c21940

Hi!

I've been looking at various previous postings and doing research with Yankee magazine- So now I have so many ideas I'm confused about a trip my husband and I are planning starting the second weekend in Oct.

Currently we plan on flying into NH and out of RI (too expensive to fly to Bangor and out of RI). We definitely want to see ME and the fall foliage as well as Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard. We are arriving the Sat. of Columbus day weekend- We are open to any thoughts on this itinerary...
Day 1 (Sat)- get into NH- drive to ME up the coast and stay in Camden for the night.
Day 2 (Sun)76 miles- Drive to Bar Harbor- tour Acadia spend night
Day 3 (Mon) 220 miles- Spend the day driving to Jackson, NH (white mountains area) spend the night
Day 4 (Tues) 124 miles- drive up Mt. Washington and continue to woodstock, VT- stay over in Woodstock
Day 5 (Wed) - 140 miles explore VT- do a hike, then drive to Boston or Berkshire MA- any suggestions?
Day 6 (Thurs)- 115 spend day in Boston or Berkshire then Drive to Cape Cod
Day 7 (Friday)- spend day at cape cod
Day 8 (Sat)- ferry to Martha's vineyard
Day 9(Sun)- visit Newport RI and Providence- head home

My thought now is should I start driving to Woodstock VT as soon as I get into NH and work my way through back thru NH and back to ME and down the coast? Should I skip any of the places on the list? If I could I'd prefer not to go to a different place every night. Will there be much do or see in Northern Maine at that time of the year- maybe I go up as far as Camden and stop? If I go to NH to see the leaves at the White Mountains will it be that different from VT and the Green Mountains?

I would love to do a whale watching tour or see the puffin colony in northern NE- but it looks like we're going to be too late and miss the season.

I'd appreciate any help you can offer! Thank you!!

HowardR

You are trying to cover too much territory. I get tired just reading it! Before anyone can recommend what you should cut, we would need more info on what your priorities are for the trip. Every area you want to visit is certainly well worth your time, but to try to cover them in such a short time is a bit much.
Also be aware that you may be a little late for the peak foliage in New Hampshire and Vermont. Usually, by Colombus Day weekend, the foliage is at its peak in the Berkshires and Hudson Valley in NY.

c21940

Hi HowardR,

Our priorities are to see some beautiful sights...if there's a chance we're already too late for the leaves in VT & NH- perhaps we should skip those areas and make the most of the leaves in the southern areas- Bershires- CT?. We want to relax, see the sights, have some meals- love seafood & good wine, and just take it easy. I'm not big into shopping- we have enough outlet malls and shopping centers around our house. We're not avid hikers- but a moderate trail would be nice so we could picnic. We'd also enjoy horseback riding- maybe try to ATV or kayak (depending on how cool it is- I think that may be out this trip.) We've never gone mountain biking- but I'd try on an easy trail- just don't want to end up hurting myself on vacation

I love being by the water and my husband loves the mountains as well as the water. (I have had elevation sickness when in Tahoe so I'm a little weary of going up too high in the mountains.)

We also heard that Lake Winnipesauke is supposed to be very nice. We're up for anything- we just would hate to go out there and miss something that was a "must see."

Thanks for your help!

Anonymous

Absolutely too much driving. Lots of traffic tie-ups during that weekend and following days, you'll spend all day most days in hte car.

You have allocated a single day to several things that most people could gladly spend a week on.

Chekc those distances. I don't think you can get from the Berkshires to the Cape in 115 miles. Mapquest says that it's 124 miles from jackson to Woodstock -- but you're not including the travel to get to & from Mt. Washington, which is 20 miles/40 minues in a different direction.

Skip Vermont. It's a wonderful place, but you have to cut something from this overambitous itinerary. And don't even think about driving up Mt. Washington.

tracys2cents

I would go north into New Hampshire, maybe Alton Bay or lakeside that first night, then go up and cut east into Maine, making sure to hit Moosehead Lake or at least Rangeley lakes one night...then down to Bar Harbor, then down the coast of Maine and continue southward to Providence.

