RE: ATV Trip to The County

[firefighterjake]

Nothing related to woodstoves . . . although we did pass a mill with a pile of wood that almost made me pee my pants . . . enough wood to last me until the end of days . . . or at least until the world ends in 2012.

I actually thought Soupy might enjoy seeing some of these since he originally hails from The County.

Wind turbines in Mars Hill.
Potato fields in bloom in Presque Isle.
My Honda trees a Polaris sled . . . we shot it out of the tree, skinned it and later ate it for dinner.
I guess this sign says it all.

 

[firefighterjake]

Another view of the windturbines at Mars Hill.

Sunflowers in a field along the ATV trail.

A bit of wood.

More wood.

 

[firefighterjake]

Close up shot of the sunflowers.

US/Canadian border markers . . . fence . . . illegal immigrants . . . no problem here.

View of The Border Trail . . . to the left -- the United States . . . to the right -- Canada (where they spell things wrong and insist on using the metric system which confounds us Americans to no end )

 

[firefighterjake]

Going through the mudpuddles.

Dinner . . . pizza casserole (meat and for the vegans in the group -- vegetable.)

And cake for dessert . . . all baked in the Dutch Ovens over the open fire.

 

[firefighterjake]

View from the Crouseville Bridge . . . longest ATV/snowmobile bridge in Maine.

Old border station.

Eating lunch in Mars Hill.

 

[Badfish740]

Great pics-I'm jealous! The wife and I visited Maine for the first time (Bar Harbor/Acadia) and fill instantly in love. We're hoping to buy property somewhere in "The County" one of these days with the intention of eventually retiring to it.

 

[quads]

Excellent pics Jake! They remind me that it has been way too long since I went for an ATV ride!

 

[firefighterjake]

Great pics-I'm jealous! The wife and I visited Maine for the first time (Bar Harbor/Acadia) and fill instantly in love. We're hoping to buy property somewhere in "The County" one of these days with the intention of eventually retiring to it.

As nice as Bar Harbor and Acadia are . . . there's quite a difference in the terrain and people on Mt. Dessert Island and in The County.

 

[Badfish740]

Great pics-I'm jealous! The wife and I visited Maine for the first time (Bar Harbor/Acadia) and fill instantly in love. We're hoping to buy property somewhere in "The County" one of these days with the intention of eventually retiring to it.

As nice as Bar Harbor and Acadia are . . . there's quite a difference in the terrain and people on Mt. Dessert Island and in The County.

From what I know of Maine thus far I feel like Mt. Desert is sort of a miniature version of the whole state-you have the ocean, the mountains, and the forests and lakes all right there. We're not really coastal people-we like the forests and the lakes, so the county would suit us just fine. People are sort of irrelevant. Though all the Mainers we met were very friendly folk, one of our main reasons for wanting to move to the county is the scarcity of people

 

[Skier76]

Great pics Jake! A few of the guys I used to ride with head up there every so often. Those are mostly sled trails, right?

 

[Flatbedford]

Must get some deep snow up there!

At least it looks like snow melt stranded the sled.

 

[firefighterjake]

Great pics-I'm jealous! The wife and I visited Maine for the first time (Bar Harbor/Acadia) and fill instantly in love. We're hoping to buy property somewhere in "The County" one of these days with the intention of eventually retiring to it.

As nice as Bar Harbor and Acadia are . . . there's quite a difference in the terrain and people on Mt. Dessert Island and in The County.

From what I know of Maine thus far I feel like Mt. Desert is sort of a miniature version of the whole state-you have the ocean, the mountains, and the forests and lakes all right there. We're not really coastal people-we like the forests and the lakes, so the county would suit us just fine. People are sort of irrelevant. Though all the Mainers we met were very friendly folk, one of our main reasons for wanting to move to the county is the scarcity of people

Mt. Desert Island is most definitely not a miniature version of the rest of the state . . . there is a lot of money on that island . . . money you will not find in too many other places . . . now the terrain . . . yeah . . . I could agree with your statement to some degree . . . but there are many, many other places in Maine that offer very pretty spots with far less folks and rules and regulations. Don't get me wrong, I love to visit MDI . . . but I wouldn't want to live there.

 

[firefighterjake]

Great pics Jake! A few of the guys I used to ride with head up there every so often. Those are mostly sled trails, right?

Most are dual use trails . . . some places where the sled trail would cut through the potato or broccolli fields the trail winds around the field or on to an access route . . . but yeah, most are dual use trails.

 

[Badfish740]

now the terrain . . . yeah . . . I could agree with your statement to some degree . . .

That's what I meant entirely-it's kind of neat to be able to stand on top of Penobscot Mountain, look east, and see ocean and islands, and look west and see beautiful forests and lakes. Visiting MDI made me realize (and this is just me) that the mountains, forests, and lakes of Maine are where I want to be. The coast would just be fun to visit now and then.

there are many, many other places in Maine that offer very pretty spots with far less folks and rules and regulations.

Absolutely. Few people + fewer regulation = Paradise. I about collapsed with joy when I learned that most towns (not to mention UTs) in the county don't require building inspections and that they allow things like surface wells, composting toilets, etc...

Don't get me wrong, I love to visit MDI . . . but I wouldn't want to live there.

Me either, but Finback Alehouse (Bar Harbor) makes a mean pub burger

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Great pictures Jake. It appears you had a great time too. Now about that sled in the tree....

 

[firefighterjake]

Great pictures Jake. It appears you had a great time too. Now about that sled in the tree....

It's a long winter in The County . . . what more can I say.

If you go up to Fort Kent/Frenchville there's a section of the trail where they have plywood cut-outs of cows, sheep and other critters alongside the trail . . . again . . . it's a long winter . . . I think they go a little stir crazy up that a way.

 

[firefighterjake]

now the terrain . . . yeah . . . I could agree with your statement to some degree . . .

That's what I meant entirely-it's kind of neat to be able to stand on top of Penobscot Mountain, look east, and see ocean and islands, and look west and see beautiful forests and lakes. Visiting MDI made me realize (and this is just me) that the mountains, forests, and lakes of Maine are where I want to be. The coast would just be fun to visit now and then.

there are many, many other places in Maine that offer very pretty spots with far less folks and rules and regulations.

Absolutely. Few people + fewer regulation = Paradise. I about collapsed with joy when I learned that most towns (not to mention UTs) in the county don't require building inspections and that they allow things like surface wells, composting toilets, etc...

Don't get me wrong, I love to visit MDI . . . but I wouldn't want to live there.

Me either, but Finback Alehouse (Bar Harbor) makes a mean pub burger

It is a nice place to live . . . or at least retire to or visit . . . and as you said . . . many places in that section -- and even in my section of Maine -- still do not require a lot of building inspections and are more lenient on what is allowed. I know of at least one NJ ex-pat who lives in The County in fact . . . used to run a place with rental cabins for sledders.