The first week of August I took my first real vacation in a long time. My fiance and I went headed 220 miles north of our tiny apartment to the small town of Island Falls, Maine. This town, exit 276 off I-95, is about a half an hour from Houlton(one of the biggest towns in Northern Maine) and about 40 from the Canadian border(New Brunswick). We spent the week in a condo that his mom and step-dad had been kind enough to give us for the week. But what is there to do in Northern Maine?
All photos were taken by Jinni Workman
1. Rent a Boat and Go Fishing
Just minutes from the condo we were staying in was a campground called Birch Point. Birch Point sat in one of the coves of Pleasant Pond, a beautiful lake near Island Falls. The lake was surrounded by huge hills and you could see the windmills in Oakfield in the distance. The water was rough, but it made for a great morning and early afternoon on the water. We only caught one fish in the four hours we were on the water, but I was happy to just spend some time with my honey.
2. Go Hiking
There were many trails within an hour of where we were staying in Island Falls. In fact, Baxter State Park was only an hour away. We didn't actually go to Baxter State park as neither of us could seem to motivate early enough to get there and have time to do anything. We did pick a trail just on the outskirts of Baxter State in Patten. This trail was called the Seboeis River Trail. This trail was about 2 miles long, winding through the woods and following the river. It had a lot of beautiful scenery to take pictures of. The end of the trail took us to a gorge. It was a nice way to spend the afternoon and a good way to wear me out.
3. Go To Grammy's
Ironically, my fiance's grandmother does live in the area we were visiting and we did go to her house to visit. However, that is not the Grammy's I am referring to. Grammy's is a small restaurant in Linnaeus. There is nothing small about the portion sizes of the food they serve you though! I loved this place so much that we went twice in the week we were staying up north.
4. Do Nothing
Do nothing? Sometimes staying in the condo and just relaxing was a nice way to spend an evening or morning. We went through a lot of movies that week.
5. Go To Houlton
Houlton is the biggest town up where we were. We went to Houlton a few times while staying up north just because we needed to go to Walmart or we wanted a bigger selection of food at the grocery store. Houlton is a good place to park your car and just walk around for a while once you get into downtown Houlton that is. It has beautiful homes, big ones too, to look at.
6. Go To Canada
We did not go to Canada because I don't have a passport, but the New Brunswick border is only 15 minutes from Houlton so maybe next time that could be an option.
7. Enjoy The Scenery
There is so much beauty up in Northern Maine. Just taking a drive around was a great way to spend time during my vacation!
8. Other Things To Do
Restaurants:
-River Cafe in Island Falls
-Debbie's Deli in Patten
-The Slice in Island Falls
Activities:
-Horseback Riding in Hersey
-Fourwheeling all over the place
-Go to Presque Island(if you want to drive for a while)
-The Amish Store
Overall, my vacation was relaxing and much needed.
