North Woods Adventure Tour
- OTG Crew
- May 2
- 6 min read
Updated: Jun 17
Come experience one of the last truly wild places on the East Coast—Maine. Spanning 3.5 million acres, the North Maine Woods embodies the rugged, untamed spirit of the Pine Tree State. This is where the road ends and the wild begins.
Route Overview
Important Info Please be aware that the North Maine Woods is an a very active logging region. Logging trucks have the right of way and often travel at high speeds—always stay alert, yield when necessary, and use headlights at all times.
Trip Length & Season
Adventure Rating: Baja Trip Length: 453 miles, 5-10 days Season: Generally mid-May to mid-October. Baxster State Park is open from May 15 to October 15. To avoid mosquitoes try to visit before June or September thru October.
Digital Maps & GPX Files
Download Digital Mapping Files
If you need help working with digital mapping and GPX files, please check out our FAQ section.
Technical Ratings & Terrain
Avg Technical Rating: 1-2
Peak Technical Rating: 3
Typical Terrain: The track traverses primarily graded and well kept dirt and gravel roads, but there are some secondary roads which may be tighter, slightly off camber, and with encroaching small trees and branches. Many of the roads within the Maine North Woods have a shale rock bed, so a solid set of off road tires is recommended (AT/RT/MT). Mud is not uncommon given the prevalence of rain throughout the year in Maine.
Recommended Vehicle / Moto / Adventure Vans
Recommended Vehicle: Stock 4x4
Recommended Moto: Unfortunately, motorcyles are not permitted in the North Maine Woods.
Adventure Vans: Sprinters and Transits with 4x4/AWD are good to go!
Fuel, Provisions, and Recommended Gear
Fuel: Millinocket to Ashland 240 miles (via Realty Road), Ashland to Greenville 300 miles. Provisions: Provisions can be obtained in the same general vicinity as fuel. Gear: Depending on your vehicle, you may wish to carry extra fuel given the long distance between gas stations.
Alternative Routes
n/a
Camping Recommendations
There are dozens of campsites and campgrounds throughout the North Maine Woods and Baxster State Park areas. When camping in North Maine Woods, you must stay at one of the many campsites throughout these privately managed lands. But good news, there's a plethora of fantastic campsites available. Some of our favorite places to camp include:
Trout Brook Farm campground (Baxter SP)
Munsungan Falls Campsite
Cliff Lake
Churchill Dam
Second Musquacook Lake
Red Pine Campsite
Wadleight Pond
Saint Francis Lake
Lost Pond
Jewitt Cove (Moosehead Lake)
Discovery Points
Millinocket
The Golden Road
Pockwockamus Rock
Togue Ponds
Mount Katahdin
Kidney Pond
Ledge Falls
Grand Lake Matagamon
E. Branch Penobscot River
Aroostook River
Churchill Dam
Musquacook Lakes
Allagash River
Clayton Lake bunkhouse
Red Pine Grove Landing Strip
Saint John River
Old Realty Road Bridge (ruins)
Ross Mountain Fire Lookout
Chemquasabamticook Lake
Ghost Trains
Eagle Lake Tramway Station
Wadleigh Pond
Caucomgomoc Lake
W. Branch Penobscot River
Ripogenus Dam
Ripogenus Gorge
B52 Crash Site
Moosehead Lake
Center for Moosehead Historical Society
Greenville
Land Managers & Other Resources
Land Managers
Permits & Papers (Required)
Permits
North Maine Woods requires both day use and camping fees, which are calculated based on the length of stay (unless you have a seasonal pass. More info about land use and camping fees for the North Maine Woods can be found HERE, be sure to read the details about accepted forms of payment. Additionally, you will need to pay a day use fee to enter Baxter State Park.
Adventure Badge
OTG has partnered with All Roads Taken to offer an adventure badge for this route.
Route Details
While many people look westward to experience vast open spaces and wilderness, Maine offers a similar experience with its dense woods and sparsely populated lands. While Maine may not have the same level of public lands as the West, it is just as wild, and there’s still so much to see and experience.
