As I sit here in sunny Florida, I think about how our lifestyle is like endless summer. With short stints of spring and fall mixed in. Endless summer, something many dream of. Being nomadic gives you that opportunity. But this post isn’t about that, although I could write an entire post on that topic. No this post is a step back in time to true summer in the northern hemisphere. A time spent camped riverside in Maine. It was warm, sunny, and the sound of the river flowing nearby was music to my ears. 

Our last area to explore was the Bigelow Preserve located in northwestern Maine. And again it did not disappoint. What a beautiful area! We stayed at the Big Eddy Campground, which is really just several spots marked off right across the road from the Dead River. In fact the campsites are right off the paved road. After looking at the satellite view of them I was wondering how they would work out. Turns out just fine. This part of the road was not heavily traveled and the close proximity to the river was a big draw. 

We arrived a few days before Labor Day weekend. Upon arrival we were the only ones there for a few days, other than a broken down rig with a note attached saying “awaiting parts”.  No cell service to be had without driving down the road a ways. But the sites were out in the open making Starlink our friend along with plenty of solar. 

Sunset sky over the river. Not a bad view from our spot. 

There is a dam just up the road which changes the water level pretty dramatically. They open it up for more water flow for the white water rafters. The first and the second photo are the same view point when we first arrived and a week later. The first one is with the water level up. Notice the people in the water and the rock peninsula now exposed in the second photo. In the last photo most of those rocks are covered when the water level is up. 

It was glorious having this place all to ourselves with so much to explore nearby. Flagstaff Lake was gorgeous!

Found this waterfall on our way back from exploring. 

Went for a nice hike that met up with the Appalachian Trail. We hiked about a half mile of the AT. In some cases using a rock as a prop to avoid some wet spots. 

Beauty at every turn and sunsets over the water.

Over the holiday weekend people started coming in and by Saturday night the place was full. 13 or so sites all taken. One class-C found themselves in luck when they arrived shortly after a camper left on a Saturday of a holiday weekend. Pro-tip: avoid moving to a new campsite on the weekends when it comes to first come first serve. Especially on a holiday. 

By Sunday afternoon the place was cleared out except for 2 spots. One, the broken down rig. A family showed up over the weekend and camped. Then replaced the note with a new one saying there was something else wrong with it. We suspect they simply did not want to move it, hard to say. The other a couple hunting bear that were camped next to us. Lucky for us they left Monday afternoon. 

Apparently, they ran out of propane and had to run their generator all day and night for their fridge. Have you heard of ice and a cooler? They were locals camping for a few days to hunt so how much could they have possibly had in their fridge. Needless to say we did not sleep well those 2 nights and I spent most of the day down by the river so I did not have to listen to their loud ass generator. The river did a great job of drowning it out and it was absolute bliss to sit with my feet in the water and read. Once they left it was back to peace and quiet and just us.  

We loved the place so much we stayed an extra day. Worked in some kayaking on the other side of the lake. Which takes about an hour to get to as the “shortest” route is via a gravel logging road. Well worth the drive. 

As our time drew to a close, we gave our thanks to the beautiful riverside campsite and bid Maine a fond farewell. 

Note: It’s rare we have issues like we did with our neighbor and for that I am grateful. I try to be understanding to people’s situations. But this particular one really got under my skin. They took the time to drive into town (an hour away) to get more gas for the generator, why they didn’t pick up a cooler and ice is beyond me. They were not full timers, so I cannot imagine what was so important in that fridge to run a generator all hours of the day. Perhaps a medication, who knows. It took away from our experience for a couple of days but in the end I realized it’s a learning experience. I learned patience and acceptance. As they drove away I will admit to doing a little happy dance of joy. Peace and quiet had returned and we had the entire next day – just Shane, Josie, myself, and the beautiful sounds of the rushing river nearby. 

Thank you, thank you Maine! You are a true treasure. It was wonderful to finally make the trip to such a beautiful state.