly wooded acres. It’s a lovely environmentally designed inn that blends contemporary amenities, such as Wi-Fi, with traditional cottage design, Norwegian antiques, and Native American art in a restorative atmosphere (there is no TV). Crocker and his wife, Ellen, welcome guests in seven guest rooms, all south-facing with mountain views; one is wheelchair-accessible with a roll-in shower. Begin the morning with Stuart’s blueberry pancakes, and after hiking or snowshoeing the trail behind the inn, relaxing by the pond, or exploring, return for afternoon tea and cookies. Pets are not allowed; two cats are in residence. Norwegian, French, and German are spoken at the inn. Children are welcome, and the loft rooms are especially good for families. Children under age 14 sharing a room are $15 each; older children are $25 each.
For a quiet stay within walking distance of downtown shops, restaurants, and attractions, opt for the Bethel Hill Bed and Breakfast (66 Broad St., Bethel, 207/824-2161, www.bethelhill.com $139-179), a handsome inn with three, air-conditioned spacious guest rooms tastefully decorated with antiques. A separate lakefront house has two additional suites ($250-295, including continental breakfast).
Traveling with your pooch? Paws Inn (372 Walkers Mill Rd./Rte. 26, Bethel, 207/824-6678, www.pawsinn.net, $75-85) takes dog-friendly to the extreme. Carolyn Bailey and her sidekick, Sampson, provide two guest rooms, dog beds or crates, fenced-yard and barn play areas, doggie snacks, and plenty of love. You only need bring food for your dog and proof of vaccinations; Carolyn prepares a generous continental breakfast. It’s two miles south of Bethel.
The Inn at the Rostay (186 Mayville Rd./Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-3111 or 888/754-0072, www.rostay.com) is a motel that acts like an inn. Rooms are spread between three buildings. Most have a refrigerator and microwave; all have air-conditioning or ceiling fan, phone, Wi-Fi, and TV and VCR, with a video library available. On the five-acre premises are a pool, hot tub, picnic pavilion, and quilt shop. Guests can have a full breakfast ($8), served in a dining room adjacent to a guest parlor. Rates begin at $68 d midweek and vary greatly. Winter holiday weeks are priciest at $112-135. Some rooms are pet-friendly ($20).
For clean, cheap, and convenient digs, check into Ruthie’s Bethel Village Motel (88 Main St., Bethel, 800/882-0293, www.bethelvillagemotel.com, from $75), smack downtown in a walk-to-everything location behind Ruthie’s boutique. Guest rooms are pleasantly decorated, and all have air-conditioning, TVs, fridges, and Wi-Fi.
To really escape, South Arm Campground (62 Kennett Dr., Andover, 207/364-5155, www.southarm.com) has 38 lakeside wilderness sites ($15/family), including island sites accessible only by boat, with transportation available. A bit less remote on a peninsula is the full-service main campground with 65 wooded sites ($24-32), all with water and 30-amp electricity; it has a marina, modern bathhouses, and a bakery and general store. From here, you can fly-fish the Rapid River, canoe the lake, fish, paddle (rentals available), take a sunset moose cruise, walk a section of the Appalachian Trail, bike logging roads, or just relax in this little slice of heaven.
Just south of its namesake, Grafton Notch Campground (1471 Bear River Rd./Rte. 26, Newry, 207/824-2292, www.campgrafton.com, $25) is a small, no-frills campground with 14 wooded sites with fire rings and picnic tables, a modern bathhouse, and a dump station ($10), but no hookups. Leashed dogs are permitted. Don’t expect real quiet, though; you can hear the trucks on Route 26, but you can’t beat the location if you want to hike in the state park.
Thirteen miles west of Bethel is the seven-acre Hastings Campground (877/444-6777 for credit-card reservations, $16), one of four campgrounds along Route 113 in the White Mountain National Forest. The 24-site campground is primitive, with no hookups or showers, but it does have vault toilets, a hand pump for water, fishing and hiking, and it is wheelchair-accessible. Route 113 is especially scenic, so this is a prime location for extensive hiking in the national forest. Trail information and maps are available from the Evans Notch Ranger District office. The campground is in Gilead, three miles south of Route 2.
