Western Maine
Sunday River & Bethel
Oxford County, Maine delivers one of the Northeast's best ski mountains and some of its most underrated hiking — all anchored by a genuine New England village with no outlet malls, no chain restaurants, and a food scene that consistently surprises. Here's how to make the most of it across every season.
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Grafton Notch State Park
One of Maine's most spectacular state parks, threading Route 26 through a glacially carved mountain pass in the Mahoosuc Range. The roadside attractions are unusually democratic: Screw Auger Falls (a 23-foot cascade through a narrow bedrock gorge, 0.1-mile accessible path), Mother Walker Falls (a V-shaped gorge 40 feet deep and 1,000 feet long), and Moose Cave (a 600-foot granite canyon where a stream vanishes beneath a slab, 0.4-mile loop). All three require minimal effort and are family-accessible. The park is also the trailhead for Old Speck Mountain and the 39-mile Grafton Loop backpacking circuit.
Hit Screw Auger Falls before 9 am — the gorge is narrow and intimate, and by 10 am tour buses arrive. Combine it with the Eyebrow Trail on Old Speck for a half-day: a 2.5-mile loop with iron rungs and a cliff-edge overlook at 2,900 feet that skips the full summit.
Bethel Outdoor Adventure
The area's primary outfitter for Androscoggin River trips — tubing, kayaking, and canoeing with a shuttle service to upstream put-in points. The upper Androscoggin from Gilead to Bethel is Class I–II: calm enough for all skill levels, remote enough for wildlife. Eagles, great blue herons, turtles, and occasional moose are regular sightings on quiet mornings. River tubing runs about $30/person including shuttle. The campground operates mid-May through mid-October directly on the river.
Weekday mornings transform the experience — the river is nearly silent, wildlife is active, and you may go an hour without seeing another boat. The Gilead-to-West Bethel stretch is the most remote and scenic. Bring a dry bag; shallow sections can tip inexperienced paddlers.
Maine Mineral & Gem Museum
Opened in 2019, this 15,000-square-foot museum has rapidly become one of the most remarkable small museums in New England. Oxford County is among the world's premier mineral-collecting regions — specifically for tourmaline, beryl, and quartz — and the museum does justice to that heritage. The collection includes the largest piece of the Moon ever recovered as a meteorite, plus approximately 6,000 extraterrestrial specimens in the Stifler Collection. Four galleries cover Maine minerals, planetary science, the Perham Collection (90 years of Maine mineral specimens), and special exhibits. The gift shop sells genuine Maine tourmaline.
The meteorite gallery is the sleeper highlight — moon rocks, Mars rocks, and asteroid specimens you can actually touch. Consistently surprises even sophisticated travelers. Walkable from DiCocoa's and the Good Food Store; a natural Bethel village morning: bagels, the museum, provisions for the rental house.
Sunday River Brewing Company
The anchor brewpub at the foot of Sunday River Road — first and last stop for many skiers. Brews its own beers on-site, with the Black Bear Porter as the flagship. The food menu is ski-town hearty: award-winning smoked Buffalo wings (a local legend that draws regulars back specifically for them), fresh-ground burgers, wood-fired pizza, house chili, and fish and chips. The space is lodge-style, family-friendly, and loud on peak winter weekends. Open Wednesday through Monday year-round.
On a powder day, arrive before the lifts close (3–4 pm) or expect a 45-minute wait. The Buffalo wings have won regional awards — the must-order. The Black Bear Porter is what to drink here.
Cho Sun
The most unexpected and celebrated restaurant in western Maine — a Korean and Japanese sushi bar on the main street of a small mountain town, opened in 2002 by Pok Sun Lane, who emigrated from South Korea with the intention of bringing authentic Korean cuisine to Oxford County. Two-plus decades later it has a devoted following and coverage in Down East Magazine. The sushi bar seats 36. The Korean preparations are the insider order: hot-stone bibimbap (rice, vegetables, and protein served sizzling in a stone bowl), chap-chae noodles, and traditional preparations made to order. The deck in summer by torchlight is a romantic setting.
Make a reservation — this fills on weekends year-round. Budget two hours; dishes are made to order. The hot-stone bibimbap is the dish that makes people understand why this restaurant exists in Bethel. The Korean preparations are more interesting than the sushi, though the sushi is solid.
DiCocoa's
Bethel's beloved breakfast institution — a counter-service café known for hand-shaped bagels baked in-house and a hippie-meets-gourmet sensibility. Dense, chewy New York-style bagels served as sandwiches alongside quiche, soups, and specialty pastries. Vegetarian and vegan options are well represented. The space is small, warmly decorated, and perpetually packed on ski weekends. The kind of place where locals know the staff by name and out-of-towners immediately understand the draw.
Saturday ski mornings have a line. Get there by 8 am, order sandwiches to go, and eat en route to the mountain — you'll beat both the crowd and the Sunday River parking. Hours are limited: Saturday–Sunday 7 am–1 pm; call ahead on weekdays.
The Good Food Store
The area's specialty grocery and prepared food anchor since 1994, in a renovated farm building on Route 2 between downtown Bethel and Sunday River Road. For vacation rental guests, this is the essential first stop: organic and local produce, gourmet cheeses, bulk foods, Maine-made specialties, and the best wine and craft beer selection in Bethel. The kitchen prepares daily soups, salads, sandwiches, and heat-and-eat entrées — proper food, not convenience store fare. Open daily, 9 am–8 pm.
Make this your first stop after arriving at the rental house — stock the kitchen here rather than driving 45 minutes to a larger grocery. The heat-and-eat options are genuinely good on nights when you don't want to cook after a full ski day. The staff know the area well and can give current conditions.
Millbrook Tavern
The dining and gathering spot at the Bethel Resort & Suites — a historic white-clapboard New England inn on a hillside above the village with a golf course and mountain views. The tavern offers casually upscale classics: prime rib, fresh Maine lobster, burgers, steaks, and fish and chips. A rustic bar, fieldstone fireplace, open terrace, and outdoor patio. The resort added heated outdoor dining igloos for winter evenings. Weekend and holiday live music. Dinner Sunday–Thursday 5–8 pm, Friday–Saturday 5–9 pm.
The spot for a proper dinner without the chaos of on-mountain venues — 6 miles from the resort, requires no navigation of Sunday River Road traffic, and the fireplace dining room on a cold winter night is genuinely atmospheric. Prime rib on weekends is a reliable order.
