I lived in Maine until I was 18 years old. Mainers call it “the state of Maine” because until the Missouri Compromise of 1820, Maine was part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. We remain happy about and proud of our liberation.
Maine is roughly the size of Ohio, but has fewer people than the Columbus metro area (or the Cleveland metro area or the Cincinnati metro area). If its 1.3 million people (slightly more than the Dayton metro area) were even distributed, the state would be sparsely populated. But the population isn’t evenly distributed; it is heavily concentrated in the southern coastal area, whose northern terminus includes Portland and its suburbs.
The Portland metro area contains over 600,000 people, almost half of the state’s population, though fewer than the Toledo metro area or the Youngstown metro area.[1] Mainers from other parts of the state routinely refer to Portland and the southern Maine coast as not really part of Maine. Given the prevalence of sand on the coast and the paucity of rural inhabitants, it’s easy to see why other Mainers consider that area anomalous.
I was recently in central Maine, visiting family. I stayed in Dixmont, whose 36 square miles contain fewer than 1,200 people. There are 640 acres in a square mile, meaning that (on average) each resident of Dixmont has over 19 acres in which to spread out. Your neighborhood probably has a different look.
Feeling a bit crowded, my sons and I headed to Rockwood, which is a village in Northeast Somerset County. This chunk of Maine has 354 people spread over 521 square miles, almost 1.5 square miles per person. That is some serious elbow room. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast_Somerset,_Maine
The main draw is not the space, but the lake. Rockwood is one of several villages and towns that ring Moosehead Lake, the largest lake in Maine (120 square miles) and the largest mountain lake in the eastern United States. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moosehead_Lake At 1,000 feet above sea level, Moosehead Lake is the source of one of Maine’s great rivers, the Kennebec.
A wondrous focal point of the lake is Mount Kineo (in the background as viewed from the shuttle boat dock).
Though only 1,789 feet high, or almost 800 feet higher than the lake, Mount Kineo looks and feels taller because it rises virtually straight up from the water. It is a state park and, though technically on a peninsula, can only be reached by water. We took a shuttle boat .8 miles from Rockwood to Mount Kineo and began hiking. The trail starts flat, following the lake to the west from the drop-off point, then ascends steeply along a ridge offering fantastic views of the lake and surroundings.
To the southeast is the currently closed Big Squaw ski resort. Though the mountain itself has been renamed “Big Moose” to avoid political incorrectness, the locals refuse to call it anything but Squaw.
Upon reaching the flat plateau at the top of the mountain, the views were disappointing. We were ringed in by trees. But a now obsolete fire tower has been converted to a lookout. After climbing seven stories, using rickety hand rails for support,[2] we had 360 degree views, which confirmed the concept of a mountain lake. Moosehead is surrounded by mountains, in every direction except due south, that are significantly higher than Mount Kineo. The highest, Mount Katahdin, which is exactly one mile high, if you count the pile of rocks that surmount its plateau, was not visible the day we were there.
The view was outstanding, well worth the climb.
Mountains and lakes in all directions. Precious little evidence of human activity. Even the gigantic lake had only a couple of boats moving about.
During our return shuttle ride to Rockwood, the boat’s captain pointed to a cottage on the peninsula, which looked nice, freshly painted anyway. He said that is for sale for $825,000, but that he thought the owners would take $700,000. He then laughed and said, oh yea, it isn’t heated. And it’s only accessible in summer (by boat) and in winter (by snowmobile). During the shoulder seasons, there is too much ice for a boat and too little for a snowmobile.[3]
If you’re ever in central Maine, I recommend a day trip to Mount Kineo. If you’ve never been to central Maine, you should plan to go, even if only because it is the best way to drive to Acadia National Park.
[1] The point has been belabored. Maine, though the size of Ohio, has many fewer people. I have always loved saying or writing “many fewer.” It shouldn’t work, but it does.
[2] The stairs themselves, as well as the platform at the top, were comfortingly solid.
[3] The captain also told us that during the winter, the road that ends at the dock during the summer, continues across the lake, across the Mount Kineo peninsula, and then onto land on the other side of the lake. Though it has a state route number, it is only open to snowmobiles.
Just read a note that Maine is also known for Governor with lowest pay, currently $70,000…proportional to the sparse population of taxpayers.
Based on what I have heard about him, he should be paid about $7.
Are Mt Kineo, Mt Moose, and Mt Squaw all the same? Or do the last two refer to the ski resort on Mt Kineo?
Mount Kineo stands alone in the center of the lake. No skiing there, though there is a golf course on the peninsula, billed as the second oldest in New England.
Big Moose and Squaw are the same mountain — neither (?) is part of Mount Kineo. No skiing there either because the lifts are closed. The owner has financial issues in other parts of his real estate empire and has been hording cash to address those problems — or so I was told.
You may enjoy reading Arundel by Kenneth Roberts.
This is the classic series from Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novelist Kenneth Roberts, all featuring characters from the town of Arundel, Maine. Arundel follows Steven Nason as he joins Benedict Arnold in his march to Quebec during the American Revolution.
It is a great book. I read it in high school. At that time I considered historical fiction the height of writing.