Wilbur

I have 3 days to drive from Wisconsin to Rockland, Maine. We are driving I 90 East. I would like to stop for a few hours at Canterbury Shaker Village. What is the fastest way to get from the big highway to Canterbury and then get over to Highway 1 in Maine?

dfrostnh

I hate I90 but probably best to connect with Rt 495 north to Rt 3 north. This takes you thru Nashua NH. If you keep driving Rt 3 becomes Rt293 and if you keep driving it becomes Rt 93. You will go thru 2 toll booths, one in Merrimack NH and the other in Hooksett NH. 75 cents each. You can take either exit 17 or 18. I think the signage might be better at exit 18.
For the return, get back on Rt 93 going south. As you approach Concord take the exit for Rt 393 which will bypass the commercial district. You will be driving East. This will connect you with Rt 4. Then it will connect you with I think Rt 16 which takes you to the Portsmouth traffic circle where you can get on Rt 95N. Take that until you want to connect with Rt 1 (might be Brunswick). Rt 95 is an interstate highway with limited access. Rt 1 is an old highway with a lot of traffic and commercial areas. Fine for some scenic driving but not fast. Canterbury Shaker Village will be well worth the visit. Take the tour. When you return to Rt 93S for some reason Mapquest will direct you to keep going south until you get to Rt 101 which is a very boring hwy to the coast. You can go faster because it's a limited access hwy but Rt 4 is 50 mph most of the way and is a pleasant drive. Maybe a little bit slower but not sure it's worth driving 15 minutes further south of Rt 4. If you need fresh fruit for the trip, in Canterbury stop at Hackleboro Orchards. The fresh nectarines are wonderful.

Cissy

There is NO fast/easy way to get to Canterbury, NH. Take dfrostnh's advice..excellent directions if you really want to attempt it.

djkbooks

Those are good directions is you prefer interstates.

However, it's about 85 miles less if you take I-87 north from I-90 in Albany, then Route 7 to Bennington, VT, Route 9 across southern Vermont to Keene, NH, then onto Hillsboro, NH, then Route 202/9 to I-89 to Concord, then I-89 to I-383, then Route 106 to Canterbury Shaker Village. The drive through Vermont and New Hampshire is very scenic!

From there, Route 202 to Route 4 to Route 16 to I-95 in Portsmouth to I-295 in Portland, exiting in Brunswick for Route 1 to Rockland.

But, have you considered Hancock Shaker Village in Pittsfield, MA? It's only about 10 miles off I-90 in western Massachusetts.

You might want to compare the two on the web.

Hancock Shaker Village would be much closer to "on the way" to Rockland.

Wilbur

Thank you so much everyone, but special thanks to dfrostnh as I remember you gave me such great advice last summer when I helped my daughter move to Maine. I will get out my maps and study. It seems there is no easy way to get to Canterbury but the drive will be beautiful.

I went to Hancock and Sabbathday Lake Shaker Villages last summer. Loved the Pittsfield area. Had a the best pumpkin whoopie pie at a cafe near the Sabbathday Lake Village. Visiting all the Shaker Museums and restored villages is one of my "life lists". Love their architecture, furniture and all their inventions for making life/work easier. Four villages down, many more to go!

dfrostnh

I prefer djbooks directions! Also, I never remember the rt 106 directions because it's out of the way for me but would be a shorter way to head east to Portsmouth. There's some wonderful places to stop for lunch and it's definitely a more scenic route. If there is heavy traffic on I90 and/or Rt 495 it will be quicker to follow djbooks directions. Either my directions or hers will eliminate the Seabrook toll booth on I95 since you will connect to I95 north of there.
Only one small correction to djbooks directions. I89 end in Bow NH, you will have to connect with I93 north to get to Rt 393 east. Traffic during commuting times esp on Friday nights slows down on this stretch of I93. It eases up when you get to exit 14. The next exit is I393. It's only a couple of miles to get thru.

Vttraveler

It sounds as though you go back and forth between Wisconsin and Maine fairly often. the Upper Shaker village in Enfield NH (off I-89 near Lebanon) would be good for another not-too-far-out-of-the-way stop some time.
The museum is smaller than some of the others but is worth a visit, in a beautiful spot.

