Went on a guided snowmobile tour, rented a double rider, full gear and the heated shield, perfectly warm, ive been riding a few times with friends but never really on my own, big shoutout to Paul for making it a really fun experience, feeding the birds was awesome! Definitely would do it again- see you next winter! read more

New England Outdoor Center - Really nice view out riding - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Millinocket, Maine

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Fantastic location! We had 10 people attend for a work offsite. Stayed in two large cabins and rented snowmobiles from them as well. Mid- February. Restaurant is closed Tuesday and Wednesday (the food and drink choice is AMAZING). Brewery is open for breakfast 7-10 everyday and lunch/dinner everyday. (Their dark oat stout is amazing.). Plenty of linens provided. Plenty of dishes and baking utensils. Very responsive in phone for emails. Plenty of good trails right off the camp. About 1.5 hours from BGR airport. Little bit of non-paved roads but it's not extreme. The suv was needed in winter. One of the cabins had a gas grill which is great but our other one didn't. I wish they had a bonfire area but it was REALLY cold. -10 at night. It would be nice if they salted some of the walking areas but we had snow boots so all good. Rentals were easy!!! Rented snow mobiles and full gear with heated helmet visor. Totally worth it. We had our own local guide with us so I can't comment on those services. Will stay again! read more

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The setting is splendid - lots of trees, hiking trails, and that wonderful lakefront! The two restaurants have wonderful food and easily accommodated the vegetarian guests. The staff was helpful before, during, and after the event. read more

This was probably the worst campground I've ever been to and pretty much ruined my trip to Baxter State Park. There were no staff to be found at night (I walked around for 20 minutes looking.) The only instruction is to call a phone number, but there's no service unless you drive for 10-15 minutes (for all carriers - NEOC knows that and has directions on how to drive to service, although if you have AT&T you have to go all the way to town which is 15-20 minutes). Since that's the case, this campground really needs a better option such as a walkie talkie or something in order to reach staff in an emergency or late at night. This seems like a major safety issue. Quiet hours are at 10:30pm, but they aren't enforced. People were yelling, playing music, and even driving trucks around (for fun) until 5am++. There were multiple bachelor parties the weekend that we stayed. The next day I learned there is an area marked "private" where the guides live, and they're supposed to enforce quiet hours. Well, that group was playing music and howling at the moon at 11:30pm. The overall vibe was like a Maine Jersey Shore. If you want an experience in nature, go elsewhere. Some examples from our neighbors: the girls next to us decided to leave their SUV running for 2 hours until 10:30pm just to charge their phones. A group of 4 guys arrived at 11pm and left their Cadillac Escalade (seriously) running for 20 minutes while unloading and yelling to each other, then decided to play with fire + lighter fluid. The craziest example is that one group kept the party going until 5AM! They were still speaking in full voices and even yelling at times. I finally got up to ask them to whisper around 3:30AM although they didn't whisper for long. There is a staffperson onsite in the morning, I believe her name was Linda. She was very helpful and kind, and agreed that what we experienced was Not Okay. She offered us a different spot by the water, although when we went to investigate there was a group of 5+ guys next door playing music, so we didn't think it was worth spending 2 hours packing and unpacking our stuff again while on vacation and decided not to move. The second night was slightly better for noise, a group was yelling until 1:30AM instead of 5AM. Other details to note: - Check in is 3pm and check out is 10am which seems excessive for a campsite. Most others I go to are 11am/1pm. - You cannot choose your own campsite. This is a huge bummer and there's a big difference between the campsites by the water with lots of space, vs my area (campsite 17) that had 6 campsites VERY close together and was about 20-30 feet from the main parking area where the generators and all the rafting trips are loaded up. It was noisy pretty much all the time. - Speaking of generators, according to the rules sheet these are run 3 hours a day I think. An updated sheet by the lodge had them running 7 hours a day. In reality they ran them even longer on the first day, until 9pm. I appreciate the ability to shower but these are so, so loud. The second night they didn't even run, which my friend and I jokingly called the "bropocalypse" because there were big groups of guys walking over to the lodge that couldn't figure out why there was no water. Oh remember our characters from before, the neighbor girls idling their car? Despite the showers being locked they decided to shower in the sink meant to get drinking water for HALF AN HOUR, and ran the entire camp out of water. We had brought enough that we were fine, but these people were seriously awful humans. They even laughed about it to my friend who was trying to get water to do dishes! Again, no staff around for any type of enforcement. I'm giving this review an extra star because I thought the staffperson I interacted with was really nice. But it sounds like management has cut down staffing so much that this camp is like the Wild West. Just stay at Baxter State Park. Change your dates, book farther out, do what it takes. read more

