1. Lake St. George State Park
City: Liberty, ME
Category: Parks & Recreation
Telephone: (207) 589-4255
Address: Route 3
Description: Another great swimming lake not too far inland from the coast, Lake St. George can get busy on a warm day. The water here is on the coolish side compared to other lakes, since it’s spring fed, but that doesn’t stop people from splishing and splashing under the watchful eyes of lifeguards. The 360-acre park is about halfway between Belfast and Augusta, 19 miles from the Penobscot Bay city, and it’s well worth the trip out. The grounds were once a pretty farm, and the old homestead and some barns are used by the rangers. There are 38 campsites—many of them right on the shore of the 1,017-acre lake—with hot showers, and flush toilets to boot. The sites can fill up quickly with locals, who like to swim and fish and use the boat launch and play areas here. The only drawback to camping is the proximity of Route 3, the primary thoroughfare between Belfast and the capital, and cars and big trucks whiz by at all hours. The park’s open from May 15 through September.
2. Liberty Tool
City: Liberty, ME
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (207) 589-4771
Address: Main St.
Description: This is the sort of funky old place where you can get happily lost for hours. Four stories of second-time-around tools fill this creaky old building on Main Street, as well as a mixture of antiques, junk, and books. It’s always fun to peruse the electric hand tools, axes, drill bits, and dusty shelves here, and few people leave without buying something.