50 Things to Do in Maine Before You Die

Nancy Griffin has been a freelance writer for more than 20 years, writing for newspapers, magazines and trade publications. Before that, she was a newspaper and wire service reporter and editor. Nancy is the author of several books, including Maine 101 (7,715) and Makin’ Whoopies (28, 255). She lives in Thomaston, Maine. Dan Tobyne has been involved in photography for more than forty years. He is an artist member of the Marblehead Arts Association and a member of the Griffin Museum of Photography. His work is featured in several books, including Thoreau’s Maine Woods and Scenic Maine Road Trips.

50 Things to Do in Maine Before You Die
1.Eat an All-Maine Meal: Lobster, fiddleheads, Maine potatoes, whoopie pie for dessert
a.Whoopie pie lore
2.Catch a lobster
a.Lobster festival, lobster lore
3.Visit a real lighthouse
a.Small sidebar about Marshall Point being in Forrest Gump
4.Climb Katahdin
5.Drink Moxie (if you dare)
a.Sidebar on Moxie Festival
6.Shop at L.L. Bean
a.Story of ubiquitous Bean Boot, AKA the Maine Hunting Shoe
7.See a whale
8.Spot a moose
9.Get lost in the desert
10.Go whitewater rafting
a.Kennebec, Dead, and Penobscot Rivers
11.Canoe the Allagash
a.Side bar about Old Town Canoe
b.Side bar about Kenduskeag Canoe Race
12.Learn about the Good Life at the Nearing’s Goodlife Center
13.Tour the solar system
a.Side bar about Eartha at DeLorme, if it’s still open to the public under Garmin ownership
14.Watch for puffins
15.See a whirlpool—Old Sow
16.Pan for Gold—Swift River
17.Trek Across Maine
18.Run the Beach to Beacon
19.Hike the 100-Mile Wilderness
20.Mine for gems: Maine Mineral Adventures—Mt Mica, Ryerson Hill, Bennett, and Orchard Pit mines
21.Rake blueberries, where, etc.
a.Sidebar on biggest blueberry
22.Visit Monhegan—no cars allowed
23.Sail on a windjammer
24.Make maple syrup
25.Discover America’s first Fort Knox
a.Sidebar listing other Maine forts
26.Build a boat
27.Go on a dog-sled ride
28.Visit the Shakers
29.Kayak the Maine Island Trail
30.Ride in a hot air balloon
31.Drive Route 1 from Kittery to Fort Kent
32.Discover ancient Maine
a.Shell middens
b.Petroglyphs
33.Eat Bean-Hole Beans
34.Catch a movie of one the last drive-ins
a.Saco, elsewhere?
35.Dine at DeMillo’s
36.Stay at a sporting camp
37.Walk in the garden: Coastal ME Botanical Gardens, Asticou Azalea Gardens
38.Drink the “Champagne of Maine”: Allen’s Coffee Brandy
39.Visit the National Park
a.See the sunrise from Cadillac
b.Thunder Hole
c.Otter Cliffs
40.Ride in a Sea plane at the Greenville Fly-In
41.Learn about the mighty Stanley Steamer
42.Eat at Moody’s Diner
43.Stand in the clouds: Penobscot Narrows Observatory
44.Explore Gulf Hagas
45.Go to an old-time country fair: Fryeburg, Bangor
a.Sidebar on Common Ground Fair
46.Listen to a loon
47.Maine’s Arctic Connection: Peary-MacMillan Museum at Bowdoin
a.Peary’s Eagle Island
48.Harvest ice from a frozen pond
49.Watch the ships coming sailing in at Portland Observatory
a.Sidebar about shopping in the Old Port???
50.See the Milky Way (clearer skies and less light pollution)