Little Mud-Quaint cottage/camp on the shore of Lake Millinocket. The restaurant was open only one night during the time we were there. there was an issue with excess moisture in the bathroom: condensation dripping off the toilet tank, moisture seeping up through the vinyl floor, a puddle under the bed adjacent to the bathroom wall, water seeping in on the slab during a heavy rain. We used every towel in the place mopping up wet spots. Reporting issues upon checkout resorted in a "too bad, so sad" attitude. read more

Camped here for one night while hiking Katahdin. Beautiful campground. We stayed in a cabin tent and it was wonderful! There's a volleyball court, area for a bonfire and small bar. The showers and bathrooms were really clean and the staff was very friendly. There's kayaks to rent as well and absolutely BEAUTIFUL views of Katahdin. I would definitely stay here again while hiking! read more

New England Outdoor Center - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Millinocket, Maine

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Fresh classy dark beer on tap! Off season availability in Spring & Fall = awesome! Got the best black bean burger ever. Comes with nicely seasoned sweet potato fries by default (not extra :). They mentioned some improved outdoor features coming soon in addition to their firepit & string lights. Definitely will return. Hopefully more heavy gravity brews on the way. :) (Accidentally posted this on the place up stream earlier) read more

New England Outdoor Center - Bar mileage sign - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Millinocket, Maine

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Our third year staying here. Wonderful experience. We were, however, so disappointed that the restaurant didn't offer the gourmet delights they had in the past. We were so looking forward to the specials the chef offers. We realize the staff shortage is a big problem, however our waitress was excellent. We are all in the restaurant business back home so we really appreciated her. We stay in Sandy Stream every year. Maybe next time there will be a screen in our window so we can get a cross breeze in the bedroom and the constant dripping in the bathtub will be fixed. However, everything was great, can't wait to go back to our little piece of heaven; read more

Very professional from Bob the bus driver to Andy our guide! Trip was great and Andy was very entertaining. The views from the river trip were fantastic! Lunch was served at a camp on the river and it was excellent! Top notch crew, thank you very much! read more

David, (who I presume is the main owner because he's literally the first person in the Outdoor center getting everything ready and the last person out) was super accommodating and helped us out a ton, which made what could have been a pretty crappy camping experience into one where I definitely want to go back to and do again. We drove up there during a particularly rainy weekend and found our Cabin Tent was leaking in one spot. He upgraded us to a bunkhouse free of charge and trudged up to our Bunkhouse a second time (in the horrible rain) to get us a working portable lantern. White water rafting here is as freaking awesome as you could possibly want minus the danger from being a rookie. All the guides are funny, experienced, knowledgeable, so you get all the fun and terror from the rapids plus interesting trivia, logging history, local legends of Maine during the lulls. I think the only part that bothered me was the canvas curtains that were used in the showers which made the showers very drafty. And it seems like the heat in the water wasn't very consistent if there was more than one person taking a shower. Big plus is the barbecue lunch offered in between the morning and afternoon rafting. read more

