Maine Innkeeper Interview:
The Evergreen Lodge at Moosehead

By Caroline Russell, staff writer

Janice Dyer, having practiced nursing for thirty-three years, and husband, Hank, a retired teacher, decided that it was time to do something different. The idea of becoming innkeepers came from friends who owned a B&B.  Janice knew that operating a B&B would be very confining, but having been raised on a dairy farm, and being a “home body”, with no interest in traveling, she felt that this could be the answer. 

In 1999, Janice and Hank began looking at what was available on the market.  Nothing interested them until the Spring of 2000, when they saw their now B&B, which at the time was not on the market.  They engaged a real estate agent to approach the owners with an offer to buy.  Their offer was rejected in favor of a higher asking price, which the Dyers rejected.  However, the following September, after no success in finding their ideal place, Janice and Hank decided to “bite the bullet” and pay the asking price for their Evergreen Lodge. 

Finally, in June of 2001, the Dyers were ready, or so they thought, to move into their B&B.  Two truckloads of belongings, packed by their sons, arrived at the location to find that the former owners were not ready for them to move in.  The Dyers were given permission to park the trucks at the location.  At 9 pm the following day, after unloading most of their belongings themselves, they decided that there were too many heavy items for them to carry.  A friend was kind enough to round up five high school boys, who, inan hour, carried all their furnishings into the lodge.              

Janice and Hank worked very hard their first week at the lodge, getting set up and putting things where they belonged.  The bedrooms were adequately furnished, but the two living rooms were not, and the first guests were to arrive the following Friday.  Janice ordered sofas for the living rooms and one arrived just that Thursday.  Their son came and stayed at the lodge for a while to give them time to shop for needed accessories.  Janice’s favorite rooms are the loon and bear rooms downstairs, and the moose room upstairs.  Photos and decorations reflect these themes.  She also appreciates the privacy factor of her lodge, which sits back from the road, amidst thirty acres.Marketing is the most difficult part of being an innkeeper, according to Janice, who found workshops for innkeepers to be most helpful.  Her favorite part of being an innkeeper is the opportunity to meet many different people of many different cultures.  The bulk of her customers are from the United States, but many come from other countries, especially England and Germany.

Visit Evergreen Lodge at EvergreenLodgeMoosehead.com