Come October, websites that specialize in foliage might have you changing route depending on what's peaking where.

Anonymous

Which raises another point -- it's getting a little late to have a good choice of places to stay during foliage season, and many of them have a 2 or 3-night minimum, especially over Columbus Day weekend.

Dreamer2

I would not try to include Bar Harbor and Acadia. It is WAY far away from all your other points of interest, and the colors will be well past peak.

And as stated above, you may have to plan your itinerary based on where you can find accommodations, if these plans are for this October.

Why don't you start in Camden, make an arc inland, and end at Newport. I really don't see how you can include the Cape and Islands this trip, if you want to enjoy any of the sights.

c21940

Thank you for your help so far!! I've looked at different placed to stay and have found some vacancies- before I went too far down the path of booking I figured I should be set on an itinerary since so many have a 14 day and $25 cancellation policy. This also means we lose the flexibility of changing course.

The reason we had considered Bar Harbor/Acadia is because so much has been written about it. However, if we miss the leaves, the whale and puffin tours are over, and the weather's cool I don't know what we'd really do.

We would like to try to go biking someplace though. Would it be too cold to try whitewater rafting even with a wetsuit? I know I read someplace that there is a company nawhitewater.com where you can kayak, hike, raft, or ATV in ME.

What area do you recommend for horseback riding?

djkbooks

I would concur that the second weekend in October may be a little late to head for Northern NH or Northern VT, but you just never know. It could be right on target, even a bit early. We were in Jackson, NH on October 6th three years in a row. One year, it was still nearly all green everywhere (with frosty mornings), the next year it was just past peak (and in the high 70's for three days straight) and the following year it was just right. (Note there is NO correlation between temps, while you?re there, anyway, and colors.)

If you want to see the coast of Maine, head there, but if you want to see fall foliage, the most and best will be in the mountains (where there are many, many more trees, for one thing), not along the coast. Fall comes last along the water and is not nearly so intense. Given that you have only 8 nights and are arriving in Manchester and departing from Providence, Maine is a bit too far out of the way.

As mentioned above, many places (in the foliage destinations, but not the "summer" destinations") will require three night minimums. Though, it may be challenging, it definitely will not be impossible to book a night or two here and there.

It will be better to book by phoning than online. For one thing, there are many, many lodgings that do not have online booking, so you would be limiting yourself significantly, if you limit yourself to that. Online booking is likely to be programmed to result in a "no rooms available" message just because your dates are fewer than three nights. Even those places with three night minimums will have the odd night or two between their three nights or more bookings.

Please note that the Visitor's Office or Chamber of Commerce in many, many towns maintains an up-to-date listing of places with vacancies. This is a terrific help when booking seems impossible, and precludes you from having to call all over. You call them, they list the places with vacancies and their approximate rates. (Some friendly reps even make excellent recommendations for one lodging versus another.)

The very best way to enjoy the foliage (and the New England scenery in general) is by driving all over, so I would not let a lot of driving deter you.

Due to the timing, however, I would recommend heading first for the White Mountains of New Hampshire, then the Green Mountains of Vermont, then the Berkshires in Western, MA going as far south as Stockbridge. You will definitely see plenty of foliage, unless fall comes very early and there?s lots and lots of heavy rain (which takes the leaves off the trees).

If you are arriving in Manchester, NH, you can easily take a short detour off I-93 and drive along Route 3 which will take you along some of Lake Winnepesaukee on your way to the White Mountains. A stop in Meredith, which is right on the lake, is highly recommended.

