Skip to main content

New England Road Trip - Day 3 - Exploring Maine

Day 3 of the New England Trip was exclusively Maine (well we did re-enter New Hampshire twice - more on that later).  We went from North Conway, NH to Rockland, ME by way of Acadia National Park.

Route: US 302, ME 113, US 2, ME 156, US 2, ME 11/100, I-95, I-395, US 1A, ME 3, US 1.

This blog will cover the trip from North Conway to Acadia National Park.  For the entire photo set on flickr, head here.

399

My first time back in Maine since October 2003!!!  In Fryeburg, we turned North on ME 113 to head to US 2.  However, what is interesting about ME 113 it actually re-enters New Hampshire twice between US 302 and US 2.  New Hampshire signs the route as a Maine highway.

402

After entering Maine for the final time, ME 113 enters White Mountain National Forest.  The road is typically closed in the winter.

406

Somewhere on US 2 was this great antique store full of great old signs.  Unfortunately, it was closed.

428

After a quick stop in Rumford Corner, we stopped at the town of Rumford and took in the amazing Rumford Falls.

442

449

Rumford Falls is also known as Pennacook Falls.  The overall drop for the three falls is 176 feet which is the steepest drop east of Niagra.  The photos I took of the Middle Falls is seen very easily from US 2.

The area around the Middle Falls are surrounded by a nicely developed park and fishing is very popular.  There is also a memorial to former Maine US Senator, Secretary of State and Presidential candidate Edwin Muskie at the park.

457

459

While we were there, a car wash set up.

491

And considering the mud from the rain the day before that was on Doug's Vehicle....we got it washed!

493

Further east ...an older US 2 shield.

496

Unfortunately, as we continued East the breaks in the clouds we enjoyed earlier on US 2 went away - and the overcast conditions continued all the way to Mount Desert Island.  One last goodie before we feature Acadia National Park.  On US 1A - an ancient Junction ME 179 and 180 uni-sign.

Old Maine Junction 179 and 180 uni-sign

Comments

Jim said…
Awesome signage, esp. the US 2.

Popular posts from this blog

Ghost Town Tuesday; Mannfield, FL and the stairway to Hell

Back in 2015 I went searching the Lecanto Sand Hills for the original Citrus County Seat known as Mannfield.  Unlike Centrailia in Hernando County and Fivay in Pasco County I did find something worth seeing. Mannfield is located in the Lecanto Sand Hill section of Withlacoochee State Forest somewhat east of the intersection of Citrus County Route 491 and Mansfield Road. Mannfield was named after Austin Mann and founded in Hernando County in 1884 before Citrus County Split away.  In 1887 Citrus County was split from northern Hernando County while Pasco County was spun off to the south.  Mannfield was selected as the new Citrus County seat due to it being near the county geographic center.  Reportedly Mannfield had as many as 250 people when it was the County Seat.  The town included various businesses one might include at the time, even a sawmill which was common for the area.  In 1891 Citrus County voted to move it's seat to Inverness which set the s...

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l...

The mystery of Hawaii Route 144 and temporary Hawaii Route 11

The 1959 Gousha Road map of Hawaii features two largely unknown references in the form of Hawaii Route 144 and Temporary Hawaii Route 11.  Both corridors are shown running from the boundary of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park east to Glenwood via Volcano Village.  At the time Hawaii Route 11 was using the so-called "Volcano Road" which was constructed as a modernization of Mamalahoa Highway during 1927-1928.  This blog will examine the two map references and will attempt to determine what they might indicate.  The mystery of Hawaii Route 144 and Temporary Hawaii Route 11 Hawaii Route 11 is part of Mamalahoa Highway (the Hawaii Belt Road) and is the longest Hawaiian State Route at 121.97 miles.  The highway begins at the mutual junction of Hawaii Route 19 and Hawaii Route 190 in Kailua-Kona.  From Kailua-Kona the routing of Hawaii Route 11 crosses the volcanic landscapes of southern side of the Big Island.  Hawaii Route 11 terminates at Hawaii Route 19/Ka...