Highway accessible Maine lodging
October 2, 2011 9:19 PM Subscribe
I would like to take my family leaf-peeping in Maine in our new car next weekend...
...If they had good rates and availability I would take them up the Kancamagus Highway and stay in North Conway NH. Unfortunately North Conway is kind of booked up, so the new Maine 75mph highway speed limit is drawing my lead foot up that way. Can anyone suggest lodging a few hours North of Boston in Maine?
...If they had good rates and availability I would take them up the Kancamagus Highway and stay in North Conway NH. Unfortunately North Conway is kind of booked up, so the new Maine 75mph highway speed limit is drawing my lead foot up that way. Can anyone suggest lodging a few hours North of Boston in Maine?
If you go now, you're going to need that 75 mph speed limit, yes: according to reports, only very northern Maine has good color. And that new speed limit doesn't kick in until Bangor, which is about 4 hours north of Boston. So, either make Bangor your lodging base or search north of Bangor.
Pittston Farm is not located anywhere near the interstate, but it is very comfortable and very deep in the north woods.
posted by JanetLand at 5:03 AM on October 3, 2011
Pittston Farm is not located anywhere near the interstate, but it is very comfortable and very deep in the north woods.
posted by JanetLand at 5:03 AM on October 3, 2011
I'm escaping to Maine this weekend! We are going to Boothbay Harbor at the Rocktide Inn, which has a $79 rate (for non-nice-view rooms), free full breakfast, and indoor pool (this is the last weekend it's open). We just went two weeks ago and loved it so much we're going back. I dunno about the actual leaf peeping, but the area is gorgeous and picturesque. And the lobster rolls are plentiful.
posted by kpht at 7:56 AM on October 3, 2011
posted by kpht at 7:56 AM on October 3, 2011
I can't really improve on what JanetLand has already said. Check the leaf reports, for sure.
Fryeburg Fair is this weekend, but that's very much in a different direction than the 75 mph speed limit. (Just over the NH/ME border from N Conway, actually.) Foliage in the Fryeburg/Bethel area is currently "moderate". (Note that nowhere is at peak yet - and its been very rainy here, which won't help matters.)
All that being said, the place that best meets your criteria (best available leaves, 75 mph highway, very rural) is Millinocket, which is about five hours north of Boston and about an hour and 15 minutes north of Bangor.
Millinocket is often called the "gateway to Baxter State park". You can't drive in Baxter, but you can hike in it, and drive around it. Here's some info on places to stay and things to do. but bear in mind it's a tiny community - about 5,000 souls. North Conway it is not.
posted by anastasiav at 8:23 AM on October 3, 2011
Fryeburg Fair is this weekend, but that's very much in a different direction than the 75 mph speed limit. (Just over the NH/ME border from N Conway, actually.) Foliage in the Fryeburg/Bethel area is currently "moderate". (Note that nowhere is at peak yet - and its been very rainy here, which won't help matters.)
All that being said, the place that best meets your criteria (best available leaves, 75 mph highway, very rural) is Millinocket, which is about five hours north of Boston and about an hour and 15 minutes north of Bangor.
Millinocket is often called the "gateway to Baxter State park". You can't drive in Baxter, but you can hike in it, and drive around it. Here's some info on places to stay and things to do. but bear in mind it's a tiny community - about 5,000 souls. North Conway it is not.
posted by anastasiav at 8:23 AM on October 3, 2011
The Kancamagus Highway is, in fact, a terrific drive. Here's a cool map, but it doesn't seem to factor in annual variances in temps. Maine has a good foliage site. To get to peak foliage, you have to go pretty far north, which is great for driving and hiking/outdoors-ing, but maybe not so great for other tourist attractions. Looks like the weekend might be sunny. Southern Maine, which is within a couple of hours' drive, should be a very nice visit. Or wait a little bit, keep an eye on the foliage maps, and try to hit the peak.
posted by theora55 at 3:41 PM on October 3, 2011
posted by theora55 at 3:41 PM on October 3, 2011
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posted by kuanes at 4:27 AM on October 3, 2011