Maine news, sports, weather from Waterville Morning Sentinel

TRAVELIN' MAINE(RS): Fabulous getaway could be in your future

Kennebec Journal Staff

The Travelin Maine(rs), George and Linda Smith of Mount Vernon, have spent their lifetimes enjoying all that Maine has to offer. Now they’ll tell you all about it — their favorite inns, restaurants, trips, activities, experiences, and travel books and websites — in their own personal style. They’ll be offering anecdotes, tips and all the details you need, So join them in exploring, experiencing and enjoying the great State of Maine.

click image to enlarge

Select images available for purchase in the
Maine Today Photo Store

IF YOU GO . . .

NOBLE HOUSE INN:
ON THE WEB: www.noblehousebb.com
CALL: 888-237-4880.
BRING SLIPPERS in the dirty-sandy winter season. They ask guests to take off shoes at the entrance. Bridgton has a lot of restaurants and a large Reny’s. A guest wrote this in a Noble House book: “So where has this Reny’s place been all our lives!”

STONE MOUNTAIN ARTS CENTER:
ON THE WEB: www.stonemountainartscenter.com
CALL: 935-7292.
BRING CASH: They don’t take credit cards for drinks or dinner. And follow the directions on their website!

It's the best place to listen to music in the state. Stone Mountain Arts Center is more than an experience -- it is THE experience for music lovers. Combined with a stay at Bridgton's elegant Noble House Inn, a concert at Stone Mountain is a spectacular Maine getaway.

George

We've enjoyed three distinctly different experiences at Stone Mountain: a reading by author and public radio commentator Sarah Vowell; concerts by Pam Tillis and Marc Cohn; and a concert/dance with Steve Riley and the Mamou boys, a Louisianan Cajun band that kept us on the dance floor for much of the evening a few weeks ago.

Perhaps it's because Stone Mountain's owner is a professional and talented singer who has toured nationally and put out several albums. Or it's because she worked her way up from chamber maid and cook at a local resort to owner of this spectacular venue. It could be because she worked with some of Maine's best tradesman to construct her facility. Or maybe it's just because she has a special love for rural Maine, but Carol Noonan hits all the right notes here.

Working at Kezar Lakes' Quisisana Resort for 10 years, said Carol, "was perfect training ground for what we try to do here at Stone Mountain Arts Center -- mixing food, fun and music in the country."

Carol and her husband Jeff (who makes commercial fishing nets), constructed a barn with amazing acoustics and table seating limited to 200 people, created a tasty menu of comfort food and developed a knack for attracting tremendous talent to a place that feels as remote as the Allagash -- even though it's only 10 miles from North Conway in Brownfield on the Maine/New Hampshire border.

I've got to warn you, Stone Mountain isn't easy to find. Carol's directions are hilarious including this: "WARNING: Do not use GPS, Google, Map Quest, etc. to get here! Some of the old roads they will send you on are not passable." But it's well worth the effort to find this place that's about a two-hour drive from our Mount Vernon home.

I almost hate going onto Carol's website and looking at her lengthy list of coming performers, because I want to see all of them. In just the next three months, she's got comedian Paula Poundstone, Tom Rush, a great Celtic band, Enter the Haggis, Grammy-nominated, folk-rocker Shawn Mullins, Rosanne Cash, Iris DeMent, Judy Collins, the Kingston Trio and The Indigo Girls.

Prices are extremely reasonable, ranging from $25 to $100, with most performers in the lower range. We go to their website, listen to the performers, choose one, purchase our tickets and reserve for dinner. I don't know of another place -- certainly not in Maine -- where you can sit so close to the performers. Three out of the four times we've been there we were within 20 feet of the stage.

Go early to enjoy the bar and welcoming center in their old, historic barn, taken down in 2006 and lovingly rebuilt in 2010 by master craftsmen.

Linda

Carol tells me that the only profit she makes at Stone Mountain is on their dinners. Ticket sales all go to the performers. So we often try to arrive early, by 6 p.m., and eat there.

