Part of the Moving to Maine guide
Tested-by-locals gear for every Maine season. Ordered by how fast you'll need it.
Maine winter is 5 months. Have this stuff before November.
Rated to at least -10°F. Carhartt and LL Bean are the local defaults; the Columbia ones are a budget alternative.
See on Amazon →Waterproof, rated to sub-zero. Sorel Caribous are the classic Maine pick; Bogs are the easier slip-on.
See on Amazon →Most newcomers have never seen one. You use it after every heavy snow to pull snow off your roof before it becomes ice dams. The extendable ones are worth the extra cost.
See on Amazon →A bent-shaft shovel saves your back. Skip the cheap straight-shaft ones.
See on Amazon →Slip-on traction for ice. Every Mainer keeps a pair in their coat pocket from December through March.
See on Amazon →Calcium chloride melts below 0°F unlike cheap rock salt, and pet-safe formulas won't burn your dog's paws. You'll go through more than you think.
See on Amazon →Cheaper than cranking the furnace. Warms the bed for 15 minutes before you climb in. Game changer in January.
See on Amazon →Wood heat and forced-air furnaces dry your house out badly in winter. Skin cracks, static shocks, nosebleeds. A whole-room humidifier fixes it.
See on Amazon →Clear plastic film you shrink with a hair dryer. Cuts winter heating costs 10-15% on drafty old windows. About $20 for the whole house.
See on Amazon →Nest or Ecobee. Learns your schedule, drops the temperature when you're out or asleep. Qualifies for Efficiency Maine rebates.
See on Amazon →Required if you heat with wood, pellets, oil, or propane (most Maine homes). Replace every 7 years.
See on Amazon →Plugs into the 12V outlet. Heats up in 2-3 minutes. Small thing but makes February commutes bearable.
See on Amazon →Maine summers are short but intense. Black flies in May, ticks everywhere, heat waves in July.
Most older Maine homes don't have central air. A 6,000-8,000 BTU window unit handles a bedroom; 10,000+ for a living room.
See on Amazon →If your windows don't fit a standard AC or you rent and can't install. Louder but works.
See on Amazon →Maine summers are humid. A 50-pint dehumidifier in the basement prevents mold, rust, and that musty smell. Empty it less often with built-in pump models.
See on Amazon →Before you install AC, fans buy you a lot. Vornado and Lasko are reliable.
See on Amazon →Picaridin lasts as long as DEET without the chemical smell or melting your plastic gear. Effective against black flies AND mosquitoes.
See on Amazon →You spray your clothes (not your skin). Kills ticks on contact. Lasts 6 washes. If you spend any time in Maine woods, this is non-negotiable for Lyme prevention.
See on Amazon →A proper tick key or tick twister removes ticks cleanly without squeezing infected fluid into the bite. Keep one in your wallet and one in the car.
See on Amazon →Sounds dumb until you're in Maine woods during black fly season (mid-May to early June). Then it's the best $5 you've ever spent.
See on Amazon →Maine has Acadia, Baxter, the Allagash, and 3,500 miles of coastline. Here's what you actually need.
The book every Mainer has in their car. Every dirt road, boat launch, trail, and camp site in the state. Cell service disappears fast here.
See on Amazon →REI Half Dome, Big Agnes Copper Spur, or the budget Coleman Sundome. All handle Maine weather.
See on Amazon →Maine nights get cold even in July at elevation. A 20°F bag covers you for 9 months of the year.
See on Amazon →Jetboil Flash for boiling water fast, or a 2-burner Coleman for car camping family meals.
See on Amazon →Required by Baxter State Park for backcountry camping. Black bears are real and very good at finding food. A BearVault BV500 handles 4-5 days of food.
See on Amazon →Black Diamond Spot or Petzl Tikkina. USB-rechargeable is the way. You'll use it more than you think.
See on Amazon →Cheaper and lighter than a LifeStraw, works on streams, beaver ponds, whatever. Essential for backpacking the 100-Mile Wilderness.
See on Amazon →Same as the Stay Cool section. Double it for camping in May-June.
See on Amazon →A good packable chair beats a rock by the fire every time. REI Flexlite or Helinox Chair Zero.
See on Amazon →Power goes out. Wells need tested. Roads get icy. This is the quiet stuff that separates Mainers from newcomers.
Maine has real storms. Versant Power (eastern Maine) is worse for outages than CMP. A dual-fuel 7,500W generator runs a furnace, fridge, and lights for 24 hours on one tank.
See on Amazon →If you're on a well (about 40% of Maine homes), Maine CDC recommends testing for arsenic, uranium, and bacteria every 3-5 years. The home test kit is cheaper than sending to a lab.
See on Amazon →You probably don't need them with proper snow tires. You do need them if you live on a steep dirt road or drive a FWD with all-seasons.
See on Amazon →Jumper cables, folding shovel, blanket, granola bars, flashlight. Everyone keeps one in the trunk from October through April.
See on Amazon →Cheaper than a generator for running the fridge and a few lights during a 12-24 hour outage. Pairs with a small solar panel for longer outages.
See on Amazon →Clean your chimney yourself at least twice per winter. Creosote fires are a leading cause of Maine house fires.
See on Amazon →The free 30-day moving checklist covers driver's license, vehicle registration, school enrollment, and everything else newcomers need in the first 90 days.
Download the checklist →