Fantastic time! Thought it would be much more terrifying but the guides were professional, calm, and composed that no one was fearful - even if they fell out! It was all very fun and safety was paramount! They even had a delicious riverbank cookout for lunch appropriate to everyone's dietary restrictions if any! Cannot recommend this enough except to say if I did it again, I would schedule it to do the class 5 rapids TWICE in a row! Lodge, accommodations, restaurants -- everything was just spot on! read more

This was an amazing trip with a great guide that lived locally and knew a tone of spots. We happened to be the only guests on the moose seeing tour that evening. Our guide was very personable and knew all the good locations to see the moose. The van we were in was brand new and very comfortable. We arrive hours before our tour was to beginning and the front desk (Julie) let us roam the grounds of the resort. They have the most beautiful view of the lake which my husband and I sat and looked at for hours. I let my sister know we had to come back here and spent a week! read more

New England Outdoor Center - The view of Lake Millinocket is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen. - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Millinocket, Maine

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Just returned from a weekend in Millinocket, Maine for a whitewater rafting adventure with New England Outdoor Center - and we had an AWESOME time! Our party of 6 was a mixed bag - 3 who had rafted before and 3 rafting virgins! Thankfully, we had a wonderful guide (Derek - or D$, as it were) who assured the newbies they'd be fine and taught us everything we'd need to know to tackle the Class V rapids on the Penobscot! I was one of the 3 people in our boat who had rafted before (this was my 4th trip) and have to say it was one of the best I've experienced! We had a rainy, windy day to contend with and the river was running high at 3200 CFS - but Derek navigated that river like a champ! I'd like to say it was our group's rafting prowess, but I know better!!! Derek was funny, knowledgeable and kept us in the boat (with the exception of my brother who went for a swim on the last rapid that we were trying to surf!). We had an awesome time and can't wait to do it again! As for NEOC specifically - check-in was a breeze, as was the wetsuit rental process. Lunch was included in the price, I went with the steak and it was great. The staff does a great job of working double/triple/quadruple duty from check-in, cooking lunch, guiding the boats and then coordinating the picture slide show and video at the end. Their customer service is second to none. I'd raft with them again in a heartbeat! read more

My girlfriend organized a whitewater rafting weekend for a group of friends with NEOC. We booked one of their packages that included a cabin for two nights, two breakfasts, dinner at their restaurant, and the double trouble rafting trip. Pros: * Great customer service. My girlfriend called multiple times before the trip with questions and changes to our reservation and they were always very helpful and accommodating. * They upgraded our group for free from two of the small cabins to their premium guest house. * Great whitewater experience-- our guide Dave Weatherby was fantastic and all the guides were focused on giving everyone a really fun experience. The operation felt very well run. * Overall, great value. Cons: * The premium cabin (The Lookout) which we got as a free upgrade is clearly still being renovated. It was a steal for us, but if you're booking this one, check that they've finished renovations (it was very nice and will be fantastic when finished). * Some late night noise complaints-- the cabins aren't super far apart so if one group is partying late, you may be kept up. Overall: * One of the best package vacation experiences I've had. read more

My first time going whitewater rafting was through the NEOC. Let me tell ya, it was thrillingly AWESOME. We were going through some Class V rapids which I hear is pretty up there on the scary scale. The guides were very knowledgeable, experienced, engaging and quick on their toes. Most of the people on our boat were newbies (including myself) and they ran through all the safety procedures clearly and efficiently in the cabin before we geared up. At one point of the rapids-- there was a miscommunication of paddling during one of the big dips in the river. The guide (I wish I remembered his name) commanded and navigated us out of what (I didn't realize) would have been a nasty snag. How he handled the situation was very professional and effective. Never once did I feel unsafe under his guidance. He maintained his cool throughout the rapids... it was only when we were in the clear that he told us the importance of paddling in union as a group and listening to the lead; otherwise we would have been in quite a jam. It was a eye-opener, and a critical point of our lesson in teamwork. Apparently on the day we came, the wind was in our favor and we didn't have to paddle much when the river was flat. All in all it was an awesome experience, one that I will always remember. A satisfying check off my bucket-list. read more

