I will be traveling up from the DC area to Montpelier, VT to pick up my daughter on Aug 27 with 11 days (thru 9/7 Labor Day) to tour New England.
So starting out in Montpelier & returning to DC on the last day—during that time would like to include Mt. Washington, the Lake area, the shore (ME/NH or Mass), easy hiking trails, as well as good lobster meals in a “pedestrian friendly” town area.
Could someone help me figure out something that doesn’t involve repetitive coverage of terrain? Also I'm not sure about the trip up and back itself from DC.Thanks

We always expect major traffic congestion when everyone is going home after a holiday weekend. In ME/NH expect Monday late afternoon congestion on Rt 95.
Coming north, get directions to avoid congestion around Baltimore and NYC. We usually take Tappanzee bridge and aim for Hartford CT (Rt 84 I think). After Hartford, get on Rt 91N which goes up thru western MA and into VT along the NH border. You should have an easy trip once you get north of Hartford.
It's also possible to take a route thru PA to Albany NY and then head into Bennington VT but it will add a couple of hours to your trip.
From Montpelier, I would choose to take Rt 89S to New London NH (cute, small college town). Nearby Winslow State Park has a pretty road to near the top of Mt Kearsarge. (toll road) Very nice views from the parking/picnic area plus you can take a steep trail to the top. Continue east to Franklin NH to connect with Rt 3. Option: lunch at the Dipsy Doodle which has great lobster rolls. Heading north on Rt 3 you will go past Tanger Outlet Mall in Tilton if you want to shop. You will pass by Lake Winnisquam and will then get to Weirs Beach, the funky area of Lake Winnipesaukee with arcades, train depot, small water park etc. Continue north, Meredith is much nicer, more quiet and pedestrian friendly. Or, continue on to Wolfboro which is pretty. Both would make decent homebases if you just wanted to do a day trip to the White Mountains. Meredith is close to Rt 93 which goes up thru Franconia Notch, the Flume etc. Wolfboro is a better base for the east side of the mountains/North Conway and Mt Washington area. I've only hiked the trail to Arethusa Falls which is very shady and the falls are nice. This is supposed to be a easy hike but I wasn't in very good condition. I let the teenage boys do the steeper route for the view.
From Wolfboro, you are only about an hour to Portland Maine. Portland has a fun shopping area in the Old Port area. Southern Maine coast offers sandy beaches. North of Portland tends to be craggy, rocky. We just came back from Wiscasset which is in the mid-coast area north of Portland. We like its central location. An hour north to Camden (hike Mt Battie?) and the Rockland area (easy short hike to Owls Head Light and lobster at Waterman's Beach), or south to Bath/Brunswick (Five Islands Lobster, Dolphin Marina, Estes, etc). We have yet to have a lobster roll at the famous Red's in downtown Wiscasett plus there are two places across the street for lobster rolls. On Rt 1 we love the fried seafood at the Sea Basket. Wiscasset is pedestrian friendly but there is some traffic congestion because Rt 1 goes across a narrow bridge. Across the bridge and down a peninsula is Boothbay Harbor which we tend to avoid because it's hard to find a parking place but it does have some cute shops also a nice harbor with boat trips to places like Monhegan Island. This year events conflicted but I would have liked to have taken another lighthouse cruise with the Maritime Museum in Bath. BTW just before you get to Boothbay you can take a detour to Barter's Island/Maine Coastal Gardens for a nice walk. Or you can also explore the Damariscotta/Pemaquid Point area which has a couple of steamed lobster places near Pemaquid. The drives out these peninsulas are usually pretty and not very commercialized. The Harpswell area is only 14 miles from Brunswick (Bowdoin college) yet it's very rural.
If you stay in the mid-coast area your drive home will be a couple of hours longer than south of Portland. I would head back on Sunday, ahead of the traffic, and plan an overnight on the way back.
From ME Rt 95 go south, take Rt 495 to skirt Boston, then Mass Turnpike west to exit for Hartford CT. BUT since I hate the Mass Turnpike I90, I would got Rt 95 to Portsmouth NH, Rt 16 W to Rt 4 to Concord NH. Rt 393 to Rt 93, Rt 89 W to Rt 202 heading to Keene NH, then Brattleboro to get on Rt 91S to cut through western MA again to Hartford.

We live in Southern NH and have done many road trips to DC.

From Montpelier, you can easily spend a few days in the White Mountains, Lake Winnipesaukee area, coast of Maine.

We like to break up the drive to DC with an overnight near NYC, which is about half way. There are usually excellent hotel deals in Jersey City, which is very convenient for going into Manhattan via the NJ Path, if you like. Otherwise, you can enjoy amazing views of the Manhattan skyline.

My recommendation would be to head for NYC on Saturday, and then DC on Sunday, so you're not on the road Friday night or Monday.

Wow! dfrostnh gave you a terrific blow-by-blow reply! We're renting a place for a week on the coast, in midcoast Maine, near Bath, next month, and can hardly wait to get there!

