Outdoor Adventures in Maine

You’ll get to see the great outdoors up close and personal when you sign up for a whitewater rafting adventure at Crab Apple Whitewater. Imagine zooming through Class III and IV rapids like “Three Sisters” and “Magic Falls” on the spectacular Kennebec River, passing by Maine’s woodlands and wildlife. Or conquering high-water rafting on the Dead River. Or maybe you want a calmer trip with places to float and swim. Head back to the base camp for overnight lodging, some paintball fun or maybe a walk to Moxie Falls, Maine’s highest waterfall. Or here’s an idea: Sign up for a moose safari, leaving at dusk from May through August, in search of the amazing beasts in their natural habitat.

Let a hearty, home-cooked breakfast at one of the Bar Harbor Bed and Breakfast Association’s 18 inns start your outdoor adventures in Bar Harbor. Acadia National Park awaits, with miles of scenic hiking trails and carriage roads for biking (and the sunrise from the top of Cadillac Mountain is amazing). If you want a water adventure, there’s kayaking, canoeing, and cruises aboard four-masted schooners. Take an excursion to see lighthouses, whales – and puffins! Go golfing, sit back and enjoy an outdoor concert or stroll through the town’s many boutiques and galleries. You’ll find outside dining everywhere, so don’t forget this is lobster roll territory. End your day at your inn, in a hot tub or with a cocktail by a toasty fire pit.

Experience Maine in all its glory, four seasons of the year, when you stay at the Camden Maine Stay Inn or, in Kennebunk, at the Inn at English Meadows. Both inns are set on charming properties, with lovely gardens perfect for strolling, and both are a short walk to vibrant harbor districts. Other outdoor activities in the area include schooner sails, golfing, kayaking, canoeing, apple picking, leaf peeping and miles and miles of hiking and biking trails. In the winter, there’s skiing, tobogganing, fat biking and snow shoeing. Take a scenic lighthouse tour, go whale-watching or book a cruise to see how lobsters are caught. Visit a winery, a brewery, a nature preserve – or see it all from the air with a “flight-seeing” tour.