Life in Amity Maine what to expect? (Houlton, Norway: home, camp)

[RANGER.101ST]

Originally Posted by kevin5098

Thanks again for all the replies. Makes me much more confident we have made the right decision. Guess my 2 motorcycles will be sold for money towards a snowmobile. The wildlife Refuge also sounds great. I'm no stranger to volunteer work as I donate my time here to the MO Dept of Conservation as a safety officer at the local shooting range. Have met some nice people there. I'm excited about going up this weekend to look the place over.

OH dont sell your bikes man there is no better ride then up RT1 to houlton or mars hill on a bike on a nice day.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by RANGER.101ST

OH dont sell your bikes man there is no better ride then up RT1 to houlton or mars hill on a bike on a nice day.

Yeah but you have to make sure the windmills don't suck you off the road!!!

[marcyl]

I think he should keep his old Britt bike for nice day rides. Kevin has LOADS of toys he can spare to build a sled fund. Does anyone have experience with well drilling?

[fxtrader]

Originally Posted by marcyl

So, I guess a snowmobile has to go on our need list along with Kevin's ice fishing equipment... I thought that the post office is in a store on route 1? Do they have mail delivery?

The Post office in the store you are referring to is actually in Orient. Or was in Orient. They had a fire at the beginning of November. There is mail delivery. There is a Post Office in Danforth and one on route 1 in Houlton on your way into town.

[marcyl]

I know back in the day, the mailbox was on the end of the road. There was a row of boxes. Most were our relatives, so in a way we did the mail delivery.

[AdaminMaine]

Find a farm with horses that offer a program for children with disabilities. Go to the annual town meeting and listen to what the people say. Keep your politics to yourself but voice your opinions after you have studied an issue and discussed it with several neighbors. Get involved with some outdoor activities and look for different things to do rather than complain that things are not the same as you are used to. My wife and I moved up here almost 15 years ago. I left a week after the ice storm of January 1998 and we returned during the Summer of 1999. I grew up in NYC and Bergen County, NJ. The folks are honest and friendly.

[marcyl]

Thanks for the great ideas! Our son is 35, but it looks like there are ample programs available if needed for Jay. As for politics that's a given most places these days. Kevin went to the closing Friday and the house definitely needs work. We are still excited, picked up a few old house renovation books. We need to get our place in Missouri on the market as soon as possible.

[maineguy8888]

Originally Posted by marcyl

Thanks for the great ideas! Our son is 35, but it looks like there are ample programs available if needed for Jay. As for politics that's a given most places these days. Kevin went to the closing Friday and the house definitely needs work. We are still excited, picked up a few old house renovation books. We need to get our place in Missouri on the market as soon as possible.

Some good advice I got when purchasing our older home: it's the hat (roof) and the boots (foundation) that matter most!
The rest can come later.

[kevin5098]

Just got back from the visiting the homestead to be. Closed on Friday and spent the next two nights there. I walked the boundary and found all four corner posts. Deer sign (scat) at the SW corner in a clearing was encouraging.

As for the house, the "Boots" look to be in good shape. The "hat" needs some work, though I could find no evidence of leaks - just some moss on the N side. Some clapboards, door and window wood to replace.

Heat and electric are probably the biggest concerns. I need to replace the fuse box with circuit breakers and the homemade 55 Gal drum furnace in the basement will have to be replaced, but these are probably topics for another thread.

My visit leaves me with the impression that life there will be very agreeable, and we can probably survive on my pension and what we can produce.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Raspberries are an easy crop to produce in Maine.