Discover Aroostook 2023

DISCOVER

2023

AROOSTOOK COUNTY

FORT FAIRFIELD POTATO FIELD WORKERS, CIRCA 1975.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINE FOGLER LIBRARY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

A Special Advertising Section of The Bangor Daily News • Friday, November 17, 2023

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

M A I N E ' S P O TATO H A R VE ST O F F E R S

VALUABLE LESSONS

BY WANDA CURTIS

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very student loves a break — whether it's a holiday, summer vacation, THREE GENERATIONS OF POTATO PICKERS or even a weekend, they enjoy having time off from school. But Andrew Mooers, the owner of Houlton-based Mooers Realty, grew up on a Aroostook County students take a break every autumn that’s a little potato farm. His children also grew up picking potatoes and learned valuable different. lessons, he said.

COURTESY OF best ANDREW MOOERS “My four kids all picked potatoes PHOTO and it was by far the experience any of Harvest break has been a Maine tradition since the 1940s. Students are released them ever had,” said Mooers. “Their first job, their development of work ethic, and from school for three weeks to assist local farmers with the potato harvest. learning how to develop a system out in the field was invaluable. My kids learned SAD 42 Superintendent of Schools Elaine Boulier said that 30-35 percent of you don't buy it if it is not worth it. They know how hard a dollar is to earn and the students in their district have participated in the harvest break the past few make sure to get value or wait. Keep looking until you find something worth the years. She said that other students, who have different jobs, take advantage of the four, six, or more barrels of potatoes that it took to earn it.” opportunity to work more hours. Though some school districts have elected to discontinue the harvest break, many still participate.

“We have always been committed to harvest break to support our farming MEMORIES OF THE POTATO HARVEST community and our farmers,” Boulier said.

Mooers has fond memories of the years he spent picking potatoes on their family According to Boulier, the harvest break not only benefits the farming community farm. He said that everyone in the area took part in the potato harvest whether they but is also beneficial for the students. Harvest time shows students first hand grew up on a family farm or not. The smallest child was just as important as the oldest where their food comes from, teaches a strong work ethic, and teaches the value when it came to picking potatoes. of teamwork, commitment, and money management.

“No matter how old or young, everyone picked in the Assistant Executive Director of the Maine Potato potato field,” said Mooers. “All were needed to get the crop Board Jeannie Tapley said the harvest break has been out and into potato house storage, to load up and ship an integral part of the potato industry as most growers down the road to out-of-state markets.” rely on the help of the students to get the crops out Mooers recalls getting up early in the morning and of the ground. As with many other industries today, going to bed early. Lunch was prepared very early in the there's a shortage of workers in the potato industry. morning with lots of energy snacks. He said they wore Tapley also agreed that the break is beneficial for layers of clothing because there might have been a frost students. that morning. By noontime, however, they were stripped “Growers would be at a great disadvantage without down to a T-shirt, with the hot sun overhead, as they the students to help harvest the crop,” Tapley said. picked baskets of potatoes, which were then poured into “This also gives many students their first jobs and cedar or plywood barrels.

ANDREW MOOERS WITH DAUGHTER ELIZABETH. the opportunity to build work ethic and sense of “Four baskets per barrel that weigh 165 pounds,” recalls PHOTO COURTESY OF ANDREW MOOERS community as this is our local heritage.”

Mooers. “The pickers take a section, a length of potato

DISCOVER AROOSTOOK • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

field that is your job to keep picked up, as the digger, pulled by a farm tractor, squeaks by row by row. You don't want to be ‘caught up’ and waiting for the digger to unearth more spuds. But you are out here to make some money and stay productive.”

According to Mooers, many skills could be learned in the potato field and laziness was not one of them. He said they learned to work hard, pick clean, and not miss any potatoes.

“The more you pick, the more you make, and it becomes a field competition,” said Mooers. “My personal best was 88 barrels and I was paid 25 cents for each, with my ticket slid in the crack on the top [of the barrel].”

He said that harvesting potatoes gives youth the opportunity to earn money for school clothes, to save for college, or to buy something they really want.

Potato picking may offer benefits later in life as well. Employers around the state and beyond have been known to hire former Aroostook County potato picking alum, based solely on the knowledge that they’re guaranteed to be a hard worker.

It’s a good kind of discrimination, Mooers said, “where being from Maine and picking potatoes as a kid, growing up in rural areas of the state, you [may be] hired because you know how to work, like to do a good job without complaining, and take pride in your labor.”