Wilbur

I saw there was a village in Enfield. But, I don't think I have time this trip. My daughter has to be back to work on the 17th.

This will be my 2nd trip from Wisconsin to Maine. I feel very fortunate to be able to accompany my daughter with this very scenic drive. I think she may move back to Wisconsin next year, so maybe one more trip... And, if I plan right, I can work Enfield Shaker Village in!

djkbooks

dfrostnh is correct!

I'm sure you won't be attempting such a road trip based on directions, though. You really need to bring along good road maps, which you, no doubt, already have.

Wilbur

Maps! I seem to be accumulating quite a collection of them. We drove to Maine last summer through Canada, Vermont and New Hampshire. When we hit Maine the first thing we HAD to do was buy one of Delorme's Atlas and Gazetteer. Perhaps I need to get one for New Hampshire before we leave.

My nephew sent me this quote and I try to keep in in mind through daily life but especially when traveling:

"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered."
G.K. Chesterton, "On Running After One's Hat"

Rather than taking time to "smell the roses", I think I may have time to "stop and eat a nectarine" and look at my map in NH !

dfrostnh

We have DeLorme atlases for Vt, NH and ME! Great assets since I like to find out of the way kind of places. Just wanted to add another heads up about a place to stop near Canterbury Village. (There are ALWAYS new places to visit even within 25 miles of home.) If you take exit 17/Rt 93 to get to Shaker Village (pretty drive) you will turn left off the ramp and then left again to go to Canterbury. BUT if you keep going straight take a left at the stop sign for Mountain Road. Apple Hill Farm is on your right in less than a mile. They have PYO apples, blueberries, peaches, fall raspberries. Didn't see nectarines but the white flesh peaches are fabulous. Nice little farm stand.

Wilbur

We live in just over a week so I'm getting excited about the trip. We were planning on taking Wisconsin grown apples with us. But I guess we should take less so we can try the Eastern varieties. Looking forward to trying the peaches.

I'll let you know how the trip goes. Again, thank you all for your help.

Wilbur

I am back in Wisconsin. Enjoyed the scenic drive suggested by djkbooks- the trees were just starting to turn to shades of red, the streams were happily babbling and we even enjoyed a quilt show in Bennington. With all the great directions you all gave we had no problems at all finding Canterbury Shaker Village.

We got to the Shaker Village about 2 and took our time eating a delicious meal at the restaurant. Then when we went to purchase our tickets, the volunteer said she would love to have us visit but in less than an hour over 125,000 people would be leaving the N.H. International Speedway and we could be stuck in traffic for hours. What a choice! I had been planning this visit for over a year.

We kept listening to hear if the race cars were still zooming, stopped at the gift shop and left without much more than a glance at the village. We didn't even take time to stop for peaches at the stand!

The two lane highway ( maybe 106, I can't remember ) was already turned into 3 lanes all going south and police were stopping all traffic at the cross roads. Every car driving on it had obviously been at the speedway as they were all racing down the road. It was pretty nuts. We felt very lucky to get onto Highway 4 before the race was over. The volunteer at the Shaker Village said this particular race only happens two days a year, and we were "lucky" enough to pick one of those two days.

So, my goal for next summer is to visit New Hampshire again. Maybe then I can actually SEE the buildings at Canterbury Shaker Village and also drive up to see the Enfield Village too.

gail

Sorry you got stuck in NASCAR traffic. That area has several weekends during which traffic makes even the most anticipated trip a horror show. Check your calendar carefully - you also don't want to go during motorcycle week in Laconia. Post your dates here when you start your planning so we can check local annoyances.

Wilbur

Thanks Gail, it just seemed so ironic to us when we seemed to out in the middle of all that beautiful "wilderness" to find such a large event going on.
It was a beautiful drive there and I hope to do it again someday AND see the Shaker Village too.

djkbooks

Wilbur: Thank you so much for reporting.

So sorry your dates coincided with NASCAR! Except for that and "Motorcycle Weekend" (which is in June, I think), there is nearly never that much traffic in NH.