Keep in mind that sunset will be around 6PM. So, I would recommend spending two nights in the White Mountains, then two nights in the Green Mountains. I?d recommend staying in the Franconia/Littleton area of NH. On your full day, you could drive Routes 2, 16 (Jackson/North Conway area) and 302 (or the reverse) for glorious scenery all along the way, a route that will take you through several of the spectacular notches, notably Crawford. This route is just under three hours with no stops, but you?ll want to stop here and there all along the way. If the foliage happens to be to your liking, when you get to the entrance to the Mount Washington Auto Road entrance on Route 16, you can take a van (driven by a pro, rather than drive yourself) to the top. Trip up and back is an hour and a half, not including half an hour once there to look around. Then, you could spend the second night in NH before driving to Vermont the next day. Since the foliage moves south and west, Woodstock would be an excellent place to spend the next night. Woodstock is only an hour and a half from Franconia/Littleton, so you?d have the rest of the day to explore there. Then, you could head along Route 7 (many nice places to stop all along the way) the next day and stop for the night in Bennington, VT or Williamstown, MA. Then, continue along Route 7 to Stockbridge or Lee, MA, which is just an hour drive, so you?d have the rest of the day to explore Lenox along the way, then Stockbridge (a picture book New England town, total Currier & Ives, Norman Rockwell - in fact there?s a museum dedicated to him there).

While it may not be ?peak? everywhere, you will see plenty of foliage of varying colors. Most folks do not realize that the colors vary all over the place, dramatically, from one place to the next, from the bottom of a mountain to the top, from one side of a mountain to the other, from one side of the road to the other, even from one tree to the next. Across the street from my office is a row of a dozen or so huge maples. It is utterly fascinating every year to watch them all change individually, which starts mid-late September and continues well past mid-October (this is in Southern, NH).

This leaves you three nights for a relaxing oceanside destination. I?d recommend picking only one, as there is much to explore on Cape Cod, or Martha?s Vineyard, or in Newport. My favorites are Chatham, MA and Nantucket. Plenty to fill two or three days. But, depending up departure time of your flight, you may want to spend the last night in or close to Providence. With the sun setting so early in October, you may as well get most of your drive to the airport out of the way the night before, anyway.

If you are intent upon scheduling "activities" such as rafting, hiking, etc., get yourself a copy of "Maine, An Explorer's Guide". There's also "New Hampshire, An Explorer's Guide", Vermont, Massachusetts, Cape Code, Rhode Island, etc.

djkbooks

PS I cannot imagine undertaking this sort of driving trip without mapping software. My favorite is MS Streets & Trips (and I've tried them all). Well worth the investment. You can plan and alter and save and alter and print. Lodging, dining, sights & attractions, even ATM's, included, everywhere. Calculates driving times and directions, and you can modify the routes anyway you like. Set starting, ending, times, overnights, schedule stops all along the way. Invaluable for planning road trips. Even trips to only one destination.

Dreamer2

Dear C21940:

Follow DJKBooks's advice above and you are all set! That's a great, specific post with accurate info and great advice!

Kwoo

I agree with DJKbooks recommendations. This way you have many opportunities to see beautiful foliage, and also experience the coast. If you were flying out of Boston, I would recommend visiting the Maine coast, but because you are flying out of Providence, I recommend choosing Cape Cod over the Maine coast. Both are beautiful!! Chatham is a great choice...beautiful town, and close enough so you could visit the National Seashore (Eastham, Truro, Wellfleet, & Provincetown) if you wish.

DJKbooks, you would make a great travel agent!

BuzzyJ

DJKBooks has mapped it all out for you perfectly. (Kwoo, I think she is indeed a travel agent!)

c21940

THANK YOU for all the details DJKBooks!!! I'd never heard of that mapping software either!

We still could fly in/out of Boston or NH even if we wanted to- we just thought it may be nice to start and end at different places and the price was low.

My concern now is if it happens to be a wet/windy season and we miss the leaves. We're in IL so we know that with one big storm it can take beautiful leaves from a canopy on the trees to a blanket on the grass.

During the day today before I had access to the internet, I called a few places in ME- Camden in particular and they said normally around Oct. 9th we'd be safe to see leaves (of course they will since they want to book a room)- and if not there is the water.

