cemi

I might be flying to Boston this summer,and would like to consider a trip to Maine in car.Unfortunately,I am afraid of heights and would like to avoid roads with cliffs and high mountains.Is there anybody that could give me an insight on how are the roads.

Shandy1977

Do you want to take backroads and the route less traveled? Or are main roads that lead to various towns and cities good?

I think you will be fine, for the most part. There are not many roads that run along the edge of cliffs or mountain peaks. Yes, you drive into the mountains but it is not like some roads out in the Rockies. It feels more like driving in small towns and forest most of the time.

I-95 will take you to nice spots like Kittery and Portland and you will not ride any ridges at all.

I have driven to Maine many times and do not recall any "scary" drives along signifcant heights so I would not worry too much if I were you. Like I said, more like country driving than the driving you think of with mountains.

bnbtraveler

What could be considered scary mountain driving would be more up by Arcadia and Northern inland areas. Southern Maine does have one tall peak (not huge though) but you have to drive to it, the highway goes no where near it. Stay in beautiful Southern Maine, only 1 hour 15 minutes from Boston. Southern to Mid-coast is where the best beaches are. It depends on what you are looking for.

Jaya

The roads and highways from Boston to Maine are normal roads, nothing at all like you're worried about.

Do you need any itinerary help with Maine?

charli

Is this a serious question?

sf7307

charli, what about this makes you think it isn't a serious question?

cemi

I would like to take back roads and scenic routs along the coast.Visit villages and coastal towns along the way.
Itinerary help with Maine will be very helpful.I could depart Boston on a Monday,spend 5 days traveling,then return to Boston on Saturday for the flight back home.

Charli,this is a serious question.Several years ago,I visited Spain and drove from Madrid to Granada along some serious mountains.The highways were excellent and in good condition but the steepness was severe.I was traumatized by the experience and now it is one of the first things I investigate when I travel to unknown places.

From all of your responses,it seems like I would not have any problems.

Thank you!!

dfrostnh

Take Rt 95 as far as Brunswick. Then get off on Rt 1. Go to places like Boothbay Harbor, Camden, Wiscasset, etc. Mid-coast Maine is beautiful. The auto road up Mt Batty in Camden shouldn't be a problem. The view from the top is glorious.

cemi

Thank you,I will start my planning and make an itinerary,if I have any questions,I will post.

Any other suggestions will be appreciated.

yestravel

I agree with mid-coast Maine. There are so many little towns that u can visit and the scenery is great -- no mountain roads to worry about!

gyppielou

You might want to get off 95 and travel route 1 thru the Portsmouth NH area to avoid the large bridge if that is inclusive of your phobias. The small rt1 bridge would be more managable.

bkluvsNola

Spain is far more rugged than Maine. I was frightened by some of the heights in Spain as well. Maine is relatively flat (but beautiful) for the most part, with some hills and mountains especially in northern sections, but there are no sharp dropoffs like what you experienced in Spain.

cemi

Good point gyppielou,this is the kind of info I cannot get from travel books.

Thank you!

HKP

I think you may have heard references to "the rocky coast of Maine" and imagined it looks like the Costa Brava or the coast road in California. Not at all.

In fact, you CAN'T generally find a road that would let you see the ocean and rocky shore because for the most part they are lined with residences or camps. The roads you would take once you got off the interstates are much inland and will, at worst, roll up and down some gentle hills, but for the most part it's pretty flat until you get right ON the water.

You may have seen photos of Mt. Desert Island, and the road up Mt. Cadillac IS the kind of thing you'd hate. The rest of Maine where you'd be driving is not much like that.

Take advice like that of dfrostnh and have a lovely, cozy trip.

cemi

HKP that is exactly the type of terrain I was imagining the coast of Maine was like.If everything goes right I will be going July or August.

dfrostnh,I will definitely visit the areas you mentioned.