County promoted at expo
WORCESTER, Mass. — A few weeks ago at the New England Fishing and Outdoor Expo in Massachusetts, a massive blizzard on the East Coast presented challenges to the Aroostook County Tourism (ACT) volunteers who staffed the booth promoting tourism to The County.
“Our trip to the New England Fishing and Outdoor Expo was a difficult one due to the weather,” said Jesse Jalbert of Quigley’s Outdoors in Fort Kent. “The hours were cut to about half of what was originally scheduled. On Friday and Saturday we saw very few people attending the show due to the inclement weather, but it did allow for us to take a look at other booths and have other vendors stop by our booth.”
On Sunday, with the snow over but cleanup continuing, traffic at the event picked up and Jalbert said there was a lot of interest in Aroostook County.
“The key points that people were interested in were muskie fishing, native brook trout fishing, remote canoe trips, and bear hunting,” he said.
In addition, as usual at shows like the one in Worcester, snowmobiling also was discussed.
“I was talking to a group of people telling them what we had to offer in The County and I mentioned that we had really good snowmobiling,” said Jalbert. “A man walking by the booth heard this, and came over to say, ‘I would like to correct you on that … you have the best snowmobiling!’ He then went on to say he had ridden many places, including Quebec and New Brunswick, and he said that our riding was the absolute best.”
“ACT attends four to five shows per year typically in southern Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania,” said Leslie Jackson, regional tourism developer at Northern Maine Development Commission. “Most shows are three full days with additional time needed for travel, preparation and setup. We could not do it without the dedicated volunteers who help promote Aroostook County to thousands of outdoor enthusiasts looking for their next adventure,” she added. “We extend a special thank you to Jesse and Jessica who braved Blizzard Nemo to bring Aroostook County to the Worcester Outdoor Show. That truly is dedication!”
Aroostook County Tourism, a standing committee of the Northern Maine Development Commission, is dedicated to improving the economy of northern Maine through its tourism efforts. ACT promotes some of the regions greatest assets like its pristine beauty, diverse culture, storied history and wonderful people to potential visitors from around the world.
