Re: Maine in October

Hi Jon,

Yes, do go up to Phillips to check out the remains of the SR&RL, the oldest and largest of the Maine Two-Footers. I'm very fond of the area, and always enjoy my visits to the forests and hills of Franklin County. Admittedly, the town of Phillips sometimes seems like a sad shadow of its former self, but it's a community with a strong sense of history, and there is much to see. The SR&RL depot and car shop are still there in the center of town (though the roundhouse was lost to a fire in the 1970s), and across the river the SR&RL group has managed against all odds to assemble a really important collection of SR&RL rolling stock (caboose 556, coaches 17 and 18, flangers 503 and 505, tool car 562, etc.) and structures (stations from Sanders, Maplewood, and Hillside, the section house from Reeds, and the Phillips freight house, as well as the reconstructed P&R 'Old Stone Fort' roundhouse). With some luck they will have Monson 3 back in steam and running "Ghost Trains" in October, but even if not it's still worth a visit -- and $ donation! There are also many miles of intact SR&RL grade to hike, especially north of Phillips on the P&R and between Kingfield and Bigelow on the K&DR. You should also go up to Rangeley, charming little lakeside town that it's always been -- and BMC Diner on Richardson Street just off Main in Rangeley makes a nice breakfast.

Down on the coast near Wiscasset, the Boothbay Railway Village is certainly worth a visit. In addition to being a railroad museum they also have a "village" of restored houses and a collection of antique cars, so it's a good place to bring a spouse or other family members who may be getting tired of trains. Of course there is also a lot of narrow gauge memorabilia and equipment to see at Boothbay, including SR&RL combine 11 (ex-F&M 1), SR&RL coach 21, and I believe SR&RL caboose 551 (on loan from the Maine NG Museum?), as well as of course the two S. D. Warren 0-4-0Ts. Boothbay's Fall Foliage Festival (with craft vendors and food) is scheduled for October 10-11, which may be of interest.

-Philip Marshall



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 05/27/2015 04:43AM by philip.marshall.