During a two-night stay at NEOC, we had the opportunity to experience a rafting experience with our guide, Ben. Though we were a little frustrated to have to wait for a family checking in late (almost an hour late!), the NEOC guide team made sure that we had a great experience. Ben was very accommodating, full of information about the area's wildlife, botany, and history. Ben (Trail name: Backpack) even helped us to complete a river limerick, "There once was a guide from Millinocket....." . We've decided that his trail name should be River Poet! Ben and the entire guide team turned a cold, drizzly day into a great memory of our trip to Millinocket! Oh, did I forget to mention that the trip also included a full lunch mid-way through the rafting trip with a choice of steak, fish, chicken grilled to order (with a vegetarian option as well) with pasta salad, rice, and cookies for dessert! read more

By far, if I could give more than 5 stars, this would be the first and only 10 star meal and drinks. Beautiful landscape, and the food was by far the best I've ever had, 5 star food tucked away, there was nothing you could say that couldn't be positive about the food or the service. I couldn't describe the food if I tried, I wouldn't do it justice, I had the crab cake, the lobster roll and the Lobster Bisque, oh my gosh, the bisque, the place is way off the beaten path and still gets packed for all meals. I would suggest that even if you were 2 hours away, it's well worth the trip. read more

New England Outdoor Center - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Millinocket, Maine

Wonderful cabin but the rafting experience was terrible. The river is wonderful for rafting, our guide Andy is very skilled, but the company and the way they manage the whole day trip is TERRIBLE. They have serious time management issue, and they are overbooked, they also don't care about their customers. TIME - The only thing they said online is that the trip starts at 8:00, we called them to confirm the timing and they said we should arrive at around 7:30 to finish the paper work. But I guess we are the only ones who checked the time with them. Some people arrived at 9:00, and they just waited and waited until everyone is there without doing or saying anything. We actually depart at 9:30, one and a half hour later than they promised, and it seems nobody cares. LUNCH - There is also a huge delay for the lunch as well, we spent one and half hours on the water and reached to the lunch spot then. There are 4-5 staffs there already, but they didn't even start the fire, they waited for our guide to cook the lunch. We are wet and cold, there is no sunshine and everyone is shaking in the wind for 2 hours waiting for them to cook the fish, and the chicken and the beef. Things could be different in the summer when it is warmer, but it is was a cloudy 65-70F day with a hundred wet people, you need to concern more for your customer. BASE - We end up finishing the trip at 5:30 while on their website, they said the trip ends at 3:00 - 3:30. There is no signal in the mountain and we are not allowed to bring electronices during the trip, I need to pick up my puppy from daycare before 5:30, I thought I have 2 hours buffer but guess what. The base only has 3 spots for shower and 3 toilets for 100 people FYI. OVERBOOKING - there are 8 of us, we called to ask if we could add one more person but they said they only allow 8 people on the boat. Guess what, they added 2 strangers on our boat as well as some other boats that day, they are definitely overbooked. We were told two of us will not paddle, they will sit in the middle and watch everyone else having fun when they paid the same amount of money for rafting . read more

I have been to many rafting company's and this was one of the best experiences to date! We went with friends and family (total of 10) Very organized, quick check in with plenty of staff to help, lunch was GREAT (I had the steak, yumm!! chicken and fish looked equally as good), I only wish....I could have had TWO cookies! Hot chocolate was also perfect given he chiily weather conditions. Rabbit was our giuide, he was friendy, animated, funny, knowledgable and kept us all in the boat (thank God because it was 67 degrees and raining). Thanks Rabbit : ) There is a bar at the base lodge for post rafting, this was just perfect, what better way to end the day than with a cold beer (and a hot shower). Photographers did a great job as well, we had many pictures to choose from and ended up getting the whole CD. I would DEFINITLY use NEOC again!! read more