There is a limited menu of chowder, chili, pizzas and salads. Sometimes they have beef stew and a pasta dish. Portions are huge. George's beef stew arrived in a big white bowl -- an exact replica of one I use at home as a serving bowl! There must have been a quart of stew in there. And yes, he ate it all.

The chili is great. The pizzas are 12-inch with thin crust. The last time we visited I had a great "Confetti" salad (in the same serving-bowl size) and had enough for two more meals at home. Prices range from $6.50 for some dishes like chili, to $22 for the most expensive items.

Servers will bring extra plates or bowls so you can share -- but there is a $10 minimum per person for drinks and dinner. Dinner is served from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Dress is casual (lots of jeans and flannel shirts).

George

Here's what I loved about Noble House Inn: the old pump organ, a TV only in the sitting room, the antique secretary desk -- full of bath and other supplies for their guests, our Jacuzzi, fresh flowers everywhere, the caribou mount in the sitting room, spotless guest rooms, inspiring artwork, the quiet background music in the public rooms, the outdoor gear including canoes and snowshoes available for guests, the astonishing breakfast, the competitiveness of the hosts in the kitchen and their accessibility -- just ring the doorbell outside their living area if you need them.

And you know how most hotels, and even fine inns and lodges, provide the most uncomfortable sitting chairs in their rooms. Noble House's overstuffed chairs are the most comfortable I've found anywhere (including at home).

Nearby are Sunday River and Shawnee Peak ski areas, Sebago Lake State Park and North Conway's sales-tax-free bargain shopping. Bridgton itself has lots of recreation land, lakes and locally owned restaurants.

All that aside, the hospitality of Julie and Rick Whelchel makes this a very special place. You can't fake sincerity, and they take a sincere interest in every single guest, including the smallest. Families are very welcome.

We shared outdoor adventure stories with Julie and Rick -- they love to snowmobile and visit sporting camps in Maine's most remote and wildest places. We talked about books, food and the great array of activities available in this four-season region. And after the briefest of stays, we left with the feeling we'd made lifelong friends. And I don't make friends easily.

The nosiest of guests, I poked around in the many guest comment diaries spread throughout the inn. Consider this entry in one book.

"We just visited Quebec City for four days and stayed at the Fairmont Château Frontenac. We have to say -- staying at Noble House is much more of an amazing experience than at the Château Frontenac!"

That's a mighty big compliment considering the Frontenac is considered one of the world's top luxury hotels.

And I really snapped to attention when Julie told me about a repeat guest who has booked for 29 days this year in three different seasons to fish local waters. I want to see that guy's fishing diary!

Rick is a Notary and performs a lot of weddings at Noble House. Google "elope Maine" and up they come! He performed a wedding for a nice young couple while we were there.

Linda

Some people are made to be innkeepers and that's certainly the case for Julie and Rick. After honeymooning in Maine years ago, they knew they were attracted to the lakes and mountains region.

They had good careers in Ohio but felt called to quit their jobs and move to the northeast to own an inn. After looking at 60 inns in six states, they chose the historic Noble House. They've given the house lots of TLC and have tastefully decorated every inch of it.

They took time when they first arrived to pack a small bag and stay a night in each room. Then they knew what was needed to make each room perfectly comfortable: more lighting for reading, comfortable armchairs and other amenities that make these rooms homey.

Our "Pine View" room looked out at a stand of tall pines and had an attached summer porch -- an inviting place to sit or birdwatch in the spring, summer and fall. Given the 14-degree temperature, we saved it for the next visit.

The inn has a very inviting common room where it's tempting to lounge by the wood fire, sipping tea and dipping into the "bottomless cookie jar." George dipped more than a few times. Attached to the common room is a bright and cheery breakfast room where you'll enjoy extraordinary breakfasts.

Our's included a French egg dish, much like a crustless quiche with proscuitto and herbs, homefries with feta and scallions, and link sausage. Oh, but this is just the beginning!

Add juices, fresh fruit, yogurt, house-made granola and warm nut muffins. Then, out comes Rick to take a tableside order for apple crepes that Julie was whipping up in the kitchen. Wow!

Visit George's website: www.georgesmithmaine.com for travel tips, book reviews, outdoor news and more.