Only comment I'd add (as I have done before) is that, if you want a lobster roll, and if it matters, plan to ASK if it comes cold with mayo or hot with butter. They are very different. Northern New England often seems to lean more toward the cold stuff vs Connecticut and R.I., which are more apt to offer hot with butter. (My wife prefers it hot with butter and is disappointed if she gets, basically, "lobster salad" on a roll!) Just ask first!

RetiredVermonter: do you read chowhound.com to follow 'best lobster roll' discussions?

dfrostnh:

I went there but found it too confusing -- too much information about everything BUT lobster rolls. I tried to search for just that subject, too.

In any event, I simply suggest that people consider which kind of lobster rolls they like and then ask before buying. Some places do them more than one way, but we've encountered the "lobster salad" approach more often farther north, and we simply prefer "hot with butter".

Just returned from this area (Montpelier, St. Johnsbury, Gorham) and then via Rumford, Farmington to coastal Maine (Blue Hill, Ellsworth, Cape Rosier).

We stayed at the Town and Country (very good little motel) near Gorham and drove up Mount Washington. A word to the wise: you really have to WANT to do this...the views are amazing, but unless you have nerves of steel and a GREAT driver, take the tour instead!

Yes, I agree Chowhound can be daunting to a firstimer: your best bet is actually to register and ask your specific question about the lobster rolls in the towns you will be visiting. Same idea as Fodor's: the more specific you can be in your title, the better the answers.

OK, I've got a better idea of the trip.
Day 1 -- DC to Montpelier
Day 2 -- corn maze in Danville, VT and then to Lincoln, NH with stop at Franconia & Flume
Day 3 -- Kancamagus Hwy to Mt. Washington with stops
Day 4 -- Mt Washington to BarHarbor
Day 5 -- acadia
Day 6 -- Acadia
Day 7 -- Drive to Camden
Day 8 -- Drive to Portsmouth NH
Day 9 -- Boston
Day 10 -- Head for home with stop somewhere along the way.

So basically I'm eliminating the lakes in NH.
Does this sound feasible and are there any must do stops along the Maine cooast, or else where for that matter??

Hi RetiredVermonter - when you go to chowhound, select New England, then do a search on lobster ... but I agree the searches can take a lot of time. New England category usually has someone posting about places to eat along the coast. Funny, I didn't realize there were two kinds of lobster rolls until a few years ago.

Sundancer, itinerary looks decent. Lakes are pretty but so are a lot of places. If planning an river swimming or kayaking in White Mountains, check conditions. Very rainy summer has resulted in high water conditions similar to spring. Kayakers getting dumped. People on rocks in river along Kancamagus requiring rescue. Check trail conditions before starting out. Could be muddy/slippery. Very unusual summer but today is gorgeous.

hwys 89 to north and hwy 93 north are seperated at the new london exit by 12 country miles. the fastest way to cross the state from lake sunapee to lake squam.
skip the outlets golly there everywhere and visit the last wooden bowl outlet in New England. newhampshirebowlandboard.com

Acadia is 3 days of your total trip right? are you huge hikers? if not then do consider going south for those lobster rolls from Bar Harbour/Acadia (Jordan's, Trenton Bridge Lobster Pound) area and visiting some of: Castine (Dennett's Wharf), Stonington (Fisherman's Friend), Blue Hill (The Fish Net) and Brooksville (Bagaduce Lunch)...the towns all have reasons for going to them other than the restaurants that I have put in brackets,but you can trust these reccos...they are family faves from 26 years of personal lobster (scallop and clam) roll testing.

Huhm...gotta think about that. Any good places to stay in Castine?

Castine, a really attractve town with a lot of history, has a terrific inn on the main street-never stayed at the Pentagoet (we have a place about an hour away) but it is GORGEOUS!www.pentagoet.com

Ok, my trip is over. I found the entrance fee for the Flume in Franconia to be excessive. I stayed at the lodge within Bretton Woods and was pleased in the room and the access to the full resort it provided. Had a lovely cocktail on the back porch at sunset with a view of the White Mts. Loved nearly everything about Acadia national Park. Did quite a bit of hiking, although not nearly enough to please the daughter who wanted to do the Precipice trail -- NO WAY. Jordan Pond House was absolutely great, as was Thurstons' Lobster Pound. It's a mistake to travel from north to south--everything further down has a hard time measuring up to Acadia, in my estimation. Ogunquit and its Marginal Way was one of the highlights in the southern part of the state.
I thought the menu offerings could have been more varied with respect to the seafood. I like lobster but don't like lobster rolls and didn't much care for new england style chowder. It was difficult to even find steamers every where. Broke up the return trip by stopping off in CT at one of the casinos there in Uncasville, I believe it is, where I did not manage to win back my vacation expenditures, unfortunately. But it was a good trip.

Glad to hear you enjoyed Thurston's Lobster Pound. We ate there 2 years ago and it was the highlight of our trip. Acadia is BEAUTIFUL!!!