This was my second moose tour with NEOC and just as enjoyable as the first. On my first trip there, we went out on a pontoon boat. Although we only saw a glimpse of one moose at the time (may have been the season), our guide was exceptionally friendly, knowledgable and enthusiastic. We had hoped to go out via pontoon boat this time around but the water was too choppy, unfortunately. We ended up going out in an air-conditioned van. Our guide was Matt Polstein, one of NEOC's owners. He was wonderful ~ very friendly, accomodating, informative and gracious. He took us to a few areas where moose are often seen and we ended up seeing two. In addition, he took us to some beautiful scenic outlooks where we could get out, take photos and enjoy the views. As a funny sidenote, the van actually broke down halfway through the trip. We were pretty far out (by Ripogenus Dam), but Matt actually made us all laugh about it. He ran to get help and was back shortly with a game warden's wife who helped jump-start the van back up. Because this had taken up some time, Matt took us out for an extra hour (after making sure we were all comforable with that). Every single person that we encountered at NEOC was incredibly friendly, helpful & informative. They all made us feel very welcome. The headquarters are beautiful as well. Very well-maintained and inviting, with breathtaking views. Overall, a really great experience...AGAIN! read more

Absolutely professional and knowledgeable guides take you over some of Maine's trickiest rapids. Pete (Big Daddy) was our guide and has nearly 20 years experience on the Penobscot. The rest of the staff was friendly, helpful and engaging, and despite a moderately low water level the rafting was fantastic. I highly recommend NEOC. read more

We attempted to check in at Twin Pines and New England Outdoor Center at 3PM, the standard check in time, and were warned that a check out time AFTER 10 AM would be billed at $50 per hour. When we arrived at our cabin we realized that it had not been cleaned. The beds were disheveled and trash was bagged and left hanging on the door knob. A walk back to the front desk and we were told that the cabin was still nearly 2 hours from being cleaned and prepared. My youngest daughter is 7 months pregnant, so standing around waiting for staff to clean the cabin, change the beds, etc. was a bit much. If only I had known that this would be the highpoint of our stay. The cabin was unlike the photographs of the cabins on the property. This was NOT a newly built structure, but one from the 1960's. Most of the light switches were taped over, and while the enormous windows offered a panoramic view, there were no curtains or shades of any kind, and the constant traffic allowed passersby to look in on us. The owners two dogs were a nearly constant reminder that the cabin we were staying in was used often as a staff quarters, where the dogs were also welcome. The barking and scratching could only be stopped by luring them away with Bacon, or bringing them inside. As my eldest daughter is allergic, this was a less than ideal solution. This was also evident by the dog hair that coated the heating registers. Initially I asked about the dogs, as there were signs posted suggesting ALL PETS BE LEASHED. I was told that they dogs were at our cabin because "The laundry is attached" (I guess the dogs were waiting for their delicates to finish?) I like dogs, so I just dropped it and thanked her. The heat was another issue. While the furnace provided ample heat, it was just not very well dispersed. One bathroom was 85 degrees, while the bedroom on the other side of the cabin was 60 degrees. I cannot imagine the carpets had been vacuumed anytime over the past month. The dogs had become an issue, constantly barking for treats or to come inside. We asked about the dogs a second time, and were told it would be dealt with. By the beginning of the second day, I had to again complain about them. They were barking to come in and any movement inside was watched by the dogs (and the world) as there were no shades or curtains. Again we were assured this issue would be taken care of. As we were preparing to leave for my son's wedding on the second day (the reason we were there), we were approached by a woman staff member who proceeded to lecture us about complaining about the dogs. We were told the dogs were "Fixtures" and they belonged to the Staff and owners" and that we had to "realize they have been here a long time." For real? Two words for the folks at Twin Pines and New England Outdoor Center: Customer Service. The staff were unfriendly, uncompromising, and did not seem concerned about the comfort of the guests... at least we 6. They had ample opportunity to address the issues during the two days we stayed there. They chose instead to send nasty staff person to yell at us for having the audacity to complain about the dogs. All this for only $400 +/- a night! I would not return for a free stay. UPDATE: The owners apologized to amy daughter (who had originally booked the stay), and claimed that the staff "Had acted without their permission to book a staff quarters for visitors." She was then offered a "Free stay" of...one night... not a Friday or Saturday. Skip this place if you value your peace and quiet. read more

