WELD — Mount Blue State Park is experiencing a vacation travel trend increasingly seen in Maine and throughout the nation. Stay-cations.

“Were seeing people staying at our park for longer periods of time,” Bruce Farnham, Mt. Blue State Park manager, said, “as well as an increased number of campers.”

“Vacationers here are increasingly more inclined to see this park as a destination,” said Farnham, a Ohio native, who has managed the picturesque mountain-ringed, lake-side park for the past 24 years.

Farnham attributes the trend of stay-cations at his park to the current tough economy, higher gas prices and the reasonably-priced recreation camping provides.

These factors are contributing to another trend, that of attracting more locals and fewer visitors from distant states, according to Farnham.

“We are attracting a good number of visitors from the Lewiston-Auburn area, Rumford-Mexico and as well as getting many from Bangor and Portland,” he said.

“I’ll be interested to see if we get more Canadians this year with the more favorable exchange rate for them.”

“In years past our typical campers would stay on average between three and four days,” Farnham said. “Now we seeing many of our campers stay between a week to two weeks.”

“Park campers are increasingly staying settled here,” he said, “and taking forays to many natural attractions that are within a 30-mile radius of the park.”

Some of the more popular scenic diversions in close proximity to the park include Daggett Rock in Phillips, Smalls Falls, Angel Falls, Coos Canyon, the Appalachian Trail, moose watching in the Rangeley Area, Bald Mountain and the Mount Tumbledown range.

“For those who wish to shop, catch a movie and/or find a greater variety of restaurants, people can go to Farmington or Rumford-Mexico, which are both within 45 minutes,” Farnham said.

The park boasts many recreational amenities within the park, he said, including a sand beach on Lake Webb, hiking trails, bike paths, a nature center, various entertainment programs in the park’s amphitheater, such as movies every Friday night, guest speakers and storytellers.

“We also have a lot of wildlife in the park and surrounding area,” Farnham said, “including moose, bear, foxes, coyotes and wild turkeys … like the one I am watching out the window right now.”

Summer weekends are very popular at the park from Memorial Day through Labor Day, according to Farnham. “I advise making advance reservations to insure getting a campsite on weekends.”

“Sundays through Thursdays are the best days to arrive for campsite availability,” Farnham said.

The park is open from May 15 through Columbus Day weekend.

For more information contact Mount Blue State Park at 779-4148.