We have started to consider a trip to ME- with 2 days in Camden overnight with a day trip to Bar Harbor/Acadia (I'm told it's a 1.5-2 hour trip) then head back down and stay in the southeast region of ME (portland, kennibunkport or ognonquit) for one night. Then maybe go to Berkshires for a night (or completely skip this night) and head down to Boston, Nantucket, and Chatham. I heard some people love Martha's Vineyard, and others really don't like it at all- but everyone seems to love Nantucket.

As you can see this left out NH- but after your post today, now I want to put it back in because I REALLY like your itinerary.

I have actually been to Vermont and CT in mid October so I have seen those areas and they are beautiful!! I have also seen Door County, WI changing at fall since and we do get leaf changes every year at home so I kind of wanted a plan #2 in case the leaves are on a schedule different than ours I have never been to ME, RI, any of the MA coastal communities. I think I just need 3 weeks off What would you think of my itinerary with ME as a plan #2?

djkbooks

One advantage of visiting Maine around that time is that you will get off season rates and have no problems booking. A problem, however, is that many places close or shorten their hours right after Columbus Day weekend. (Some close as early as right after Labor Day.)

A huge concern for visiting Bar Harbor would be the probability of fog. Bar Harbor is fogged in much of the year (less so in the summer months). It is more likely than not that Bar Harbor, even Camden, could be fogged over for the duration of your visit (this has happened to us two out of three trips). This is NOT the sort of fog that burns off by noon. Rather so thick you can barely see tail lights on the vehicle in front of you and the trees along the side of the road are invisible. And, the fog horns day and night could drive you mad. (Bar Harbor has been our least favorite destination on the coast of Maine.)

If you want to go to Maine, I'd recommend not venturing farther north than Boothbay Harbor (which is fabulously scenic with wonderful places to stay).

Again, however, it will be much quieter than summer. You would want to check whether the lobster pounds, for example, will still be open, whether any boat tours will be running, etc. Often, more close down earlier than Columbus Day Weekend if "traffic has been slow" since just after Labor Day.

Best places to visit in Maine on the coast in October, in my opinion, would be Ogunquit and Kennebunkport, where it will be quieter than summer, but busier that more northern seaside destinations (because of their closer proximity to Boston and "weekenders"). Both are fabulously scenic towns, chock full of art galeries and seeing and doing. Walking the Marginal Way in Ogunquit is a glorious experience.

Wet/windy generally does not last longer than one or two days. No guarantees, though. And, the weather moves across New England, so you'd get the wet/windy no matter where you are.

If you want to be more sure of foliage, head for the Berkshires.

For more pleasant weather and foliage, Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, would be better destinations than Maine.

To add to the challenge of narrowing down your destinations for an 8-night trip, you may want to consider Rockport or Newburyport, or Marblehead, MA (all just north of Boston).

Actually, three weeks would not significantly improve your plight.

Seriously, I think you need to pick the three destinations you find most appealing and plan to spend two nights at each. The day of arrival will be consumed getting to your first destination. And, you'll probably want to spend your last night close to your departing airport.

If you're going to concentrate on scenery and foliage, one night stays are fine because the scenery is fabulous from one place to the next.

But, if you want to focus on relaxing mixed with activities, two night stays are much better. That gives you a day to get there (stopping along the way here and there), a day to explore all about, then have a nice dinner - before heading onto your next destination the following day and continuing on.

In the alternative, you can pick as many destinations as you like, drive from one to the next, take a quick look, collect literature for future reference (planning future trips), and have a better idea where you want to spend more time on your next trip to New England.

c21940

DJKbooks- you're amazing!!! Thank you so much for your insight!!

I will now cross Camden off my list. It was funny as I was going through tripadvisor how few people write reviews about Camden after July/ Aug. I've been to CA an know about the "marine layer" that fades by afternoon- but all day would drive me CRAZY!!

Seeing how one of the major points of our trip is going to ME (so my husband and I can say we've visited all states in our lifetime) I'll concentrate on just spending 1 or 2 nights at one place- probably drive up from NH and stop at Portland and continue to Ogunquit since it probably won't cost as much as Kenne.- and we can easily visit Kennebunkport during day 2 then go back and spend the night in Ogunquit and head out first thing in the morning to MA - one of your many suggestions!! or we could just head out from Kennebunkport to our next destination that evening. Now I'm not so gung-ho about ME- I just would like some reasonable yummy lobster and to see the ME coast.

