Shortly after our Sojourn Into Canada we found ourselves on
the other side of the Vermont/New Hampshire border and officially entered
historic New England!
We were pleased to observe that the beautiful fall color
continued on the eastern side of the state dividing line. But even in regions
where the leaves had not yet changed, signs along the side of the road reminded
us to keep a wary eye out for moose. We did precisely that throughout our trip,
but sadly never encountered one of the awkward beasts.
Our first destination in New Hampshire was the Robert Frost
House in Franconia, on the western edge of the White Mountains. We decided not
to pay to go into the house once we discovered that you could only go through
part of it (since the rest is used as a retreat for modern day poets) and that
it did not contain much in the way of any actual artifacts associated with
Frost. Instead, we watched a video about Frost’s life in New Hampshire and enjoyed
the grounds, especially a walk through the surrounding woods which even included
passage through a yellow wood.
We had to cross over the mountains to reach the Bed &
Breakfast where we were staying in North Conway and found that the color was
well worth the trip! This waterfall was one we encountered on the side of the
road through the mountains.
Our destination and home for the next two nights was the
Buttonwood Inn, a charming B & B nestled into the Eastern edge of the White
Mountains and ideally positioned for exploration of the mountains.
It even included a welcoming kitty who we later learned was
actually the neighbor’s cat who had figured out he could get lots of attention
hanging out near the parking area and front porch of the inn.
We had our own private bathroom across the hall from our
room, which provided a very convenient location for us to hang up the rainfly
so that it could actually dry off after having twice broken camp in the rain.
Upon the recommendation of our hosts we went back into town
and enjoyed dinner at the Red Parka, which we quickly decided would be the
perfect place to eat after a day of skiing in the winter. Even without the
skiing, it was a great meal in a fun environment, which included an impressive
free desert!
Our plans for exploring the White Mountains the next day changed pretty dramatically when it became clear that the rain was showing no signs of quitting. Driving up to Mt. Washington or up to other viewpoints in the mountains didn’t make much sense with all the fog, and doing much in the way of hiking rapidly lost its appeal as well.
So we decided to take things slowly and enjoyed a pleasant
morning complete with a superb breakfast courtesy of our hosts and reading in
the parlor.
Although we could have been content to stay at the
Buttonwood throughout the day, we didn’t want to miss out on the chance to see more
fall color completely. So we reevaluated
our plans and devised a nice driving circuit that took us along the Kancamagus
Highway. Although driving with the top down on the convertible as I had hoped
to wasn’t exactly a viable option, it still proved to be an excellent trip.
In addition to the beauty surrounding us on the road we enjoyed
exploring features such as the Lower Falls Scenic Area, Rocky Gorge, Sabbaday Falls, and the Sugar
Hill Scenic Overlook along the way.
Lower Falls Scenic Area
Rocky Gorge
Sabbaday Falls
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| Sugar Hill Scenic Overlook |
We returned to
the Buttonwood and after exploring a bit more around the inn we spent a couple
of hours playing games and reading in the common room (I had school reading I
had to do so this was a good chance) before partaking of a stint in the hot tub
in the rain.
It was a great way to enjoy the rainy day, especially when coupled with ending our day with a hearty meal of Irish comfort food at May Kellys Pub.
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