The Kennebec Explorer 2020 Visitor's Guide to Maine's Kennebec Valley | Page 11

As you drive through Maine’s Kennebec
Valley, slow down and stop when it
feels right to enjoy the grand views
and stunning scenery you’ll find here.
For those along for the ride, put down
your phone, or you might miss out.
You might spot a red-tailed hawk
hovering in flight or a gang of wild
turkeys in a field. A Maine moose
could even be hiding between the
trees, curiously looking back.
Each season offers a marvel. Late spring
into summer brings the bright, fresh
greens of fiddleheads at the roadside
and trees dressed in new leaf. Summer
fills the sky with blue—puffs of white
float over the deep green canopy.
Autumn’s gold and red hues can leave
you breathless. Wintery whites of
new-fallen snow and brilliant rays
of sunlight through bare trees are
a stark reminder that there is vast
beauty in every season.
Try some of our favorite scenic drives
and make it an adventure. Be sure to
fill the tank and grab some snacks first.
Explore the side roads. Don’t just use the
GPS; find and use a Maine Gazetteer.
Play a game called “turn left.” Get “lost”
on purpose along a country road.
Jump off the Turnpike a little early in
Sabattus and follow 126 through
Monmouth, the Tacoma Lakes and
along Cobbesseecontee Stream to
Gardiner. Or leave I95 altogether in
West Gardiner and take Route 201 north
through Hallowell, Augusta, Waterville,
Fairfield, and Skowhegan, following
the Kennebec the whole way.
Drive along the roads that surround the
lakes of Monmouth and the Belgrades,
absorbing the small-town charm of
places like Readfield, Fayette, Mount
Vernon, and Vienna.
With preparation, it’s easy to make your
own way through our 5,000 square
miles and seventy communities of the
Kennebec Valley. A road connects each
of them. While not all offer an Attean
View or the flow of the Kennebec River
just west of Skowhegan, they all will
take you somewhere you’ve never
been before.
New Portland Wire Bridge
CLASSIC DRIVES
Old Canada Road National
Scenic Byway
Length: 78 Miles, Travel Time: 3 Hours
Maine’s historical and cultural past
travels along Route 201, weaving its
story through the area’s many down-
home cities, towns, and villages from
Skowhegan to the international border
with Canada (passport required).
Scenic Lower Somerset
Length: 60 Miles, Travel Time: 1.25 Hours
Travel north from Skowhegan to
Mayfield Corner back west to Bingham,
then travel south on Route 201 all the
way back to Skowhegan.
It Takes Moxie
Length: 144 Miles, Travel Time: 3.5 Hours
Take Route 201 to The Forks and turn
right onto Lake Moxie Road. Stop for
a visit to Moxie Falls or scenic Moxie
Pond, then get back on Route 201, and
head north to Jackman and Rockwood.
Attean View
VISITOR RESOURCES:
Old Canada Road National Scenic Byway – Bit.ly/OldCanadaRoad
For more about scenic drives visit KennebecValley.org
Voyage International
Length: 245 Miles, Travel Time: 5.5 Hours
Follow Route 201 north to the interna-
tional border with Canada (passport
required). Once in Canada, take Routes
173, 269, 204, and 161 to Woburn, cross
into the U.S. to Coburn Gore, follow
Route 27 back south.
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