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ANDREW MOOERS

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

YO U CA N G E T T H E R E F R O M H E R E –

VIA THE

PINE TREE TRAIL

BY ANNE GABBIANELLI

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imple green and white signs sporting Maine’s iconic pine tree and reading “Pine Tree Trail” are popping up throughout the state — encouraging motorists to once again travel a trail dating back 1937.

That’s when the Maine legislature passed an act designating a route from Portland to Fort Kent as the “Pine Tree Trail.” That act was sponsored by State Representative George E. Martin of Milford, a community through which the trail travels. The goal was to lure tourists to the rooftop of the state and explore all the communities along the way.

The historic route was forgotten over time, mainly because of the construction of I-95. But today, it is once again included in the newly published 2023 Official Maine Highway Map, thanks to the determination of a Molunkus Township couple, Nate Nipula and Robbie McKay.

The quest unknowingly began in 2012 when Nipula was looking for scrap metal on the Olsen Family Homestead, which has been in McKay’s family for generations.

Nipula unearthed a weathered, rusted oval sign which faintly read Pine Tree Trail.

“I first spotted just a small piece of metal sticking out of the dirt and leaves,” Nipula said. “When I picked it up off the ground, I thought it was just a bent-up piece of sheet metal with bullet holes in it. It had dirt caked onto it from where the leaves had decayed and turned to soil for 60-plus years. The face of it was missing all of the paint, but the back was oddly still in decent shape.”

After several years of looking at the find, curiosity got the best of Nipula and he started researching the Pine Tree Trail.

“I purchased old 1930s and ’40s maps and atlases and found it listed,” Nipula said.

DISCOVER AROOSTOOK • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

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THE ORIGINAL PINE TREE TRAIL SIGN FOUND BY ROBBIE MCKAY AND NATE NIPULA IN MOLUNKUS. BDN FILE PHOTO | ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL, HOULTON PIONEER TIMES

“In early 2020, Robbie and I met with then Secretary of State Matt Dunlap and he helped us look into the mysterious Pine Tree Trail.”

What has transpired since is a major revitalization spearheaded by this couple’s home-spun tenacity. McKay contends it’s destiny.

“With great discoveries come great responsibilities,” McKay said. “I feel it was meant to be. As someone said to Nate once, ‘You were meant to find that sign.’”

The resuscitation of this 500-mile stretch known as a one-of-a-kind route, is spelled out on the Pine Tree Trail Projects’ website at pinetreetrail.com, along with ways to become involved in supporting this citizen-funded initiative.

The timing was perfect according to Jennifer Geiger with the state Office of Tourism. “The history of the trail and its rediscovery provides a great story for bringing the trail to the attention of the traveling public.”

Aroostook County Tourism Developer Jacob Pelkey says this is quite an initiative and it can only mean a boost for The County.

“The redesignation of the Pine Tree Trail Project shines a spotlight on the rural reaches of the state that oftentimes is the quietest and most untouched part of Maine,” Pelkey said.

“The roadways are marked with distinct experiences whether you think of the solar system model, blockhouses, Four Corners Park, painted murals, or the many museums. The Pine Tree Trail connects many of those dots in the region creating a great visitor experience.”

Looking back on Nipula’s find over more than a decade ago he reflects with a chuckle. “This sign could have been used as a floorboard in someone's old farm truck and it may have been overlooked as trash in the past, but it is now becoming known as a treasure as the trail is revived.”

With the resurrected Pine Tree Trail, you can get there from here.

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

MAP COURTESY OF AROOSTOOK COUNTY TOURISM

LORING AIR MUSEUM I S R E A DY TO S P R E A D I T S WI N G S

BY ANNE GABBIANELLI

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s you weave through cubicles and navigate your way from room to room in a setting unlike any other museum, you are treated to a world previously only known to those who served at Loring Air Force Base.

“Loring is not just a name, it is a place where people who were once stationed here or born here come to,” said Cuppy Johndro, a USAF veteran and secretary of the Loring Air Museum. The museum is nestled among the multitude of buildings on the former Loring Air Force Base (1950-1994) in Limestone.

Because of the base’s rich heritage, snippets of history are crammed into every crevice of the museum’s current location. The collection offers displays of memorabilia and an inside look at life on that base, which was a city within a city. Johndro says for many who visit the museum, emotions run high as they walk down memory lane.

In 2005, a small grass-roots group formed a plan for a museum to house artifacts,

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many of which had overtaken the porch of current museum VP, Matt Cole.

