National monument kickstarts Katahdin Region’s rebuilding
Eating and savoring a tasty fish taco with chips and unsweetened ice tea at the Appalachian Trail Cafe in downtown Millinocket a couple of weeks ago, my head was aswirl with questions about how the newly designated Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument could possibly help a local economy devastated by paper mill closures in recent years.
The cafe was my third stop of the day. Paul Renaud — co-owner of the cafe and nearby Appalachian Trail Lodge with his wife, Jaime — had just sat down across from me. He seemed eager to share his story and answer some of my questions.
Renaud told me he was “out in the wilderness” on July 24, the day President Obama signed an executive order creating the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument. He'd been listening to the radio when a news broadcast announced the long-anticipated signing. “I gave one big hoot,” he said. “I probably scared any moose within 20 miles, I was so jubilant.”
“We knew this was something that needed to happen,” he continued, acknowledging that it's probably easier for him and his wife to embrace the national monument designation than it might be for local families who've worked for generations at the paper mills. Their mid-life decision to relocate to Millinocket from Georgia after completing a through-hike on the Appalachian Trail in 2006, he said, was spurred by the region's scenic beauty and the potential they saw in a cafe and lodge that was for sale in downtown Millinocket.
“We watched the mill die,” he said of the Great Northern Paper Co. in East Millinocket, which was sold in a bankruptcy auction in December 2014 and is now being scrapped. “We really felt for the people. They thought this day was never going to come. This was painful for them and the whole region. We need a new beginning. It's going to take time and cooperation from everyone.”
From the very beginning, Renaud said, after purchasing the lodge and cafe in 2007, he and his wife made a point of boosting the appeal of both venues to through-hikers on the Appalachian Trail. They've added a shuttle service, a hiking gear shop, WiFi, an upstairs gift and coffee shop and other amenities they knew from personal experience would appeal to hikers. In other words, they had a vision of “what could be” … and worked hard to achieve it. Almost a decade later they're still going strong.
“It's going to be a banner year for us,” Paul said. “We've been very fortunate. We have a niche with the hiking community seeking us out. ”
Like others I interviewed, the Renauds say it will take more than the national monument designation to fully revive the Katahdin Region's struggling economy. But after traveling around the country visiting various national parks and monuments in 2003, they've seen firsthand the spinoff economic benefits to communities located near those parks or monuments.
It made them wonder: Why not the Katahdin Region, especially since the National Park Service is a worldwide brand?
They believe the same can be true not only for the Katahdin Region but also for Moosehead Lake and Greenville with their “America's Crown Jewel” branding initiative. All the pieces are falling in place to strengthen inland Maine's appeal as a destination for outdoor adventure tourism, Renaud told me.
“We have the AMC building lodges and improving the trails, we have Maine Huts & Trails, we have Matt Polstein putting in bike trails,” he said. “It's going to take time. Acadia took 100 years to get where it is today. If we can get 10% to 15% of what Acadia gets within the next 15 years, it will be great for this area.”
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