Grafton Notch Sightseeing

Grafton Notch is located in western Maine, near the border with New Hampshire.  For those people not familiar with the upper Appalachian Mountain chain, “notches” are thin valleys between mountains.  Roads have been built through them, but the notches were never turned into farmland.  What the notches do have in abundance are scenic views.

Grafton Notch spans the towns of Upton, Grafton Township, and Newry.  Grafton Notch State Park is located in the notch.  There is also a Preserve located about a mile south of the park.  Sunday River Ski Area and Golf Club are on mountains at the southern end of the notch.  The Appalachian Trail also passes over the mountains on either side of the notch.  Finally, there is a 35 mile long loop trail that passes over all the major mountains that surround the notch.

There are many sights to see.  The best known is Screw Auger Falls.  This is a waterfall that turns almost like a screw.  Other things to see in the state park are Mother Walker Falls, Moose Cave, and the view from Table Rock.  In the Preserve is Step Falls, perhaps the most spectacular waterfall in the state.

Of these five sights, only Table Rock is a true hike.  Step Falls requires maybe a half mile of walking, sometimes uphill over roots.  The other three are very near the road and require little walking.  No hiking trails connect them; you drive short distances from one to the next.

If you are coming from the south: take Route 2 north out of Bethel, Maine.  About five miles from town Route 26 will separate off to the left.  Take it.  In about six miles you reach the state park.

If you are coming from the east: take Route 2 southwest out of Rumford, Maine.  About 10 miles out of town Route 26 will separate off to the right.  Take it.  In about six miles you reach the state park.

If you are coming from the west (except northern New Hampshire): take Route 2 east out of Gorham, New Hampshire, cross into Maine, and drive to Bethel.  Stay on Route 2 north out of Bethel.  About five miles from town Route 26 will separate off to the left.  Take it.  In about six miles you reach the state park.

If you are coming from northern New Hampshire: take Route 26 southeast out of Errol, New Hampshire, cross into Maine, and in about 5 miles you reach the state park.  Note: Since most visitors will be coming north up Route 26 the order of the posts is from south to north as they would encounter them.  You would encounter them in the reverse order.

Here are posts that go into these five sights in more detail, including photos and videos:

Step Falls

Screw Auger Falls

Mother Walker Falls

Moose Cave

Table Rock

On to the hikes…

Hike – Step Falls

Step Falls

Step Falls is located in a Preserve just south of Grafton Notch State Park in Newry, Maine.  While it technically is not the highest waterfall in the state because it does not have a single unbroken drop, the cumulative drop is well over one hundred feet, with a good volume of water.

Hike – Screw Auger Falls

Screw Auger Falls

Screw Auger Falls is located in Grafton Notch State Park in Grafton Township, Maine.  It is a popular tourist attraction.  It features two waterfall drops that each turn away from the other, almost like a screw does.  There are good viewing areas and you can get right on top of the falls, too.

Hike – Mother Walker Falls

Mother Walker Falls

Mother Walker Falls is located in Grafton Notch State Park in Grafton Township, Maine.  It is a popular tourist attraction.  It features a gorge and a chute that force water downstream.  The falls themselves are now somewhat obscured by trees that have grown up in front of the viewing area.  It is still worth stopping if you are in the park, though.

Hike – Moose Cave

Moose Cave is located in Grafton Notch State Park in Grafton Township, Maine.  It is a popular tourist attraction.  It features a set of walkways that lead you to massive granite boulders that have broken off the cliff side, forming a “cave” and a chute of water.  It gets its name from a moose that fell into the water here.

Hike – Table Rock

Looking south from Table Rock

Table Rock is located in Grafton Notch State Park in Grafton Township, Maine.  It is a popular hiking attraction.  It is a flat rock that extends out off a cliff and features more than 180 degree views of the notch.  The following post describes a loop hike up the Appalachian Trail, then over to Table Rock, then down the Table Rock trail.