When you really yearn to escape, try to snag one of the first-come, first-served seven sites at Crocker Pond Campground ($14), located in the White Mountain National Forest. No reservations are accepted, so be prepared with a contingency plan. The campground, set amid white pines on the edge of Crocker Pond, has a hand pump for water and a vault toilet. Nonmotorized boats are permitted in the pond. To find the campground, from Route 2 in West Bethel, take the Flat Road (across from the post office) and travel 5.8 miles, then turn right at the sign and continue another 0.5 mile down a dirt road.
You can feel good when eating at the Good Food Store (Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-3754 or 800/879-8926, www.goodfoodbethel.com, 9am-8pm daily, $5-8). The combination store and takeout sells both good food and food that’s good for you, and it stocks a huge array of natural foods. Create an instant picnic with sandwiches, salads, and soups, even beer and wine. If you’re renting a condo and don’t feel like cooking or eating out, you can pick up homemade soups, stews, and casseroles to go.
Also on the premises is Smokin’ Good BBQ (Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-4744, www.smokingoodbarbecue.com, 11:30am-7pm Thurs.-Tues., $7-27), operating from Graceland, an orange trailer. A transplanted Texan turned me onto this gem. Choices include pulled pork, beef brisket, ribs, chicken, and sides such as barbecue beans, slaw, and corn bread. Dress for the elements: There are only picnic tables for seating.
Baked goods made daily from scratch from all-natural ingredients have earned DiCocoa’s Bakery and Marketplace (119 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-5282, www.cafedicocoa.com) a solid following. Go for the fabulous baked goods, but don’t miss the lunch specials, including panini and soup. The bakery doubles as a market selling fancy foods and take-home meals. It also makes scrumptious gelato, and I think the chocolate chip cookies are among the best I’ve ever had.
For cheap eats at any meal, snag a table at the Crossroads Diner & Deli (24 Mayville Rd./Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-3673, 5:30am-8pm daily).
No matter what your dietary preference—vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, carnivore—Erin’s Café on Main (63 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-3746) has you covered. Breakfast is the specialty, although soups and salads also are served.
The Bethel Farmers Market sells good-for-you produce and other items 9am-1pm Saturday mid-June-mid-October, on Route 26 (at Parkway) next to Norway Savings Bank at the southern edge of town.
The independently owned Phoenix House and Well (Skiway Rd., across from the South Ridge base complex, Newry, 207/824-2222, www.phoenixhouseandwell.com, 11am-midnight daily during ski season, summer hours vary, $9-20) has a split personality: Downstairs is a pub; upstairs is a fancier dining room (weekends only). The same menu is served in both locations. Choices range from burgers to seafood fettuccine. There’s live entertainment almost every weekend. Go elsewhere if you’re hungry and it’s busy; service can be painfully slow.
Also open only in winter but farther down the access road is Great Grizzly American Steak House/Matterhorn (292 Sunday River Rd., Newry, 207/824-6271, www.matterhornskibar.com, 3-11pm Mon-Fri., noon-12:30am Sat.-Sun., $10-26), an immensely popular barn-style restaurant that’s the aprés-ski spot in Bethel, with entertainment on weekends. It’s filled with co-owner Roger Beaudoin’s finds, many from his travels and climbing expeditions in Switzerland (to the Matterhorn, of course). Antique mountain-climbing gear is in one room; a village motif complete with a real-estate office and old Sunoco pumps is in another; classic skis are everywhere. Check out the bar, made from 120 skis. The wide-ranging menu includes the best pizzas in the region, cooked in a wood-burning oven, as well as steaks, seafood, pastas, salads, and even sushi. There’s even a kids’ menu. On weekend nights, there’s usually entertainment in the early evening. Reservations are not accepted, so it’s wise to dine early on weekends or expect to wait. Live entertainment, usually rock bands, begins at 9:30pm on Friday-Saturday; a cover is charged unless you’re already seated and have had dinner.
On the lower level of the Sudbury Inn is Suds Pub (151 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-2174 or 800/395-7837, www.thesudburyinn.com, from 11:30am daily), a very relaxing hangout. The moderately priced menu includes appetizers, burgers, soups, salads, pizza, and a few entrées, most in the $7-15 range. The full bar has 29 beers on tap. Thursday night is Hoot Night, an open-mic tradition since 1987 and a great chance to mingle with locals. There’s also live music on Friday and Saturday nights.