My MIL actually used to live in Marblehead and may join us for part of a leg of our trip- so that may be a good choice since we'll have a personal guide I'll have to look at a map to see where everything is in MA- I will want to go to the Berkshires it sounds like.

My husband really wants to spend a night in Boston in hopes of seeing Fenway park.

Then we'll just have to make camp in Cape Cod or Nantucket for the remainder of the trip.

Thanks for limiting our ME stay!! Now we know we have some place to go in the summer another time. We can make a trip of that and Lake Winni in NH.

cigalechanta

it's beautiful by Squam Lake, N. H.

c21940

Would it make sense for me to fly into Albany NY and drive to Williamstown, MA then down to Lee, MA the first day (or reverse depending if MA2 or 90 to 495 is better to ME)? I can get a 6:15 a.m. flight out arriving in Albany at 9:15 a.m....if mapquest is correct, it's only a 1 hour drive to Williamstown or just under 1 hour to Lee. This way I can just do the drive across from the west to the east coast thru MA once.

Then the next day explore a little more if much is open on Sunday (really we just want to see the foliage) and head across the state of MA up to portland, ME(supposed to be 3.5 hours- 4 hours depending if coming from Lee or Williamstown.)

Spend one night in portland (night 2) and the next day stop at Kennebunkport/Ogunquit and continue back down the MA coast stopping for the night (night 3) in Newburyport and spend the next day exploring that area, Rockport, and Salem- spending the night in Marblehead. (night 4)
Next day explore Marblehead and head to Boston to explore & spend 1 night (or we could just go back to Marblehead on the T I think and spend 2 nights.) (already been to Boston once so we really just want to see Fenway & black Rose )
The next day drive to the Cape and park ourselves in Chatham (nights 6&7) so we can venture up to P-town and over to Nantucket.

Our final night we'll just find some place in close proximity of Providence so we can catch a 5:30 p.m. flight out.

I know this looks like a lot of overnights, but once I'm in Newburyport it looks like it's pretty close to Boston and Marblehead so I probably really could stay at one place- but really don't mind the change.

I'm thinking I'm really picking 3 places by doing this nights 1 & 2 are about driving and seeing foliage and ME- we'll have energy then. Then nights 3-5 are about the Boston/N. Boston area. Nights 6-7 are about the Cape and night 8 is about getting home

joesorce

Sounds like a sin to hit Maine in October and just focus on Portland and south coast. AT LEAST leave your options a little open in case your dates happen to hit peak foliage. Lake areas would be a must-visit. Everyone seems to be worried about too much driving, but if you hit good weather, a beautiful daylong drive throughout Maine is no trouble at all! Some people book weeklong bus tours doing nothing but gazing out of the windows and stopping for meals.

A canoe trip on a lake in Central Maine in early October? Heaven on earth!

c21940

I'm not having much of any luck trying to get a hotel in Lee/Lenox, etc. in the Berkshires for Sat. night only over Columbus day weekend. Therefore, I may have to re-work our plans and still drive through stopping for lunch down route 7- either work up from Lee to Williamstown or vice versa. Then just continue that evening heading east either on Rt 2 (which sounds to be only 2 lanes- but scenic- but it will probably be dark when we drive it) or 90. That way we'll be even closer to ME and HOPEFULLY won't have as much of an issue finding a place to stay for 1 night.

This would allow us to get to ME earlier in the day and drive up a little more north if the weather's nice. Unfortunately, we can't be too flexible in our days because of cancellation policies.

If we can't find a place for one night (most are requiring a 3 night min.) in Western/ central MA- we may skip the Berkshires completely and hope for the best in ME, the northern Coast of MA and the Cape.

Any suggestions about Rt. 2 or 90 heading east from the Berkshires?