At over 3.5 million acres, the privately managed North Maine Woods provides the perfect opportunity to explore the Maine backcountry by vehicle. The North Maine Woods consists of more than 30 private landowners, including major timber and paper companies, who manage public access via a series of checkpoints (be sure to check out the Permits & Papers section above!). While extensive logging still occurs within the North Maine Woods, the land still offers an incredible chance to experience the beauty and wilderness for which Maine is renowned. Wild animals like moose, black bear, lynx, beaver, and porcupine call these woods home. Camp at one of the many lakeside campsites, and you're likely to witness a bald eagle or osprey hunting for a meal.
The North Woods Adventure Tour begins in Millinocket, along the famed Golden Road (discovery point), which runs west from town to the Canadian border. The Golden Road is a favorite among local adventure travelers, so be on the lookout for oncoming traffic. You won’t be taking the road all the way to the border, but rather heading into Baxter State Park, which has been called "The Last Frontier of the East." The park is renowned for its exceptional natural beauty, and Mount Katahdin (discovery point) is the undisputed star of the show. Towering above the surrounding woods and lakes, it’s no wonder that some refer to Baxter State Park as the "Montana of the East." Worthwhile stops within the park include Kidney Point (discovery point) and Grand Lake Matagamon (discovery point).
From Grand Lake Matagamon, you’ll need to travel mostly on pavement to the highway and head north before jumping back onto gravel roads that will take you into the North Maine Woods via the Oxbow Checkpoint. Remember, to visit and camp in the North Maine Woods, you will need to pay a daily use/camping fee (see Permits & Papers for more info). As you enter the North Maine Woods, you won’t encounter any trails that would qualify as technical, but there’s plenty of shale that can be tough on tires, especially if you’re running OEM tires that aren’t designed for off-road travel. You’ll also need to be especially vigilant for logging trucks, which always have the right of way and often travel at dangerous speeds. Keep an eye out for them, and be sure to radio in their presence if you're traveling with a group.
The North Maine Woods is renowned for its hundreds of lakes and ponds. Whether you’re into fishing or any type of paddling, we highly recommend packing the appropriate gear to take advantage of the dozens of beautiful lakes and waterways in the woods. As you continue deeper into the woods, discovery points like Churchill Dam and Musquacook Lakes are definitely worth visiting. The campsites at First Musquacook Lake are some of the best in the North Woods. Near the far northern end of the North Woods Adventure Tour, the track crosses the historic Allagash River (discovery point). The Allagash is one of Maine's most storied and revered waterways, flowing northward and joining the St. John River near the Canadian border.
As you begin heading south, discovery points like the Clayton Lake Bunkhouse, Pine Grove Landing Stripe, and Old Realty Bridge (on the St. John River) are all worth a visit. If you're looking to get above the forest canopy and catch some views of the woods, head over to Ross Mountain Fire Lookout (discovery point), just a few miles past the Old Realty Bridge. Further into the North Woods, the highlight of this portion is undoubtedly the Eagle Tramway Station and Ghost Trains (discovery points). The Tramway Station is tied to the region's industrial logging heritage, having been constructed in the early 1900s. One of the logging operations needed a way to transport logs between neighboring lakes, so a rail line was built. Unlike most abandoned railways, two trains were left on-site, hence the name "Ghost Trains." These two rusting trains sit with a ghostly presence in the dark and thick North Woods.
Before exiting the North Maine Woods, be sure to visit the lakeside campground at Caucomgomoc Lake, another jewel within the North Woods. Eventually, you'll find yourself back on the Golden Road, this time traveling east. The final leg of the route takes travelers down to Moosehead Lake (discovery point). Another local favorite is the old B-52 crash site (discovery point) on Elephant Mountain. In 1963, a Boeing B-52C Stratofortress was on a training mission when it encountered severe turbulence and eventually crashed onto Elephant Mountain. The wreckage is spread across several acres of the mountain, and various parts of the plane remain unmoved to this day. The route officially concludes at the quaint and historic village of Greenville.
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