For an English pub experience, head to The Jolly Drayman English Pub and Restaurant (Briar Lea Inn, 150 Mayville Rd./Rte. 2, Bethel, 207/824-4717 or 877/311-1299, www.briarleainn.com, 4pm-9pm Mon.-Thurs., 5pm-9pm Fri.-Sun., $13-20). Former owners remodeled the space based on a 15th-century English pub and named it for the drayman, the driver of the beer wagon. Come for the fine ales and stouts and the pub-style favorites such as Thatcher’s shepherd’s pie and bangers-and-mash. On Monday, it serves a half-pound burger for $5; Wednesday is trivia night, with great prizes; and Thursday features all-you-can-eat fish-and-chips.
Cafe DiCocoa (125 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-5282, www.cafedicocoa.com, $50) is open from 6:45pm Saturday evenings during winter for Gentle Dining, a candlelight-dinner experience during ski season. The five-course fixed-price dinner (BYOB) is by reservation only and features an internationally inspired menu. The 2.5-hour evening workshops include an overview of the history and culture of the featured region, explanations of ingredients, cooking demonstrations, and plentiful samples. Friday nights in winter feature Cocina Mexicana, made-from-scratch Mexican fare ($4-10), BYOB. About once a month during winter, the restaurant also hosts tasting workshops or cooking classes ($29).
It’s hard to believe, but you can even get authentic—and truly delicious—Japanese and Korean food in Bethel. M Cho Sun (141 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-7370, www.chosunrestaurant.com, 5pm-9pm Wed.-Sun., entrées $18-26) is in a lovely New England Victorian house decorated with Asian art and antiques. Sushi is a specialty, but owner Pok Sun Lane’s South Korean fare draws on her heritage.
Classic Italian fare is served at 22 Broad Street (22 Broad St., Bethel, 207/824-3496, www.22broadstreet.com, 5pm-close daily, $17-25), located in the Greek Revival-style 1848 Gideon Hastings House across from the Bethel Inn. Choices include house-made ravioli, pork saltimbocca, and veal piccata. Martinis are a specialty, and there’s a kids’ menu.
The Sudbury Inn (151 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-2174 or 800/395-7837, www.sudburyinn.com,), a warmly retrofitted 1873 Victorian inn, has two dining venues. Reserve a table in the Dining Room (5:30pm-9pm Thurs.-Sat., $18-28) for white tablecloth dining on the glassed-in porch or fireside and a menu ranging from mushroom lasagna and baked haddock to rack of lamb and roasted duck. Bistro 151 (from 3pm Thurs.-Sun., $7-22) aims for a casual French bistro tone, where there’s Wi-Fi and HDTV. In this family-friendly space, you can order from the Dining Room, Sud’s Pub, or bistro menu, the latter featuring small and large plates with a French accent.
Another longtimer, S.S. Milton (43 Main St., Bethel, 207/824-2589, $12-25) is an unpretentious, homey, family-friendly restaurant with a menu that ranges from veggie scampi to New Zealand lamb.
The dining room at The Bethel Inn (Bethel Common, Bethel, 207/824-2175, www.bethelinn.com) is open to nonguests for breakfast (7:30am-9:30am Mon.-Fri. and 7am-10am Sat.-Sun. holidays) and dinner (5:30pm-8:45pm daily through Dec. 31, weekends in winter). The dining rooms overlook the golf course to the mountains beyond, but the fare doesn’t match the views. The continental menu includes duck, tenderloin, and lobster, with entrées ranging $24-44.
The Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce (Cross St., Bethel, 207/824-2282 or 800/442-5826, www.bethelmaine.com) has public restrooms. An excellent online planning tool for the region is www.westernmaine.org.
Bethel is roughly 65 miles or 1.5 hours from Rangeley via Routes 17 and 2. It’s about 36 miles or 50 minutes to Fryeburg via Route 5, about 24 miles or 30 minutes to South Paris via Route 26, and about 70 miles or 1.5 hours from Portland via Route 26.
The free Bethel Explorer (www.mountainexplorer.org) bus service operates between Bethel and Sunday River. It runs 6:30am-1am daily mid-December-early April (but check the schedule).
At Sunday River, the free Sunday River Trolley (207/824-3000) circulates throughout the resort, operating weekends Thanksgiving-Christmas and then daily from mid-December-early April. It runs on a 30-minute cycle, 8am-1am weekdays and 7am-1am weekends and holidays.