Movies Where People Pretend to Play Themselves

“Hello Mrs. Madigan. Arnold Braunshweiger.” – Jack Slater (Arnold Schwarzenegger) trying to pretend to be Arnold Schwarzenegger, Last Action Hero

Cameos by well known people have been in movies for many decades.  Sometimes those cameos are funny precisely because of who the person is.  An example is Bing Crosby appearing as a disappointed executioner in the Bob Hope comedy My Favorite Brunette (1947.)  Sometimes the cameo is even the person playing themselves, such as Bruce Willis in Ocean’s Twelve (2004.)

Every now and then, though, an actor or actress takes a role as themselves that is a lot more than just a cameo.  The plot in all of these is that they are playing an exaggerated, or even completely fictional, version of themselves.  Probably the most well known movie example is Being John Malkovich (1999.)  Jerry Seinfeld would famously do the same thing on his eponymous TV show.

You can find my posts for these movies here:

Wings of Desire (1987)

Last Action Hero (1993)

Being John Malkovich (1999)

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)

My Name is Bruce (2006)

Hamlet 2 (2008)

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008)

You’ll notice both Harold & Kumar movies are here.  The third one is coming out late in 2011.  Here is the trailer for it.

On to the reviews…

Movie – Wings of Desire (1987)

Wings of Desire is a German film that was shot just before the fall of the Berlin Wall.  It touched a nerve first with its German audience, then around the rest of the world.  Some of the impact of this film has probably been lost for people who have only known a world where the wall does not exist.  It is still a movie well worth seeing, though.

Movie – Last Action Hero (1993)

Last Action Hero was Arnold Schwarzenegger’s attempt to combine action and comedy together.  He did this by making fun of his own image.  Many people did not like the movie when it came out because they didn’t like seeing action movie clichés being the butt of jokes.  They wanted to see Arnold in an action move, or Arnold in a non-action comedy. 

I liked the movie when it first came out and I feel that the biggest thing wrong with it was that it was 15 years ahead of its time.  All the jokes and references would be right at home in any number of movies and TV shows that get made now.

Movie – Being John Malkovich (1999)

Being John Malkovich was my first exposure to the writing of Charlie Kaufman (Adaptation, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.)  It would be an understatement to say that his mind works in ways that are different from most other people.  The result is some really unique movies.  This one is no exception.

Movie – Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)

Back in 2004 if you would have told most people that an R-rated comedy starring two relatively unknown minority actors would be one of the funniest movies to come along in quite awhile, they would have laughed as hard as audiences did at this movie.  When I saw Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle I laughed harder than I had in years.

Movie – My Name is Bruce (2006)

The title of this movie refers to Bruce Campbell, star of many B movies, including the Evil Dead trilogy.  [You can read my review of his best movie here.]  In My Name is Bruce he gets mistaken for his Evil Dead character of Ash by a town that needs help fighting off a demon.  Both carnage and hilarity ensue.

Movie – Hamlet 2 (2008)

First, the movie Hamlet 2 is not a sequel to Shakespeare’s play Hamlet.  Hamlet 2 is a play within the movie that a high school drama teacher is trying to put on to save the drama club at his school.  Think of this movie as a combination of the TV show Glee and a spoof of inspirational teacher movies.  The play Hamlet 2 can probably give Springtime for Hitler a run for its money as worst idea for a play ever.

Movie – Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008)

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay is the sequel to the very funny Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle.  [See my review of that here.]  This is one comedy sequel that is almost as funny as the first movie, and that’s saying something.  While I would consider the first one to be the better of the two, the second is definitely a worthy follow-up.

Humor – No Texting in Theaters

The Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas has had a strict policy of no talking in their theater.  They would even run a short clip of former Governor Ann Richards getting a call in her office, coming down to the theater, and throwing the talker out.

More recently, the Alamo Drafthouse took on texting in their theater, too.  People were trying to get around the no talking rule and consequently flooding the theater with beams of light from their phones.

One woman was not happy about getting tossed out for texting.  She left a voicemail for the Alamo Drafthouse that they ended up turning into their latest short clip to warn people not to text.

This is the censored version.  If you want to hear it in all its glory, you can find the uncensored version here.

Personally, I wish all theaters would do this.  I might start going out to see more movies again.

