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Damp and Gray for Campers, but at Least it's Maine

July 29, 2008 - FREEPORT -- Welcome to Maine, state of wide-open spaces, ocean vistas, vast lakes, soaring mountains.

This week? Not so much.

"We're getting camper fever," complained Ben Niles of Merrimack, N.H., during a rare moment outside Thursday at Recompence Shore Campground at Wolfe's Neck Farm in Freeport.

Niles, who was with his wife, Donna, and grandson Lucas, said his family decided to haul their camper to Freeport this year instead of their regular camping site near Rangeley. But this week's storms, heavy rain, high winds and cool temperatures led his wife to reconsider.

"We thought we'd try coming to the coast," she said. "I don't want to do that again."

Maine draws thousands of campers every year, longing for a respite from the heat and humidity that much of the nation suffers through during the summer. They dream of sleeping under the stars, unbothered by anything but mosquitoes.

Those here for the last full week of July, however, are finding that the weather is limiting their options.

"The kayak's still on my car," said Ruth Engel of Concord, N.H., who pitched a tent near the Niles family at Recompence Shore. "I haven't gone swimming yet, but I'm not giving up."

Most of the campers in Freeport were a little groggy Thursday. A big thunderstorm rolled through the night before, and those not awakened by the wind and rain were roused by the thunder and lightning.

"We didn't get a full night's sleep, but the tent didn't fall down," Engel said. "I slept in this morning."

Laura Inkeles of Silver Spring, Md., vacationing with her sister, said the storm was a bit frightening.

"Even in our tent, it was blinding light," she said.

Most of the campers said they'll make the best of it, and none indicated that the poor weather would persuade them to cut their vacations short. They are making adjustments, however.

Donna Niles noted that thanks to the rain Wednesday night that kept the trio stuck in their camper, she taught Lucas how to play Parcheesi. But when he wanted to play again Thursday morning, she ushered him outside to take advantage of a few moments of dry weather.

Others said that dealing with variable weather comes with the territory.

"I've been camping my whole life, so you take what you can get," Engel said.

Cindy Heitkamp of Centennial, Colo., retreated to the back of a minivan Thursday to get in some knitting and said she preferred Maine's cool breezes to the heat summer brings to Colorado. The thunderstorm, she added, didn't interrupt her sleep or lessen her appreciation for the woods and nearby Casco Bay.

"We're on vacation, rain or shine," Barbara Inkeles of Philadelphia said as she had a late breakfast of tea, bread and jam with her sister Laura. "We swam yesterday while it was raining. That was kind of fun," she said. "And cold."

By EDWARD D. MURPHY Staff Writer, Portland Press Herald, July 25, 2008


Lakes:
Regions: Sebago, Mid Coast


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