Orland

Orland 3 Miles from Bucksport I see map on page 20 2 www.orlandme.org

Just down Acadia Highway or the Penobscot River, Bucksport’s neighbor to the East is the town of Orland. A gorgeous, down-to-earth rural area, rich with lakes and ponds, almost all of which have public access for swimming or water sports, Orland is a great place to spend a day or to go camping. It is also home to many miles of public trails, including the Wildlands managed by Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust, and those seeking a perfect spot for hiking, jogging, skiing, climbing, horseback riding, snowmobiling, or snowshoeing will be spoiled for choice.

Every year for the last 41 years, on the last weekend in June, the town of Orland hosts River Day, to celebrate the mighty Narramissic River, which ows gently through the center of Orland Village. This seasonal celebration had its heyday in the 1970s, but still o ers a small parade, food, cra s, a cannonball contest (biggest splash wins!), a ra race--in which past entrants included a oating volleyball court with teams competing while they oated, and a oating picnic, complete with picnic table--and the River Duck Dash, in which 1,000 rubber ducks “dash” down the river.

The town is served by a highly-regarded volunteer re department, which gained a certain measure of fame for doing yoga in their turnout gear two years ago. You can nd a photo in the Ellsworth American’s “Come Home to Maine” guide, o ered for free in rest areas in Maine, and meet the re ghters at River Day.

Perhaps the most endearing and emblematic celebration in Orland, however, happens every December. Each year, on the Saturday night closest to the winter solstice, a handful of volunteers quietly move through the streets, distributing hundreds of luminaria. The Lights of Orland illuminate the main road leading into and out of the village, as well as both sides of the river. The quiet beauty is breathtaking, and done without fanfare, as an o ering, from neighbor to neighbor, and to all who pass through.