Movies After Star Wars

“The encounter could create a time paradox, the results of which could cause a chain reaction that would unravel the very fabric of the space-time continuum, and destroy the entire universe! …….Granted, that's a worse case scenario.” – Doc Brown, Back to the Future Part II

After Star Wars came out there was suddenly a huge demand for big, special effects laden movies.  This was both good and bad.  It was good because it created a huge market for summer movies.  (Believe it or not, the summer used to be kind of dead in regards to movies.)  It was bad because it meant studios mostly stopped making SF movies that made you think, and instead made dumbed down sci-fi movies.  They missed the fact that Star Wars was more than flashy effects.  This even led to the first incarnation of Battlestar Galactica on TV.  Let’s just say the writing left something to be desired.  (“Admiral, the cylons are two microns and closing.”)

First, explanations on a couple of terms I am going to use.  There are two kinds of science fiction movies – “sci-fi” and “SF.”  “Sci-fi” movies are the somewhat dumbed down ones whose only ambition is to sell tickets – lots of them.  These make up most of the science fiction movies that get released, from all the superhero movies, to all the space battle movies, to all the creepy/cute alien movies.  These have the biggest “wow” factors.

“SF” movies, on the other hand, are actually about something.  The best science fiction books and movies make you look at things in ways that you never have before.  They stimulate thought and maybe even discussion after you are done with them.  These kinds of movies do not get released as often because they usually do not sell as many tickets.  Also, let’s face it - a majority of moviegoers today don’t want to have to actually pay attention to a movie that makes them think.  They want one that they can still follow even though they are talking over it, texting, etc.  They just want to be entertained.

Both sci-fi and SF movies are entertaining to me.  Depending on what mood I am in, either one can provide a couple hours of enjoyment.  Are these two categories mutually exclusive?  Almost.  On very rare occasions a movie gets released that is both sci-fi and SF.  The Matrix is an example of this.

There are so many good science fiction movies that came out after Star Wars that I will probably revisit this category at a later date.  To pare this list down for this first post I will skip any big name films like The Matrix, as well as any superhero movies. 

In this set I am going to cover Contact (1997) – SF, Dark City (1998) - SF, The Iron Giant (1999) – SF and sci-fi, Battle Royale (2000) – sci-fi, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004) – sci-fi, Serenity (2005) – SF and sci-fi, Children of Men (2006) – SF, and The Man from Earth (2007) – SF.

You can find my posts for these movies here:

Contact (1997)

Dark City (1998)

The Iron Giant (1999)

Battle Royale (2000)

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)

Serenity (2005) - [previously posted]

Children of Men (2006)

The Man from Earth (2007)

You can also see my Before Star Wars category by clicking here.

On to the reviews…

Movie – Contact (1997)

Few movies treat science with respect.  Usually there is the person who is trying to use it to abuse power (the mad scientist), or it is pseudoscience at best.  Just as few movies treat faith with respect.  Most people of faith in movies are played as naïve, as nuts, or as extremists.  Contact actually treats both with respect, and shows that they don’t have to be bitter enemies of each other.  This is one of the reasons that Contact is the best movie of 1997; yes, even better than Best Picture winner Titanic.

Movie – Dark City (1998)

Dark City could at first be described as “SF noir”.  Digging a little deeper it becomes far more than that.  It was director Alex Proyas’ follow-up to The Crow (1994) and it displays some of the same tone and mood.  This is not your mainstream science fiction movie, but it does display some themes and images that would explode into the public consciousness when The Matrix also used them the next year.

Movie – The Iron Giant (1999)

In the summer of 1999 Warner Brothers responded to all of the parents who had been crying out for a quality animated movie that they could take their whole family to; one that wasn’t the toy advertising that Disney had become.  Warner Brothers selected a well respected story – The Iron Man – and hired up and comer Brad Bird to direct the movie.  The result – parents avoided this movie like the plague.  “No singing animals?  My kids won’t want to see that.”  The result was that a truly great movie was hardly seen at all.

Movie – Battle Royale (2000)

Battle Royale is a Japanese film that has struck a chord around the world.  There has been talk for years of an American remake, but because of the subject matter I don’t know if it ever would be made.  The closest we will come in the near term is the upcoming movie The Hunger Games (2012), whose plot borrows heavily from Battle Royale.  (Click here for my book review of The Hunger Games.)