Land of lakes

Region's year-round fun is no longer just for hunters and fisherman

November 28, 2007|CLOSE-UP ON RANGELEY, MAINE, Diane Daniel, Globe Correspondent

Thanks to its location far from Interstate highways and sizable cities, this little town in western Maine has stayed much the same for decades. The biggest news in the past couple of years has been about the expanded and relocated IGA supermarket, the addition of a Thai restaurant, and a new ski lodge at Saddleback Maine. The region known as Rangeley Lakes has 110 lakes, ponds, and streams, and it includes the small village of Oquossoc 7 miles west. Surrounded by mountains, the area is largely undeveloped, though more and more houses are being built along winding dirt roads in the woods. While Rangeley became legendary as a hunting and fishing mecca, now it attracts nature lovers year-round.

Rest

If you want to stay "downtown," you can't beat The Rangeley Inn and Motor Lodge (2443 Main St., 800-666-3687, rangeleyinn.com). This landmark hotel (an inn of some sort has been on this site since 1877) with 52 nicely appointed rooms, some overlooking a pond, anchors the town. If you don't stay there, at least pop by the lobby, dating to 1908, and view its wonderful collection of historical photos. About a half mile off Main Street lies the newly renovated Pleasant Street Inn Bed & Breakfast (104 Pleasant St., 207-864-5916, pleasantstreetinnbb.com). The wireless-connected inn features five guest rooms in a quiet residential setting, with two sitting rooms, a front porch, an outdoor patio, and enough space to park your boat or snowmobile trailer. Loon Lodge (16 Pickford Road, 207-864-5666, loonlodgeme.com) sits on Rangeley Lake and has a panoramic view of the mountains and lake. Built in 1909 as a private residence, the log cabin structure was renovated in 2001. In Oquossoc is Bald Mountain Camps (Bald Mountain Road, 207-964-3671, baldmountaincamps.com, open May through September), built as a sporting camp in the late 1800s. One of the region's oldest camps, rustic and charming Bald Mountain sits on the shore of the 16,300-acre Mooselookmeguntic Lake, the state's largest after Moosehead.