Maine has many symbols that travel well, including the lobster, the moose, the black bear and the loon.

But Your Scribe has concluded that the best-known icon of the state is L.L. Bean. The photo above shows part of its hunting department in Freeport.

I thought of this as I read that the company will be opening a store in Chicago this fall. It now has 10 full-price retail stores in nine states from Maine to Virginia and about a dozen smaller outlet stores, including those in Portland and Freeport (the old hunting and fishing store in Freeport is now an outlet).

The company plans to grow to 32 stores by 2012.

Each time a store opens it becomes a beachhead for all things Maine. Of course, the South and Midwest have their own wilderness but somehow the Bean brand has become synonymous with the outdoors - actually a pleasurable outdoor experience.

It's said that moose and bear are prospering in Maine, and the lobster is holding its own. But the healthiest of all the denizens of the outdoors is L.L. Bean itself. It just finished its most profitable year - and from what I can tell, it has no competitors capable of shooting it down.

That said, I plan to head for Rangeley this weekend in search of seeing a moose. I don't know if they roam around much in March but I plan to find out. If not, there are always stuffed versions at the Bean store in Freeport.

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