“The Loring Development Authority kindly gave us our building which was a bank,” Johndro said. “We have never paid any rent, yet we have made upgrades, courtesy of grants, to the building and extended the footprint.”

The museum’s nondescript location is planted among the maze of roads on the base.

Due to ongoing commercial and industrial development at the site of the former base, buildings are being sold, so now the group is looking for a larger home to help the museum spread its wings.

A bill has been introduced before the Maine State Legislature that would allow the museum to take over control of the iconic Arch Hangar. The group is also seeking to have it placed on the Registry of National Historic Landmarks because of its unique construction and significance on the base.

DISCOVER AROOSTOOK • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

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EVERY NOOK OF THE LORING AIR MUSEUM’S CURRENT SPACE IS CRAMMED WITH MEMORABILIA. PHOTO BY ANNE GABBIANELLI

THE LORING AIR MUSEUM IS HOPING TO TAKE OVER THE ICONIC ARCH HANGAR TO EXPAND TO INCLUDE FIGHTER JETS AND MORE. PHOTO BY ANNE GABBIANELLI

Johndro said such a move would allow the museum to house many more articles plus larger items.

“We got a phone call from a private collector about giving us a fighter jet for longterm display,” Johndro said. “We would love to acquire a B52 and a KC135 as well. These were staples at the base and a very important part of the history of the base and the Cold War. If we do that, we would be the only place in Maine with these two items.”

Limestone’s Town Manager Alan Mulherin has his eye beyond the horizon as well.

“The Loring Air Museum serves as not only a reminder to surrounding communities of the invaluable service Loring Air Force Base was to the United States and our national defense, it likewise preserves for future generations a repository of historical events, key moments in Loring’s and our Nation’s history, and as testament to the thousands of airmen, officers, and civilians that so greatly contributed to Loring’s

success,” Mulherin said.

Mulherin reflected that during deliberations on Loring’s closure one of the Base Realignment and Closure Commissioners commented that “no one wants to come to Loring.”

“The Loring Air Museum stands as a testament of opposition to that comment,” Mulherin said. “Not only were there numerous of those thousands that enjoyed their time here, many retired here and thought enough of Loring, their service here, and their communities to establish the Loring Air Museum. Long may it stand.”

The Loring Air Museum is interested in any artifacts you may have or find.

Monetary donations are greatly appreciated as well.

You can reach Cuppy Johndro at (207) 551-3439 or send donations to: Loring Air Museum, 101 Noyes Road, Caribou, Maine 04736.

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

D OWN T OWN P R E S Q U E I S L E ’ S N O RT H E A ST L A N D H O T E L

ADDS CO-WORKING SPACE & NEW RESTAURANT COURTESY OF IGNITE PRESQUE ISLE

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he Northeastland Hotel is a boutique hotel and is proud to be the only hotel in Presque Isle with an on-site restaurant and event space with a full catering staff. The lobby is also an art gallery that showcases the beautiful artwork of local area artists. If you are lucky, there may even be a local musician or group performing in the evening. The new restaurant and bar, Rodney’s at 436 Main, are open daily, Monday through Saturday, for lunch 11am – 2pm and for dinner 4pm – 9pm. They also have a late-night bar menu available. Menu items are locally grown and sourced, when possible. Their menu selections during fiddlehead season in the spring and harvest time in the fall is second to none. Another welcomed addition to the property is the Innovation Center, a state-of-the-art co-working space that is also utilized as the business center for hotel guests. The catering team are happy to accommodate any food and beverage needs in either of the two event spaces or a board-style conference room.

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

Located on Main Street in the heart of the downtown, there is easy walking access to a variety of local shops, the movie theater, coffee shops, restaurants, the Saturday Farmers’ Market, and a well-lit walking path that connects the entire city.

Presque Isle is the Hub of Aroostook County and is centrally located to a wide variety of activities, including snowmobile and ATV trails, BigRock Mountain and Quoggy Jo Ski slopes, Aroostook State Park, Nordic Heritage Outdoor Center provides groomed and well-maintained trails for cross country skiing, hiking, and biking. The surrounding lakes, streams and rivers provide ample opportunity for ice fishing, skating, fishing, kayaking, boating, or a lazy day floating in a tube down the Aroostook River.

The property has a unique business model. It is owned and operated by Ignite Presque Isle, a local non-profit organization focused on the revitalization of the downtown through innovation and entrepreneurship. It is operated by a Board of Directors who oversee and help facilitate the operations. The Northeastland first opened its doors in 1932 and has experienced four major renovations, with the last one recently completed. Phase I of an impressive $8.5 million renovation project breathed new life into the entire first floor, including the lobby, co-working space, event spaces, and restaurant have been transformed into an inviting and elegant place open to all guests, both traveling and local. It also included new and more efficient technology and mechanical infrastructure that was greatly outdated. Phase II of the project, the remodeling and updating of the 48 guest rooms, is slated to begin in 2024.

