Maine help requested

[mightymike]

We are planning to camp at Acadia National Park for 2-3 nights during the first week of October. After that we have 7-10 to explore the rest of Maine. We prefer National Forest type campgrounds or dispersed camping as often as possible. Every 3-4 nights we like to use a full service type campground (like a state park) to empty the tanks, fill up with water, etc. We will be traveling in our Ram 3500 with a Lance hard-sided camper.

I‘ve been researching White Mountain National Forest already and I‘ve come across Maine Public Lands, which seem to me to be very similar to National Forests.

Does anyone have any recommendations they‘d be willing to share?

We will make reservations for Acadia as soon as the 60-day window opens, but for those that have travelled in Maine in October, do you recommend getting reservations, where available? it doesn’t look like you can reserve spots at the Public Lands. Should we expect them to be full and look for mom and pop style campgrounds? We prefer to be as spontaneous as possible.

Our goals for this trip is to see some beautiful leaves and as few other people as possible (after Acadia).

Mike

 

[NatersXJ6]

I’ve never lived in Maine, but if I was heading into National Forest Camping in the fall anywhere in the northeast, I would be looking into what hunting seasons are open at the time and considering appropriate dress and limits on activities to avoid the ultimate tragedy.

 

[AbleGuy]

⬆ X2 regarding knowing what’s going on with the hunting seasons and how to be safe in the woods.

This sounds like it should be a great trip for you guys, especially if you hit the fall colors at the right time.

Like North Carolina, many folks living Maine have a long standing love affair with going out in the fall (getting away from summer heat and biting insects) and harvesting their annual quota of wild meat…here’s it’s mainly deer, moose and bear.

According to the Maine Wardens’ Service, the woods can get pretty busy and full with hunters anticipating getting a shot off at some moving prey. So to be cautious, they say Don’t wear ANYTHING white during hunting season, and wear lots of blaze orange, especially on your upper body. While hiking in thick brush, try not to noisily rattle branch’s as you pass through (seriously) as this can mimic the sound of bull moose or bucks rattling their antlers in mating displays and excite novice hunters with buck fever. Also, be on the lookout for bear baiting stations so you don’t camp near them.

You might not want to carry a firearm in the backwoods during hunting unless you have a hunting license, and if you have a gun in your car, IIRC, it should be kept unloaded during hunting seasons, due to strict road hunting prohibitions. These are hunting rules, not gun laws.

If fall color season is late, campgrounds may get crowded but that’s hard to predict too far ahead of time. Maine has lots of public land but also lots of private, roaded timber company lands, and even private hunting camp lands, so be sure to look for informative ownership signage when you get off of the pavement. Some otherwise public areas can be closed to public entry too.

Hope I didn’t get too carried away here.

Lastly, the further inland you go away from the coast, and the further north you go, the less crowded it should be.

Heres one useful source for you. Note the discussion about needing to first obtain permits.

Camping

North Maine Woods provides numerous outdoor recreational opportunities for over 100,000 visitors each year while at the same time providing renewable forest resources which are a major part of Maine's economy.

www.northmainewoods.org

 

[mightymike]

Good advice!

 

[Mass_Mopar]

Grab a Maine Gazetteer - it's full of great stuff. https://store.randmcnally.com/delorme-atlas-gazetteer-maine.html

Every year in November we spend a weekend up there around the Rangeley / Jackman / Rockwood / North Maine Woods regions. North and West have beautiful mountain & remote woods terrain. South and East has epic coastal experiences. Lots of history up there, miles of gravel roads, some good hiking also. Blaze orange is a must - every gas station or store will have some for pretty cheap. Good tires are also a must. Extra fuel may be a good idea, depending how remote you want to get. A satellite messenger is extremely handy as you will quickly run out of cell phone service. Late September to mid October is usually great for fall foliage, depending on how cold the fall gets. Not sure how things will look this year with the drought we've been having.

 

[mightymike]

Grab a Maine Gazetteer - it's full of great stuff. https://store.randmcnally.com/delorme-atlas-gazetteer-maine.html

Every year in November we spend a weekend up there around the Rangeley / Jackman / Rockwood / North Maine Woods regions. North and West have beautiful mountain & remote woods terrain. South and East has epic coastal experiences. Lots of history up there, miles of gravel roads, some good hiking also. Blaze orange is a must - every gas station or store will have some for pretty cheap. Good tires are also a must. Extra fuel may be a good idea, depending how remote you want to get. A satellite messenger is extremely handy as you will quickly run out of cell phone service. Late September to mid October is usually great for fall foliage, depending on how cold the fall gets. Not sure how things will look this year with the drought we've been having.

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Thanks Nick! Your pics are getting me even more excited about our trip!

 

[kbroderick]

This year's hunting seasons:

Season Dates and Bag Limits: Laws & Rules: Hunting: Hunting & Trapping: Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife

www.maine.gov

While I get the preference for dispersed camping, I'd suggest sticking to either well established dispersed sites or defined campgrounds if your trip overlaps with deer rifle season. Otherwise, be aware of the calendar, don't dress like anything that's in season, and try to be aware of your impact on animal habits (i.e. don't unnecessarily disturb something that someone else may have been tracking for a week).

The warning about not camping near a bear bait site is a good one, and people are already baiting them now, but I don't know if there's any regulation requiring signage.

Outside of rifle season, the MPL stuff near me doesn't see a ton of use, but I don't know how busy other units get.

 

[aknightinak]

This year's hunting seasons:

Season Dates and Bag Limits: Laws & Rules: Hunting: Hunting & Trapping: Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife

www.maine.gov

The warning about not camping near a bear bait site is a good one, and people are already baiting them now, but I don't know if there's any regulation requiring signage.

I was curious because we do have to post signs here. It does not appear to be a requirement in Maine. The fifty yard buffer from trails and roads isn't a tremendous distance, either. At the stands I used to frequent, that was about the distance from the truck to either one, and we'd be on high alert the whole way in.

Bear Hunting: Laws & Rules: Hunting: Hunting & Trapping: Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife—Bait