50 Things to Do in Maine Before You Die

The ultimate to-do list for Mainers and visitors alike What better way to celebrate 50 years of book publishing than to celebrate the greatest things Maine has to offer. Following the popular trend in “bucket list” books, this experiential guide will help visitors and residents alike discover everything there is to do here. Taken all together, these experiences are enough to fill a life time.

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