Written 2024-08-05
This weekend, I made a trip to Sherbrooke, Quebec, travelling through Maine to save time.
While in the Eastern Townships region of Quebec, we took a short detour to visit beautiful North Hatley.
I hadn't been to the United States since 2019, so I got to try Chick-fil-A. Apparently there's been one in Bangor since 2016 (which was also the first location to open in Maine), but people have only started raving about where I live in the last few years, so it flew under my radar. It was very pricey, but the food and service were excellent. I couldn't believe their efficiency – there were swathes of people, but we probably spent less time waiting for our food than we would have at a fairly empty McDonald's. As of now, there are a handful of locations in Canada, but none outside of Ontario.
Driving to Sherbrooke through Maine (from southern New Brunswick) saves about an hour and a half compared to driving north to Edmunston and then past Quebec City, but I definitely think the Canadian drive is more relaxing, since it's all divided highway. Maine was scenic, but the entire drive was spent on rural back roads that would weave through small towns, and as a result we had to contend with traffic, constantly-changing speed limits, and people turning onto the highway in random places. This combined with the difference in units and having to cross a border checkpoint put me on edge when it was my turn to drive. Luckily I made it there and back in once piece!