Pros:
Interesting design for the tees, wooden platforms with roofing shingles nailed on them. First time I have seen this used, and they worked well.
All the baskets were in good shape, I don't recogniz the Kingpin name, but they caught well.
Rather small tee signs, shaped like a Maple Leaf (nice touch), gives you Par and Distance and a small path of the hole, just enough for first timers.
Carved out of the woods, most holes are heavily wooded, except for #1 and #18, even they have a few trees to avoid. There are a few openings in the woods, #2, #5,#9, and #11 come to mind, partially open holes, but with gaps to hit, early or late.
I seem to mention this on most courses, but there is a good mix of left and right turning holes, even a couple with trees down the middle and gaps to hit on either side.
A good mix of distances also, from 150' to 665'. Mostly Par 3s, but 4 Par 4s and 2 Par 5s, one on each nine.
Located right off US1, the gateway to "The County", 1 turn and you are in the parking lot, so very easy to get to. Yet after the first couple of holes the road noise pretty much dies out.
Small pro shop, pay box, practice baskets and Port a Potty right there, no question about where to go or where the First Tee is.
Cons:
Its always nice to finish with a birdie, and if you are playing an event here, #18 is a must get. But, its a little soft for a finishing hole.
After the well designed Par 5 14th, #15 reqiures a straight drive then right or left through small gaps, not a lot of room either way you go.
A few other fairways probably could use a little more clearing, but that was probably my game getting in the way.
Other Thoughts:
For such an isolated part of the country, Maple Ridge is a great course for Aroostock County. There are a few courses up and down US1 from I-95 with the latest entry being Shady Ridge, a course designed by Eric McCabe. I imagine that one will play a little more difficult, but Maple Ridge is a course accessible to about everyone.
A couple of my favorite holes were:
#2 - 390' Par 4 - after a mostly open and flat opening, this one has a few trees to beat off the tee, to an opening in the woods, then uphill to a small knoll and right to the basket guarded by hardwoods.
#12 - 335' Par 4 - definitely tighter off the tee, then into thicker woods off the tee, you need to turn it a little to the left to hit the gap, then the upshot is in the thick woods with the basket on the right, on a small upslope.
#14 - the better of the two Par 5s, and longest hole on the course at 665'. The tee shot is mostly open, but starts to narrow down, then the fairway drops and turns pretty sharp to the left. At the bottom, you have another gap to clear then it goes back uphill and flattens out to the basket. I would love to see someone with real distance play this hole.
Overall, Maple Ridge is a very good course, challenging enough with the amount of foliage, but not overly brutal with distance. There is only one tee and one basket (which are concreted in, pretty typical for Maine DG) per hole, so not a lot of variety for repeat plays. All the Pars felt pretty accurate and not "Maine Pars" that I found on several other courses.
I'm glad I played this course right after bagging my first Canadian course in Woodstock, NB and even got to meet and throw a round with enragedmullet to end my trip to "The County".