Northern Maine offers vacation activities, indoors and outdoors

Adventure awaits on the Kennebec and Dead rivers when you arrive at Crab Apple Whitewater’s base lodge. After breakfast, head to the rivers for world-class whitewater and breathtaking scenery. Some trips are guided, for families and beginners (lots of time for floating and swimming); others challenge rapids like the Class IV-V “Poplar Hill Falls.” Some come with riverside snacks; others with cookouts. Stay overnight at the lodge (in bunk-style rooms or suites with Jacuzzi tubs), play some night-time paintball in one of several custom courses, climb to Maine’s highest waterfall or just relax by the pool. For another kind of adventure, there’s the moose safari, from May through August, leaving at dusk in search of the gentle giants.

Attean Lake Lodge is now open! Here's 10 things you need to know before booking your visit.
Your stay at Attean Lake Lodge may be complicated by one difficult task: deciding among the entertaining activities beckoning to you. Since you’re on an island, playing on and in the water will come naturally at the many sandy beaches around the lake. Pick your choice of canoeing, kayaking or sailing – or how about a little of each? In June and September especially, bring your fishing license and match wits with the native brook trout, landlocked salmon and lake trout. Hikers enjoy the nearly 20 miles of trails we maintain, leading to ponds and mountaintops, with berry picking along the way. Other off-island adventures could include a white-water rafting trip, golfing, shopping or even a ride to Quebec City, just an hour away.

There are lots of ways to enjoy the great outdoors (and it’s really great in Maine), and 201 Powersports has several of them ready and waiting for you. Want to pump up the adrenaline? Rent an ATV or snowmobile and let Powersports plan a customized adventure for you. Looking to chill? Go on a pontoon boat cruise on historic and scenic Wyman Lake. Or, combine a pontoon cruise with a dirt-trail adventure in the north Maine woods. With over 15 years of recreational experience and an extensive inventory of top-of-the-line Polaris ATVs and snowmobiles, Powersports guarantees an exciting and hassle-free experience for new and experienced riders, whether it’s over dirt, water or snow.

The menu of activities to choose from at Shin Pond Village is a long one, and all the choices are good. At this family owned and operated recreational resort, on 100 acres in the picturesque Katahdin Region, with views of Mt. Chase, you can rent a top-of-the-line Polaris side-by-side ATV and explore hundreds of miles of trails literally from the resort’s doorstep. In winter, switch to snowmobiles, skiing or snowshoeing. Take your snowmobile out to a pond or lake and go ice fishing. Hike to Shin Brook Falls or the public beach on Lower Shin Pond. Go canoeing or camping. Lodging includes campsites, RV sites, cottages and waterfront homes. The resort has a restaurant, laundromat and general store.

The co-owners and guides of Lone Wolf Guiding Services , based in Greenville, Maine, have a lifetime of experience in the northern woods. Year-round, they offer a professional guide service that takes visitors ou5t in small groups to observe moose, waterfalls, and wildlife. The specialty of the winter season is dog sled tours from the company’s kennel, located in Shirley. Come see the Maine woods and the magnificent flora and fauna that live there. Experts take care of the details; you can simply sit back and enjoy the trip. Email: info@lonewolfguidingservices.com. 207-343-0486.

Ar you looking for some off-road fun in Maine? A business called Maine Dogsledding Adventures in Millinocket stands ready to offer you a day following a dog pack-- on a dog sled. Tours meet at the kennel near Millinocket, where guests meet the huskies and ask questions. Then you board the sleds and mush 10-12 miles in the forest and lake wilderness just south of Baxter Park. a stop on the trip includes a bonfire and time to feed the dogs. guests may drive the sled or ride as a passenger; no experience necessary! 207-731-8888.

To say the snowmobile trails in Maine are some of the finest in the country would be an understatement at best. Maine’s Interconnected Trail System (ITS) is provided to snowmobilers through the joint effort of the Maine Snowmobile Association, headquartered in Augusta, and the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, Department of Conservation. The organization’s website provides maps and directions, information on trail conditions and planning a trip, calendars of snowmobiling events, activities, directories of snowmobiling clubs, and other great things to do. You can get a detailed map of the Interconnected Trail System by contacting the Maine Snowmobile Association at PO Box 80, Augusta, 04332. Phone: 207-622-6983

Sugarloaf in Carrabassett Valley, one of the major ski mountains in New England and the East Coast, offers so many fun activities in winter it could make your head spin (including some indoor adventures, for the occasional off-snow winter day). Best known as an alpine ski resort, Sugarloaf also offers one of Maine's largest Nordic centers, with a retail shop and café, perched in the center of gorgeous trails. Fat biking ? The Outdoor Center is open for fat biking on select trails throughout the winter. Have you come across skibiking yet? It is kind of like a bike on skids, but you have to see a picture to get the idea. Sno Go Snowbikes will be available to rent or buy at Sugarloaf for winter 2020. Ice skating is busy at the large rink at the Outdoor Center boasts a large ice skating rink, with plentiful skate rentals for children and adults. Are you a fan of the indoors on the more blustery winter days? Sugarloaf has a very cool anti-gravity complex , where guests may play in a skate park, giant trampolines, a climbing wall, basketball court, track, and gym. Pay a visit this winter.

The antiques experts at Jellison Traders at 359 Riverside Drive in Augusta employ deep expertise to find beautiful and useful items for the home. Antiques, vintage items, collectibles: the entire range of interesting objects that reflect tastes and arts of the past is available for customers to continue to enjoy into the future. Jellison Traders can also help with appraising, downsizing, and liquidation of estates. Items that Jellison typically buys and re-sells include books, collectibles, furniture, glassware, jewelry, lighting, magazines, music, phonographs, victrolas, vintage clothing, recycled metal yard ornaments, and much more. Browsing is fun and encouraged, because the hosts at Jellison want you to enjoy the treasures you unearth. 207-213-4063

From the 1850s to the 1950s the textile mills, shoe mills and brickyards of Lewiston and neighboring Auburn (L-A) made up the state's largest manufacturing center. Museum L-A, located in the Bates Mill Compex off of Chestnut Street, facing Canal Street, in Lewiston, documents the industries and the people who made them thrive. Within the 1850s Bates Mill, the museum displays vintage machinery, tools, shoes and quilts along with an oral history tour of mill workers from both cities. Open year-round, daily except Mondays. 207-333-3881.

In August 2016, on the eve of the 100th anniversary of the national park system, President Obama created a new park, Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, in northern Maine, near Millinocket. The park is in the shadow of Mount Katahdin, and it occupies a wild landscape with spectacular views the mountain. Back-country adventurers can explore the rivers, woods, plant and animal life, and dark night skies. This is a monument with limited services; services will be added in coming years. The park has no welcome center at present. Find visitor information at the park’s website or by phone: 207-456-6001.

With seven interactive exhibit areas on three floors, Maine Discovery Museum at 74 Main Street in downtown Bangor, Maine, is the largest children's museum north of Boston. Seven permanent exhibits invite children to explore nature, geography, children's literature, music, art, science and anatomy. Among the exhibits are: Nature Trails, to explore Maine's ecosystem along a 20-foot waterway; TradeWinds, a new exhibit about Maine's global connections to Brazil, Japan, and Italy; Booktown, a village where every doorway leads into the pages of a Maine children's literary classic; Sounds Abound, exploring the world of music in a sound studio; Artscape; Mission: Discovery; and Body Journey. Open year-round; closed on Mondays. Phone: 207-262-7200.