The Northeastland serves as ground zero for a wide variety of community events as well as both private and corporate events. We are very proud of our role in the community, and we are always looking for partnership opportunities to give back in meaningful and purposeful ways. We invite you to travel north and stay with us at The Northeastland Hotel…We were built to host!

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

CARIBOU IS CALLING...

WI T H S O M E T H I N G F O R E VE RYO N E !

COURTESY OF THE CITY OF CARIBOU

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aribou is known for its snowmobile and ATV recreational trails as the epicenter of the northern Maine outdoor recreation economy. You can ride the trails from two recently remodeled hotels, short-term rentals, or a bed-and-breakfast run by “the muffin queen!” When it’s time to eat, Caribou offers the area’s best restaurant choices. Prefer a non-motorized adventure? Scenic walking paths and groomed cross-country ski trails await. Caribou has a 9-hole golf course as well as agritourism attractions like a festive corn maze and seasonal u-pick strawberries, blueberries, apples, and pumpkins.

Indoor adventures include two types of bowling, a movie theater, and a restaurant with a golf simulator.

REINDEER VISIT CARIBOU'S ANNUAL SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY. PHOTO BY DANIELLE HANSON OF DHANSON PHOTOGRAPHY

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

Looking for some “me time?” Caribou has multiple wellness options for therapeutic massage, med spa, and medical aesthetics. Seeking cultural enrichment? Watch events at Caribou High School’s Caribou Performing Arts Center or attend a stained-glass workshop at “Glass with Class.”

The Nylander Museum of Natural History is now open Saturdays and Sundays from 9am to 1pm. Here you can explore the personal artifacts of Olof Nylander, including local and rare specimens of his collection from the fields of geology, archaeology, paleontology, and taxidermy.

Open every Saturday from 8am to 1pm, the Caribou Historical Center & Whittier Museum welcomes visitors to step back to the time of the onsite one-room schoolhouse and other bespoke exhibits which highlight early life in Caribou from the Mi’kmaq exhibition to a Military display. This heritage site is supported by the Whittier Trust Company, a legacy of Mericos “Max” Whittier who was born in Caribou and later followed his dreams to the California oil fields.

The end of February brings the adrenaline-charged Caribou SnowBowl. In May, come for the City-Wide Yard Sale and the Aroostook River Spring Runoff kayak and canoe race. Summer fun is happening at Thursdays on Sweden Street (TOSS) with live music, food vendors, and a beverage garden every other week June through August. In late July, TOSS expands into the 4-day “Caribou Cares about Kids” with family-friendly shows, activities, food trucks, parade, and fireworks. In Autumn, come leaf peeping, watch the annual potato harvest, enjoy the DustBowl at Spud Speedway, or do some pre-holiday shopping at the Caribou Arts & Crafts Fair — the longest running craft fair in northern Maine that’s held the third weekend of October. Christmas in Caribou is a

magical time and kicks off on Small Business Saturday with live reindeer, a visit from Santa, local author pop-up shop at the Caribou Public Library, and our eclectic array of local businesses offering merchandise to make your holidays extra special.

The total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, can be viewed from several Aroostook County towns — including Caribou — make plans now. The Maine Solar System Model enlivens the Route One drive from Houlton. Fundraising efforts are currently underway to move the model’s sun outside to provide more accessible viewing for visitors.

For more information on planning your trip to Caribou, please visit www.cariboumaine.org/visit.

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DISCOVER AROOSTOOk • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • November 17, 2023

A HISTORY

PHOTOS COMPILED BY RICHARD SHAW

OF HARVEST SMITH'S VEGETABLE STAND IN HOULTON, CA. 1960 POSTCARD COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF MAINE FOGLER LIBRARY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

AROOSTOOK COUNTY POTATO FIELD SHOWN ON A 1920'S POSTCARD COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF MAINE FOGLER LIBRARY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

POTATOES IN BLOSSOM ON A MAINE FAMILY FARM IN 1940.

PHOTO FROM MAINE DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION BOOKLET, COURTESY OF RICHARD SHAW

WALTER HANSON'S POTATO FARM IN MARS HILL IN 1929 COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF MAINE FOGLER LIBRARY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS