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Dan J

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Hi everyone. I am working on my NE115 and only have the peaks of Maine left. I've started to plan for next year's hikes and am looking for suggestions. I live in upstate N.Y. so I was thinking of taking a week and trying to do the 10 peaks in the Carrabassett Valley area. Does anyone have suggestions on a nice place to stay? Maybe a cabin rental or something family friendly? Also, are there any other attractions in the area for small kids? Any suggestions are appreciated.
Thanks,
Dan
 
Why not start on the AT and Just follow that? Go from RT 4 and it crosses, Saddleback, the Horn, Spaulding, a blue blaze trail to Abraham, Sugarloaf, North and South Crocker with a bushwack to Reddington and then the Bigelows. End up at Flagstaff Lake. Not sure if that would work for you, or not. Not a lot to do there in the Summer if the kids don't like hiking. Winter is predominately snow sports and Summer is hiking and fishing.

Maine Huts and trails is family friendly, but it can be pricey.
 
Oh cool, that might be a good idea. Kids are 2 and 4, so trying to put together a plan. I'll look into the AT, thanks!
 
I like to stay at Cathedral Pines Campground when I'm in the area day hiking. With young kids though, I would look into a condo rental at Sugarloaf using a site like homeaway. Spring/summer rates tend to be low and you'll appreciate having all the amenities.
 
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I've stayed at the Spillover Motel when it was just me - twice - once for the 4Ks and once for the NEHH peaks.
I've also rented a house twice through homeaway during winter for 4K-in-winter trips.

My kids aren't hikers or campers and neither is my wife, so the best bet for me is to leave them home where they are comfortable.


Maine-NEHH-Six-Pack-plus-Elephant-8-11-12-8-14-12
Saddleback-and-The-Horn-23-Jul-2010


Tim
 
I stayed in the Mountain View Motel, south/east of Stratton on 27, back in 2009 (so much may have changed) and rather liked it. Decent rooms, clean, kitchenette, reasonably priced; I remember thinking if I wanted to home base out of the area for awhile it's where I'd go. http://www.mountainviewmotelmaine.com/
 
I stayed in the Mountain View Motel, south/east of Stratton on 27, back in 2009 (so much may have changed) and rather liked it. Decent rooms, clean, kitchenette, reasonably priced; I remember thinking if I wanted to home base out of the area for awhile it's where I'd go. http://www.mountainviewmotelmaine.com/

Stayed in the same place in December 2015 - Great place for a winter base camp. We really liked that they had an assortment of rooms available in different shapes/sizes to accommodate different groups. The owners are very friendly, and you can tell outdoors athletes are their target market (I'm pretty sure they had hiking maps/books for loan in their lobby).
 
Also, as far as maps. What have you used? I have the Maine Amc guide, but the map doesn't cover all of that area.
 
I used the AMC Mountain Guide the first time I visited, but then on a later trip, I found a copy "Rangeley Lakes Region Trail Map" by The Wilderness Map Company, and I prefer it much more due to the fact that it has distances on the topo. I got mine at Maine Huts & Trails in Kingsfield.

ISBN 978-0-9883245-0-3
 
You may find that over a week or more that two, or maybe even three, accommodations would serve you best for trailhead access and family interests. Consideration in that regard could earn you a drop off and pick up for and end to end rather than out and back ... while leaving the vehicle available for your family to pursue other attractions or easy hikes.

For camping you can't beat Cathedral Pine Campground. Get reservations early and try for a lakeside site for the best views and serenade of loons.

Maine Huts and Trails puts you in a good place for parts of the Bigelow Range at their Stratton Brook Hut. They appeal to bikers and trails are designed to accommodate that so your family might like to bike while you hike. You can get a private room and when considering pricey, consider that they provide meals including a picnic style lunch to go. They are comparatively luxurious (showers, ambience) and compare favorably over AMC's huts in price.

In the Rangeley area we've enjoyed North Camps, a lakefront traditional Maine sporting camp, for small group outings. They have some meals but cabins are housekeeping and we made our own breakfasts, ate lunch on the trail and dined out nearer the trails.

As for maps, you'll need mutliple maps for best coverage of the entire area. My first trip there predated digital mapping tools at home so I copied relevant pages out of DeLorme, essential for anything in Maine!, taped them together trimming as needed, and wound up with 2 11x17 pages with a great overview for planning and utilizing logging roads.
 
Again, thanks for the suggestions and info.
 
Look at the Herbert Grand Hotel in Kingfield. Old style wood panel lobby and sitting area, good price. I've stayed at this friendly place a couple of times.
 
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