Maine Road Trip: General Advice (Augusta, Freeport: camping, live, public transportation)

[SeaCreation]

Hey all, I'm an avid traveler and somewhat of a vagabond. My base of operations is South Carolina. Ive been out and about westward more than a few times, but my sights and interests have turned northeast and I'm planning a road trip for early august to Downeast Maine before the fall semester starts. I'm looking for good places to visit, out of the way places, with good scenery and towns that don't flash neon signs towards tourists and stuff. I've talked to a few people and I understand that its pretty much peak season. So if anybody know of some great little towns, good local coffee joints, cool places to visit, and especially some awesome roads to tour, that would be really helpful for me. (also any general maine suggestions would be greatly appreciated)

im planning of camping, so if anyone knows some good campgrounds in the downeast area... do tell.

Thanks all, I look forward to exploring your state!

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by SeaCreation

Hey all, I'm an avid traveler and somewhat of a vagabond. My base of operations is South Carolina. Ive been out and about westward more than a few times, but my sights and interests have turned northeast and I'm planning a road trip for early august to Downeast Maine before the fall semester starts. I'm looking for good places to visit, out of the way places, with good scenery and towns that don't flash neon signs towards tourists and stuff. I've talked to a few people and I understand that its pretty much peak season. So if anybody know of some great little towns, good local coffee joints, cool places to visit, and especially some awesome roads to tour, that would be really helpful for me. (also any general maine suggestions would be greatly appreciated)

im planning of camping, so if anyone knows some good campgrounds in the downeast area... do tell.

Thanks all, I look forward to exploring your state!

That's a really wide open question! The whole state is "out of the way". Maine is a perfect place to explore by car. There is little public transportation here so you need to drive, bike or hike. Camping on the water is possible in a lot of areas though it's far cheaper to camp inland than the ocean.
Don't forget the bug spray. Maine has mosquitoes, black flies (not a big problem in August),ticks,earwigs, deer flies etc. Near the ocean, midgees (no-see-ums), can be a real bother at dusk. You'll need very fine mesh on your tent doors and windows to keep them out. You can barely see them but they bite like crazy! As far as the roads go, the scenery is really nice just about anywhere but unfortunately the road surface conditions in the state are the worst they have been in 30 years! You'll need good suspension! Throw a dart at the Downeast area and go explore!

[retiredtinbender]

GEt off the interstate and onto Rt 1 above Freeport and you'll miss the majority of tourists. Trouble being that you'll miss some really (IMHO) cool stuff. There's a lot to choose from: water to your right, mountains to the left, the great outdoors to the north. Hit a few tourism sites maybe the auto club, and get some ideas. Enjoy it all.

[Submariner]

Welcome.

Stay on route 1 until you hit Canada. You will see a lot of cool stuff!

Then don't forget to swing inland. Aroostook is nice and so is Western Maine [though there are not a lot of paved roads traversing Western Maine].

[dmyankee]

Bang a left half way up and visit Moosehead.

[Maineah]

I live on the coast and I also recommend the Moosehead area if you can swing it. It really is the jewel of the state.

[MRVphotog]

US 1 is the tourist highway in the summer. Be prepared to crawl thru a few towns especially Wiscasset and Camden but still worth it.

[shadowfax1997]

find the 45th parallel, half way from equator to north pole. There is a nice picture spot with sign in Rangeley. Also one downeast - i think on route 1. Haven't been there is a dozen years.

[SeaCreation]

Thanks for all the helpful info. So far, my preliminary plan is to spend a few days on the coast driving up hw1 (interesting fact, I live just off of the very same hw1 in SC), visiting towns like Booth Bay, Camden, and hopefully all the way up to Eastport. I was gonna call it there, but sounds like if I go to Maine, I should probably stop at Baxter State Park or Moosehead, so I'm thinking about finding time for that too, maybe sacrificing some coastal stuff. Thanks again.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

From Eastport, go back to Route 1 and north to Route 6, The Trans-Maine Trail. Follow Route 6 to the end at Jackman. Then take Route 201 south to Augusta as you head home. Baxter State Park is a short diversion off of Route 6. If you decide to go that way I can suggest numerous stops.