What an amazing twofer whitewater weekend, with great friends, weather and amazing guides. Weekend started for the eight of us when we arrived at the Twin Pines Cabins on Millinocket Lake. We settled into our cabin around 2 and enjoyed the lake and sights of Katadin. After a great dinner and fire we tucked in early for an even earlier rise. 6:00 came early on Saturday and headed over to the Penobscot Outdoor Center for a little debriefing and gear collection, then we hit the best River, in my opinion, in the Northeast. The beautiful weather made for a great day and Alex, our guide, kept us in the heat and meat of the river all day long. We surfed, got jostled about a little and made some great lines into the best rapids around. No one left the raft or dumping on this day, but there was always tomorrow. We closed the day by laughing at the video replay while enjoying a beer at the bar and then heading back to the cabin. We got a good dinner in and again hung out by the fire until we decided it was time to turn in. Tomorrow was going to be another great day on the Penobscot. Another early wake up and checking out of the cabins was done and we on our way down the road again. Went through our briefings and we were on the river in no time for another brilliant day. This time, Luke was our guide and he did not let us down. Tough to beat the previous run with Alex but Luke was up to the challenge. We hit every line, spot on and even got some surfing in on a couple of areas we hadn't before. We experienced some great action, took one lots of heavy water and even survived the "darkroom" for a few of our friends. I was even launched out of the front row on the last run of the day on The Falls. This year's trip has been our best yet over the last 5 years of running all of the rivers Northern Outdoors has to offer, including High Water, and already stoked for next year. It was a great weekend, with great weather and only made better by some awesome whitewater and guides. This trip was an EPIC success! Thank you again to the folks at Twin Pines, Alex and Luke, and the whole crew of Northern Outdoors for making our annual getaway one for the ages. Kevin L Pelham, New Hampshire read more

I just returned from a weekend trip of rafting the Penobscot with NEOC. It was my second time going and I was accompanied by my two brothers and my gf who was rafting for the first time. The trip overall was a blast and NEOC definitely brings the heat! We caught some traffic going thru Boston so we didn't get to our bunkhouse campsite until close to 10PM so we were definitely getting a late start on the cooler full of beers we brought. We bought some wood at the front desk which is reasonably priced and sat around the campfire making smores and crushing Bud Lights until close to 3AM. We actually got a visit from one of the employees around mid night and we presumed we were going to be chided for noise but the kid was just looking to drink with us. He was already completely stewed when he rolled up and ended up hanging out for a couple hours drinking with us. In the morning however, we were approached by some 60ish yr old dude who was camping 30 yards away who gave us the business about keeping him up and being noisy. He was a total douche. He said we were "raising hell"...We apologized but honestly I would have done the exact same thing had we stayed another night and told him to pound sand. Hey old man put your hand in your pocket and pop for one of the cabins if you want peace and quiet! Otherwise don't act surprised when you hear me spewing profanity and telling a senseless story for the 3rd time at 2AM. Thats what camping is about slick! The day of rafting was absolutely awesome! Our guide Julie was phenomenal. She really made the day enjoyable and was hysterical. Her dirty jokes and innuendos made the still water treks fun and bridged the time in-between the good stuff. She tackled the class 5's like a boss and hit all the good parts flush. Thank you Julie you ROCK!....The lunch they cheffed up on the side of the river was delicious as well. We couldnt stick around for the slide show because we were staying in Portland on Sat. night, so we tipped our guide $30 and hit the road. Great trip overall and would def recommend going thru this company and requesting this guide. You will not be disappointed. PS- Make sure you tip your guides for you cheap bastards out there! read more

