Oxford also goes up to the Canadian border.

Covenants and other deed finagling can be undone if you have a good enough lawyer and are stubborn enough. That's how my hometown lost its swimming hole; it got bought by jackasses who bought the land, took the matter to court multiple times, and finally found/bought a judge who ruled in their favor. Tore down the historic schoolhouse that was on the property, put up "No Trespassing" signs everywhere, and built a crappy ranch house with beige vinyl siding. Oddly enough, they didn't last long in the town.

Your case sounds different though, so it could be less trouble and your neighbours are much less likely to hate you, especially if you have extra eggs available at reasonable prices.

Heading up the coast from the south:

Damariscotta: The downtown is mall enough to walk around but has a lot of interesting places to see/shop. It's also quite pretty and has a lot of scenic areas within a reasonable drive.

Camden (in the off-season): Bigger but still walkable, also pretty with some good drives nearby, and one of my favorite buildings in the state is there. (Norumbega)

Northport: I love driving Shore Rd and wandering through the old Victorian summer colony.

Belfast: I love the Co-op and the whole downtown area. I haven't been able to walk the footbridge but I love that they have one.

Bucksport: Hate the bridge, love Fort Knox and the downtown. Especially Friars.

Castine: Beautiful, walkable, historic.

Southwest Harbor: Bar Harbor has its points despite the tourists, but when it comes down to it, I like SW Harbor better.

Machias: Okay, I've only been through a couple of times, but there's some good views and a few neat shops here.

Lubec: Only got here once and it was pissing down, but I would like to return and explore it properly. I liked what I saw.

It got that way by devouring the smaller states bordering it. Nobody outside Maine dares to mention New Suffolk, Umbagog, Charlottesylvania, and the others for fear of suffering the same fate.

It's good. I live over an hour away, it's not really on the most convenient routes for me to get where I'm going when I hit the coast, but I will go out of my way to eat here because it's worth the detour.

I don't know how it is these days, but Perry's Nut House freaked me right tf out when I was a kid. To the point that I refuse to go back as an adult.

Seconding this, if only for the books on the second floor.

Not the best location and ugly af. Also, not going to be affordable for normal people. I'd settle for two of the three being fixed before construction starts, but we all know it won't be.

Nah, you're only "Hey, asshole" if you're A) a friend or B) actively doing something assholeish. Random strangers minding their own business don't usually get that.

As a graduate of UMF and someone who doesn't like the Bangor area (no good reason; it's just always felt wrong to me), I have to recommend UMO. UMF has made it clear over the years that the only program that matters to them is the Ed program. They give every impression of wanting to be a single program school and treat the rest as afterthoughts at best. They also have a habit of allowing buildings to deteriorate and then decide it's too expensive to fix them.

Yes, I am bitter about what they did to the Creative Writing building.

Wrinkle In Thyme up in Sumner used to be part of that program. They might still be; I don't get up there as often as I used to.

Washburn-Norlands Living History Center in Livermore. This family had a major impact on American history, and the museum is in danger of going under.

It's a fair amount of snow, but not a major storm. As long as your driver has half a brain, you should be okay.

Rt 26 up through Grafton Notch is one of my favorites.

You’d have thought they’d have learned after the last time. I was living about a block away then and the thing landed roughly twenty feet from the corner of my apartment. Hell of a noise it made falling too.

What, another one?

I’d try that.

Dragon's Lair in Norway used to host games, but I don't know if they started up again after the lockdown.

I didn't see Humpty Dumpty at the local Hannafords, but the store brand did have all-dressed, so there's that.

Or Smiling Hill, which would be closer to Gorham.

Welcome to Maine! I can relate a little from the opposite direction; I'm a Mainer and spend as long as I can in Canada each year. (My dad's family was from New Brunswick.) There's enough similarities in culture to make it really surprising when you run into the differences, but most of them aren't really a big deal. It's hard to find butter tarts and I don't think ketchup-flavored or all-dressed chips exist this far south, but poutine has become easy to get. The food is sweeter here, but not as much as some people claim; a good rule is that the cheaper the food is, the more likely it is to have unnecessary sweeteners in it.

I think it's a law that people staying any appreciable amount of time must try Moxie, but when you do, find it in glass bottles; there is a difference.

One of the great things about the Gorham campus is that, while people are right about not having as much snow as we used to, it's still possible to get some winter sports in even if you don't have a car; I don't know the trails close to campus, but pretty much every town in Maine has them so it's a safe bet Gorham does too. It's also a reasonable walk to downtown, if walking isn't a problem for you. It's easy to get your day-to-day needs there.

If you do have or can get access to a car while you're here, you're in a good location for exploring. The coast isn't far at all, and skiing is a reasonable day trip. When warmer weather hits, there are a few good swimming holes within 15-20 minutes drive. If not, then there is public transportation; not a lot of Maine has it, but there is a Gorham-Portland shuttle and Portland has a decent bus system. (At least compared to other places I've lived.)

For specific recommendations, I'll start with Becky's Diner. It's good but not great food, but it's reliable and the worst meal I had there was just mediocre rather than actually bad. Hit Trader Joe's; some stuff is more expensive than regular grocery stores and some is cheaper, but you can find a good assortment. This is the best time of year to explore the Old Port in downtown Portland, as the crowds tend to be heading for more winter sports-oriented places. If you like Thai food, try Pom's; there are two locations and the one on Congress St is easiest to get to without a car. Sun Market, also on Congress St, was a good Asian market when I lived in Portland, although that was a while ago. For a fun excursion, go down to the Portland waterfront and take a ride on the ferry; doesn't matter which one, because they all have excellent views. For a longer excursion, the Downeaster runs from Boston to Brunswick with several stops in between; they don't have the number of trains that they used to, but if you get up early it should still be possible to get a day trip in and some of the stops could be covered in the amount of time you'd have.

I've met her once or twice. She's... certainly something.

I would watch Gremlins a hundred times before watching Christmas Vacation once.

Reny's. If you don't mind second-hand, check the more rustic antique stores, and The Corn Shop in Bridgton has a good selection.

There have been some good displays on Rt 119 in Minot in the past, but the two best houses don't seem to be doing it this year.