Picnic Areas

With more than 30 scenic state parks around Maine, you’ll need as many days, or more, to explore them all. If work, school, or other scheduling issues limit your vacation time in America’s Vacationland, you can still enjoy a taste of Maine’s natural wonders. Many of Maine’s state parks offer truly awesome picnic areas to entice you, if only for a few hours’ visit.

Whether you seek the magnificence of a mountain lake, the thundering crash of waterfalls, the call of the wild in the wilderness, or simply gentle surf lapping up on a sandy beach, you can make it part of a Maine picnic.

Pack a lunch of wild blueberries and a hearty sandwich purchased from a local vendor. Then seek out a picnic shelter to protect you from the summer sun as you enjoy your delicious fare. For the more ambitious or those who want a “home-cooked” meal after a short hike up a nearby mountain or a cool swim in a freshwater pond, check out a state park with grills and picnic tables.

Many day-use-only parks also offer group shelters that can be reserved for large outdoor functions. And some even come with electricity, running water, and group-sized grills.

The picnic areas are bountiful, so where you munch your Maine picnic lunch is entirely up to you.