We booked a moose tour on July 15, 2017. We did not see one moose but on the NEOC website they claimed we did see a moose cow. False advertising. Very disappointed. Plus the guide was discussing hunting moose with a person on the tour, Some people do not agree with the hunting of animals. read more

I did book with them because they supposedly had trip on Monday but then i got email stating 'At our Penobscot Outdoor Center we have two rafting companies, New England Outdoor Center and Northern Outdoors. New England Outdoor Center did not have a trip booked for Monday so I have booked you with Northern Outdoors. The check in time is earlier and you will need to be at the Outdoor Center by 7am. If you have any questions, please let me know.' Why are you taking my reservation of 2 people if you had no trip planned in first place ? I could have booked with Northern Outdoors myself and it would be cheaper then booking with NEOC. Otherwise, i have nothing bad to say about NEOC because we didn't use them. read more

First time Snowmobiling. Staff was incredibly friendly. Set me up with a well maintained sled and all the gear that kept me warm in sub zero temps. Accommodations were beautiful, comfortable and functional. 280 miles in 2 days in perfect trail conditions. Great dinner at the lodge restaurant. Staff stayed late to accommodate our large crowd. The next day at home I realized I had left my watch behind. The Staff called me and offered to mail it to me directly. I can't wait to come back! read more

A group of 9 went for the full river trip this past weekend (September). The trip was amazing. All the employees and guides had a casual, relaxed attitude and entertaining rapport with each other. Our guide (Carl) was interesting, funny and very knowledgeable. He was direct and clear when he needed to be, and he put us all at ease with his direction and expertise. All the rest of the guides and staff were freaking awesome too. It was very cold outside, so when we got to lunch, everyone was pretty miserable. BUT NEOC did a great job of trying to keep people warm, making hot cocoa, and keeping the mood light. And the meal!!--they really went all out. After they put in a long morning of work, it was pretty impressive to have them cook a full meal over the open grill with pretty legit steaks, fish, and chicken. The rice and vegetables and pasta salad were also really nice before another few hours of rafting. Highly recommend them! It's hard to not have fun when the staff is so awesome and good at their jobs! read more

I went on a rafting trip and camped here. The amenities were pretty nice at the center. The sites were nicely kept and the building had a bar, volleyball court and hot tub. It was surprisingly dead on a Saturday night in July so it wasn't as fun as it could have been. The biggest problem on the trip was our rafting guide Matthew. He took himself way too seriously and sapped most of the fun out of the trip. If he wasn't talking about how good of a rafter he is he was yelling at us for not paddling hard enough. I realize that there is some risk in this kind of rafting but instead of helping us get better he just yelled. He was certainly more concerned with safety than he was with having a good time. I'm pretty sure there's plenty of room for both on a trip like this. I couldn't help but be jealous of the other rafts having a much better time. If they need him to be Mr. Safety Man that's fine just don't put anyone else on his boat. He even told us that he could get down the river just fine without us. They also put 9 of us on a boat so someone had to sit in the middle and didn't get to paddle. We didn't pay to not participate. read more

The campground was beautiful, located right under the base of mount Katadin. Our campsite was clean, spacious, and perfectly flat for a tent. NEOC also offers mini cabins, tent cabins, and resort cabins as well! Our site did not have water or electric but had a grill cover over the fire pit, for the real camping experience. Everyone was so friendly and outgoing! Kristen, one of the staff members helped us our entire stay. From canoe rentals (which are free if your staying at neoc) to activity planning, Kristen went above and beyond even lending us a can-opener and helping to save trapped dragonflies! The campground general store has a indoor bar, pool table, air hockey, fire pit, and band overlooking a pond and mount katadin. Outside they offer a volleyball court, horse shoes and corn hole, with another outdoor fire pit. The campground also offers moose tours, and white water rafting. Definitely a great campground for adventure seekers! read more

