Underexposed: Bethel, Maine

Maine is the northeasternmost of the United States, situated between New Hampshire to the south and west, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and Canada up above. It's the largest of the New England states, with a total area nearly equal to that of the rest of New England combined, and is considered to be among the most rural states in the country, with half of it uninhabited at the moment. Of course there are several communities throughout Vacationland, most of which are small and categorically quaint, and today I find myself in what may very well be one of the best mountain towns in all of Maine and possibly New England.

Bethel is home to 2,500 people, and is nestled snugly among some of the oldest mountains on the planet, with the tallest peaks of the northeast just a stone's throw way to the west in New Hampshire, and the rugged Mahoosucs to the north and east of town. It's a place renowned for its year-round outdoor recreation, with skiing and snowboarding, nordic skiing, fly fishing, paddling, and hiking opportunities in every single direction. Mountain biking is obviously among those opportunities and has been a particularly big part of the fabric of this community in recent years, with Mount Abram opening its bike park in 2019 and Bethel-based Inland Woods and Trails doing amazing work to secure thousands of acres of land, including the 978 acre Bethel Community Forest.

It's been clear for quite some time that you can find good mountain bike trails in virtually every corner of the globe, but every now and then I find myself surprised by just how good a place is for bikes, and Bethel is a perfect example of that. It's filled to the brim with top notch trails and is set to see even more arrive in the years to come. But the biggest surprise for me went well beyond the terrain: it's the people here who help to set it apart. There's no gatekeeping or anything along those lines. In fact, it's just the opposite: they're stoked to share their goods with the rest of us. Good trails go a long way, but good people will take you even further, and luckily for those who call this place home, or for tourists like me, it has plenty of both.