Suggested roads to take on drive back home from Katahdin?

[Popnfrsh24]

Hello all!

Long time no see for me on these forums, because I have been hiking the trail! Maybe some of you have met me, my trail name is Lighthouse. Anyways, I have had the time of my life on the trail, and I am sad that it is about to end soon. I have thought a lot about how I am going to get back home, and I have a few extra dollars than expected, so I thought it would be super fun to rent a car and drive home in a rental car and go all the way from Katahdin all the way back to Indianapolis.

Does anyone else recommend this route? Or should I take a bus or a train? With my old job, I have a bunch of hotel points so I have about a weeks worth of free hotel stays, so I am not worried about staying a night in a hotel to break the trip up into 2 days. It seems like this might be a little more expensive than taking a flight or taking a bus/train, but it seems like it will be the most relaxing and enjoyable.

Also, are there any scenic routes that anybody knows that I can take on the way back to Indy that aren't too far out of the way? I really want to take the interstate that goes right along Franconia ridge!!

Also, from looking in AWOLs book, I am rather confused about where I should end up to rent a car. It says that most people head to Millinocket, ME when they finish but it doesnt look like there is any car rental places there. AWOL claims that from Millinocket, you can take a bus from Medway, and then take another bus to Bangor? Can anyone clear this up for me? Should I just rent a car from the Bangor airport or is there something in Medway? Sorry for so many questions, I am in a library and I only have 30 minutes left before it closes so I can't really look all this stuff up!

thanks,

Pop AKA Lighthouse

[tarantolk]

There are several car rental places at Bangor Airport but most of them require a Maine ID or return flight information. The place I had my reservation with put my billing address in wrong twice and therefore I could not use the same card (and only card I had) their mistake but unfortunately I ended up having to fly home. Make sure you speak with someone in advance, as I did my reservation online. Also, cost me about $60 shuttle to get to the airport from Monson.

[jeffmeh]

If you are willing to take some extra time for the scenic route, drop down to the Maine coast around Belfast, then take coastal route 1 and 1A to Portland and spend a night there. Then take 302 through Bridgton and North Conway, NH, and 3 through Crawford Notch, then through Franconia Notch. That gets you both the Maine coast and the White Mountain National Forest. 3 brings you past Lincoln, and if you wanted to skip Portland you could shorten the route. 3 becomes 93S, which will bring you to 495S, 290W, and 90W, which will send you on your way with considerably less interesting sights.

There are lots of options though, depending upon how much time you want to add to your trip. E.g., you could take 112W (Kancamangus Highway) to Lincoln, which is beautiful, but you will miss Crawford and Franconia Notch.

[Kerosene]

Once you get beyond the Whites, consider taking Route 9 through southern Vermont from Brattleboro to Bennington.

In New York, consider U.S. 20 to continue west, which generally parallels the Thru-way. You could drive around the Finger Lakes down to Rte. 17 through Elmira and Corning. Once you get to northeast Ohio the options are much more limited (I lived in Ann Arbor for many years with family in central NY state), so just get on the Ohio Turnpike to get by all the flat farmland; just watch out for those Ohio speed traps!

[Marmaduke]

Once you get beyond the Whites, consider taking Route 9 through southern Vermont from Brattleboro to Bennington.

In New York, consider U.S. 20 to continue west, which generally parallels the Thru-way. You could drive around the Finger Lakes down to Rte. 17 through Elmira and Corning. Once you get to northeast Ohio the options are much more limited (I lived in Ann Arbor for many years with family in central NY state), so just get on the Ohio Turnpike to get by all the flat farmland; just watch out for those Ohio speed traps!

Luckily, the speed limit on the Ohio Turnpike is now 70.......making it feasible to set the cruise at 76-77 or so and not ever have to worry about the ohio state highway patrol popping you..... You could also hop of the turnpike and check out Cuyahoga Valley National park if you're headed through that part of the state..... it's my home park, and while it may not have mountains, it's as fantastic of a trail system as you'll come across in this area. Over 250 solid miles, with a lot of them relatively challenging.

[oldbear]

A two day rental from Avis will cost you $ 313.10
Picking up at Bangor International ( BGR )
Returning to Indianapolis International ( IND )
https://www.avis.com/car-rental/rese.../select-car.ac
I would take US 2 out of Bangor and head West across the Whites , Greens and Adirondaks
On Google Maps it's Bangor> Lake Placid > Watertown >Indy