Maine vacation - Part one

My mom lives in Maine.  I grew up in Connecticut and Massachusetts but my mom grew up in Northern Maine.   Over 20 years ago, she stumbled across this house in the Central Mountain region and decided to buy it as her retirement home.  She's been fully retired for a couple of years now so our vacations are in Maine every summer.


I keep telling Emma that I can't wait until she turns 16 so she can help with the drive.  It's too far for me to drive in one day so we stop in CT at my aunt's.  Our drive is always the same.  Leave Sat at 9am and head north on 270 in MD until we pick up Rte 15 in Frederick.  This will take us to Harrisburg, PA where we pick up I81 to Scranton.   This is actually the longer way to go but I hate driving up I95 on the New Jersey Turnpike.  Driving through PA we get to go through the Poconos and there are no tolls.


Around noon, we make it too Frackville, PA.  It's the home of the Dutch Kitchen and the place we always stop for lunch.  It's in fact the only place to eat on I81 between Harrisburg and Scranton!  If anyone knows of another home cooking place, let me know.  I always have the Chicken Pot Pie which doesn't have a crust but contains big fat egg noodles on top of the filling.  I need to get a recipe for this.


After lunch, we head north to Scranton - there is never enough time but one day we will stop at the Steamtown National Historic Site.


In Scranton, we pick up I84 and this road takes us into CT.  In Waterbury we head north on Rte 8 to Harwinton which is where my aunt lives.  It's very rural and in years past we have seen bears, wild turkeys and various other wildlife in her backyard.


The next day we leave on Rte 6 into Bristol, CT.  I was born here and lived here for several years while in elementary school (I should have been born in MA as my parents were living on Franklin, MA but I was early and was born during their Thanksgiving trip to my grandparents).  I decided to show the kids were I went to Middle School since they are always hearing stories about how much I hated it! I went to a tiny Lutheran run school and I wasn't even Lutheran!  At least I met my friend Suzanne and she was more miserable than me.  After passing the school, we drove past my old house, the one my grandfather had built (they retired to CA and we moved into their house).  My children were not that interested.


Leaving Bristol, we picked up I84 in Farmington.  Drove to the end and got on the Mass Turnpike, then I290 through Worcester, then I495 to the border of MA and NH and we picked up I95 to the Maine Turnpike.   At lunch time we got off in Kittery and ate at the Weathervane.  Clam chowder, yum yum.


Once back on the Maine turnpike, we take the exit for Lewiston- Auburn.  My mother lives in Peru and it's about 40 min North West of the exit.  Peru is next to Mexico and north of Norway and Paris and south of Madrid.



View Larger Map
Total drive time:  8 hours the first day, 6 hours the second day.

Mom's house

The side porch where I drink wine and read my book