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Some confusion in the paperwork / wet suit process. They have two companies going out of same building. Fun and very outgoing staff. Bumpy fast bus ride; sit in the front if you don't want to go airborne on a school bus! Pay no attention to the address on 20D Blackcat Rd. Go north on Baxter state park rd past where blackcat and Baxter state park road meet. It will be on the right look for NEOC sign. If you see the large painted rock, you went too far. The outdoor center has nice camp sites too. Just remember tent cabins and bunk houses, even though they have beds does not mean they have sheets, pillowcases, or electric etc... Bring battery lights, blankets or sleeping bags, wood for fire ring, bug spray, drinks and block ice. If you want to fall asleep early, this may not the place for you. People were up until 2-3AM around a fire with drinks. They can get loud and they are having fun. The riverside lunch was good. My mid-rare steak was a little tough, don't expect them to cook the best quality beef. The rice came out perfect on our day; i saw others complained. Just keep in mind that you have 10 people cooking lunch for 80 on an open fire under time constraints. With fish, chicken, steaks, rice, hot coco, etc... You cannot expect everything to be perfect! Is was good and very edible after a long day. Also, bring bug spray for lunch. Not sure who was eating more us or the mosquitoes that damp day. The upper river was for the adventurous, the lower had a waterfall and a natural water slide you can shoot down and lots of relaxing calm parts. Personally, I'd do the whole river once, then I'd do double trouble(upper twice) if you like the excitement. Overall, it is a great place for activities and camping. Great staff and good times. read more

The NEOC base for rafting is absolutely not at 1221 Medway Road. Otherwise known as the Penobscot Outdoor Center (POC), the base is off of Baxter State Park Road north of the town of Millinocket, ME. Google says the GPS coordinates are (N 45.796913, W -68.881702). That said, the basecamp is a larger than average rafting base with a campground, cabin tents, restaurant/bar, and rafting station. I stayed in a cabin tent, which is a great alternative to tents if rain is a possibility. The cabin tents were a little moldy on the outside but otherwise very comfortable and convenient since there's already a bed and sheets for you to use. I didn't grab any food or drink from them aside from the river trips which were good. They royally messed up their rice pilaf and was largely unedible but the fish and chicken were tasty although overcooked. But all in all, exceeding expectations for a river trip. The POC also has a volleyball court and hottub which many do not. The service and organization for the river trips were disjointed and chaotic in the morning since both NEOC and Northern Outdoors use the POC. My biggest problem with the outfitter was their inability to enforce quiet hours. After being yelled at by loud drunks and complaining to staff to get them to talk with the same group, they continued on past 2am when our trip was scheduled for 7:45am. They kept most of the area awake and the staff did little about it. The guides themselves were good and professional. My raft and 2 night cabin tent stay was $99. read more

A group of us went on a moose safari with this organization. We had made arrangements for it to be a private party but when we arrived they had added 2 folks not with our group which was disappointing. The guide was nice and knowledgeable and we did see moose. We went by boat so that was a nice experience. I would not travel to do this event by itself, but if you are in the area, it might be worth your time. I would not recommend to set up a private event as they do not honor these requests-best just as a one-off rather then for a group-they aren't set up to cater for groups. read more

Had an absolutely amazing time whitewater rafting. The base was very easy to find and the directions provided were very clear. We had six in our boat and our guide (Steve) did a fantastic job. He made our trip down the Penobscot as exhilarating as possible. Even though I managed to fall out of the raft a couple of times, that only enhanced the experience in my book. Definitely planning on going back some time in the near future. The staff of New England Outdoor Center were all extremely friendly and the food was great. Be sure to bring bug spray though! I would recommend a whitewater rafting trip down the Penobscot to anyone looking for an adventure. read more