International tourism corridor to open June 1

AUGUSTA – The Kennebec-Chaudiere International Corridor, Maine’s newest heritage tourism trail, is set to open Friday, June 1.

Gov. Angus King and Quebec Premier Bernard Landry will proclaim the corridor officially under way at a time still to be announced. The corridor is the product of a 1997 Co-Enterprise meeting between King and Landry’s predecessor, Lucien Bouchard, and is meant to strengthen the ties and to encourage economic development between Maine and Quebec.

The corridor takes its name from the Kennebec River and Chaudiere River in Quebec. It was along these rivers, and the roads – Routes 201 in Maine and 173 in Quebec – that eventually paralleled them, that so much of the region’s history was written and from which its cultural heritage descends.

Other ceremonies and events will also mark the opening. At Old Fort Western in Augusta, a free conference and symposium on corridor history and heritage will begin at 9:30 a.m. The conference will be followed by performances of American Indian, English, French and Irish music. At 2 p.m. at the border north of Jackman, representatives from the corridor planning committee and other officials will be on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and exchange of river waters.

A corridor map-guide and brochure will be available at the Old Fort Western in Augusta and at Chamber of Commerce facilities in Bath, Skowhegan and Jackman. For information, call the Maine Tourism Association at (800) 782-6497, or visit the corridor online at www.kennebec-chaudiere.com.