New Hampshire: start from Portsmouth?

Old Aug 1st, 2015, 05:17 AM
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New Hampshire: start from Portsmouth?

Hi.
I plan to take a fall foliage trip early October and need a few bits of advice. I'm from Australia, travelling on my own. I like art, history, scenery, walking, food, wine and watching people.

I would like to go out of the cities to see the small towns and fall foliage so decided renting a car is the best way to go. However, I don't want to have to battle big city traffic because I live in a small city and usually drive on a different side of the road. If I travel by bus from New York to Portsmouth and hire the car from there, is that a reasonable option? According to the CJ bus route I can get to Portsmouth by 2.30.

I plan to spend one night somewhere on the coast. Anyone got ideas for a very special place? I love walking, scenery, history, and don't want to travel for hours that first day.

I have a hotel booked in North Conway for the following 3 nights and hope to get a lot of driving and walking and enjoying the scenery type activities. After that I go back to Portsmouth, drop the car off and take the bus to Boston for my last two nights in the US.

Does this sound sensible? Any things I shouldn't miss or should avoid?
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 07:02 AM
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Yes it sounds sensible, bus or train. For the one night I would drive up to Ogunquit Maine where you'll get the feel of a coastal resort town with beach, then stay the night at the Cliff House Resort or the Stage Neck Inn...which will give you more of the "rocky coast" atmosphere.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 12:42 PM
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Almost everyone chooses the North Conway area so you are going to be in the middle of a lot of traffic. It's beautiful but we avoid that area during foliage season. A compromise would be to go south on Rt 16 and then drive thru Tamworth and Center Sandwich. We recently had a terrific special guided tour of the Center Sandwich historical society and their transportation barn. There is also a country doctor/farm museum in Tamworth but we haven't been to it yet. From Center Sandwich you can continue to Holderness. The Squam Lakes Science center features NH wildlife in natural habitats. We took our grandchildren last summer but it's appropriate for adults. The Center Sandwich hs has a small collection of Tappan Chairs. The business is now owned by a young man who gave us a fascinating talk. The chairs are similar in style to what we call Shaker.

You can head over to I93 north and take the Kancamagus Hwy back to Conway although depending on the time of day it might have a lot of traffic.

Or you can continue your detour to Lake Winnipesaukee and enjoy walking around downtown Meredith. If you drive a litter further south, the League of NH Crafts has a store near the Church Landing hotel center. You might want to visit the shop. Hermit Woods Winery has a store were you can have a tasting.

Take a different route back to Portsmouth by going south on I93, the east on I393 to Rt 4. A GPS and googlemaps will send you to rt 101 but today I found a compromise for a friend to go rt 101 to Epping and then to Rt 4. The goal is Wagon Hill Farm in Durham. It's now a conservation property open to the public during daylight hours. You can take a trail the goes to the water (Piscataqua River) and then follow the shore trail back to the house and parking area. Rt 4 will merge with Rt 16 and brings you to the Portsmouth traffic circle. You'll go over the bridges with nice views of Great Bay. If you didn't go to the farm, you can stop here at Hilton Park to get close to the water. We picnic there sometimes.

You really should spend some time in Portsmouth. It's one of the most historic towns in New England. If you have time, drive rt 1B thru New Castle. A very special place might be Wentworth By the Sea which is on Rt 1B.

But Ogunquit suggestion is very good.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 02:54 PM
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You've got some very good advice here!!! NH in the fall is really lovely! Love driving the Kancamagus! So many scenic places to pull off the road and take autumn pictures. Somehow I always manage some outlet shopping in N Conway, and yes, the traffic is often very heavy indeed! The Kanc can also be slow going at times.

My advice is to book what you can, as soon as you can. The "better" options for places to stay will be booked out soon, if not already. "Leaf peeping" is very popular!!

Enjoy your NH visit.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 04:21 PM
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Are you spending time in NY prior to this part of the trip? If not, I would fly into and out of Boston rather than taking a bus from NYC.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 04:21 PM
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Ogunquit yes, but Cliff house would be too removed for me flying solo. I'd rather have immediate access to Perkins Cove, Marginal Way and 3 miles of hard sand beach...and morning run to the bakery for a treat and coffee.
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Old Aug 3rd, 2015, 03:54 AM
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If the plane arrangements are still flexible, I would consider flying into Manchester NH or even Providence and just picking up the car there. Neither of those cities are difficult to drive out of, and they get you a lot closer to your destination than New. York.
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Old Aug 3rd, 2015, 11:34 PM
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Thanks very much for this info. Its appreciated and makes me feel more comfortable with my plans. Its hard to plan from a distance and the local perspective is really appreciated.
I am coming to this area after spending 4 days in New York so the plane isn't changeable but I'll check the map and study the alternative route. There are so many places to go that I'm going to have to come back for longer another time!
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Old Aug 4th, 2015, 03:46 AM
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Hi.
What is peak hour time on the Kamcamangus Highway? Maybe a better question is what time tends to be quieter?
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Old Aug 5th, 2015, 01:02 PM
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Happened to talk to two different people who live in the Conway area. They interpreted my question as best time for peak. One said it's going to be different between western and eastern side of the mountains because one side peaks before the other. I said I liked the southern route thru Tamworth better because it's more interesting. He said you really have to get off on the turnouts to see good views from the Kanc but when it's very busy, there's no place to park. I suggested going right after breakfast. There was a photograph of his group on the front cover of a catalog which they said was taken Oct 4 on a cloudy day. After grimacing about the traffic during foliage season, the woman said the best pictures are taken on a cloudy day. A third person contributed that cloudy days are not only best for photos but people who don't know any better tend to stay home. She thought colors were more vibrant on cloudy days. They all laughed about how misleading a bright blue sky and beautiful colors are in some photos. That the trees outside the frame might be past peak and it might have taken the photography 500 tries to get that one great photo.

Keep in mind day trippers from the Boston area probably won't get that far north much before 11am. Traffic in the late afternoon on weekends is horrendous and will be backed up on I93 going south.
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