BELGRADE, Maine – When playwright Ernest Thompson wrote “On Golden Pond,” the setting for his poignant family story was a real place that you can visit today in the Belgrade Lakes region of central Maine. Its real name is Great Pond, which actually is a substantial lake covering 8,239 acres and is the largest in a chain of seven lakes in the popular vacation region. Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn made Thompson’s story come to life in the movie version, and you can almost feel their presence when a multi-colored sunset dominates the western sky.

Permanent homes and vacation cottages, which the locals call “camps,” ring much of Great Pond amid stands of pines, maples, and birches. Great Pond is large enough for motorboats, but the many kayaks seem more fitting. Anglers cast for trout and smallmouth bass, Canada geese honk as they flap overhead, kingfishers chatter at anyone who invades their territory – even if done quietly in a kayak – and loons offer their eerie cries as night falls. It really is a golden place.

Solo Kayaker

A kayaker glides across the gentle waves on Great Pond while on the lookout for bald eagles, ospreys, and kingfishers. Image by Tom Adkinson

Maine decorations

Great Pond is almost two hours from the ocean, but lobster buoys are popular decorations at lakeside “camps.” Image by Tom Adkinson

Water Lily

A white lily provides a splash of contrast to the surrounding green pads in the shallows of Great Pond. Image by Tom Adkinson

Kayaker’s sunset

Even a kayaker intent on fishing will set his flyrod down to admire a splashy sunset over Great Pond. Image by Tom Adkinson

Canada geese in formation

A trio of Canada geese glide in single file along the edge of Great Pond. Image by Tom Adkinson


(Travel writer Tom Adkinson’s book, 100 Things To Do in Nashville Before You Die, is available at Amazon.com.)