- Date of Travel: July 2021
- Length of Travel: One Week
- Travelers: Two Adults
- Type of Travel: Nature, Road Trip
Visiting White Mountains, which cover a sizable chunk of the state of New Hampshire, has long been on my bucket list. It is one of the prime destinations for “leaf peepers” in the fall, boasting a superb foliage scenery. However, my husband and I jumped on this trip opportunity in the summer, with both of our kids away in overnight camp. We focused our trip on the area between the towns of Lincoln, North Conway and Bretton Woods, rich in outdoor attractions.
Itinerary
- Day 0: Overnight at Hyatt House Hartford North/Windsor in CT
- Day 1: Polar Caves in Rumsey, NH; check-in Inn Season Pollard Brook Resort in Lincoln, NH
- Day 2: Franconia Notch State Park: Flume Gorge, Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway, Old Man of the Mountain Profile Plaza, Artist’s Bluff Trail
- Day 3: Mt. Washington Hotel; Cog Railway to the top of Mt. Washington
- Day 4: Shabbat
- Day 5: Kancamagus Highway; check-in Colonial Motel in North Conway, NH; July 4th Fireworks
- Day 6: Cathedral Ledge Overlook; Diana’s Bath, strawberry picking
- Day 7: Castle in the Clouds in Moultonborough, NH
- Keeping Kosher
Day 0
We split the driving time to the destination between two days, setting off from Brooklyn, NY on the preceding evening, and spent the night at Hyatt House Hartford North/Windsor in Connecticut. It was a perfect choice at only 5K Hyatt points for a 1-bedroom suite with full kitchen. The big fridge came very handy, given that we took along frozen kosher meat and other food in need of refrigeration.
Day 1
The metro area of Hartford, CT has several kosher food options, and incidentally Yosi Kosher Catering was just a 10-minute drive away from our hotel. We picked up our pre-ordered lunch and dinner for the day there, and thoroughly enjoyed the Mediterranean/Middle Eastern dishes.
The attraction of the day was Polar Caves in Rumsey, NH, a privately owned park with 9 glacial caves. The walk was not strenuous and kid-friendly, but adventurous enough – sometimes you need to squeeze, sometimes to duck, and often go up and down stone or wooden stairs in narrow passageways. The path is well marked, with signs providing interesting explanations, and overall the park is very nicely organized. Tickets allow a 2-hour visit, which is a perfect timeframe to explore the park.
Finally, we settled in our hotel InnSeason Pollard Brook Resort in Lincoln, NH. The resort offers 1,2, and 3-bedroom suites with full kitchens and patios/balconies, and all the amenities for a comfortable family stay, including outdoor and indoor pools, gym, game room, and tennis and basketball courts. (There are also some organized resort activities – on our first day we attended a talk by David Nielsen, the former caretaker of the Old Man of the Mountain.)
The town of Lincoln has little population of its own, but serves as one of the hubs for outdoor adventure-loving tourists; the town is right next to Franconia Notch State Park, and boasts quite a few attractions, including a zipline course, off-road tours, a theme park, a water park, and a scenic railroad to name a few, as well as great hiking, biking and winter skiing options nearby.
Kosher-wise, there is nothing around Lincoln, but we stocked up on produce and common groceries in the local Price Chopper supermarket.
Day 2
We spent the entire day in Franconia Notch State Park, a beautiful nature preserve on both sides of the 8-miles-long Franconia Notch, a mountain pass between two ranges of the White Mountains. It was home to the iconic Old Man of the Mountain – a series of cliff ledges that resembled a human profile – until its collapse in 2003.
We hit all the major attractions, and could not get enough of beautiful vistas and fresh air! All points of interest are accessible from the I-93 highway that winds through the park; alternatively one can bike through the park along the Recreational Path.
We started the day walking the Flume Gorge Trail, an easy and scenic 2.2 mi loop, part of which goes through the gorge itself – an impressive geological formation, where you get to walk between the walls of Conway granite rising up to 90 ft. high. Next stop was the Basin, a 15-feet deep pothole believed to have formed as a result of erosion some 15,000 years ago when the ice sheet was melting. From there we followed the picturesque Basin Cascade Trail for 1 mile to Kinsman Falls, the latter being a perfect spot for a lunch break. Dipping feet in the waters of the Cascade Brook was so refreshing!
We continued our adventures by taking Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway (North American’s first) to the top of Cannon Mountain. The views from the short rim trail and the observation tower were mesmerizing, albeit partially foggy.
Upon our return down, we briefly explored the compact and free New England Ski Museum, and then made our way to The Old Man of the Mountain Profile Plaza, dedicated to this famous state symbol. At the memorial to the beloved rock formation visitors can see how the profile used to look. This is achieved through sculpted and precisely located steel shapes mounted on pillars – all you need to do is stand at a specific spot corresponding to your height.
Finally, we hiked the Artist’s Bluff Trail – a moderate 1.5 mi loop, with rewarding views of the Echo Lake and the surrounding mountains from the bluff.
Before heading home, we drove by the Barney and Betty Hill Historical Marker on US 3, an official plaque commemorating the first widely publicized report of alien abduction. Exhausted but happy, back at the hotel we paid homage to our resort’s recreational amenities, and attended an informative presentation about the local wildlife.
Day 3
It was a rainy day, but we mostly avoided the rain. In the morning, we drove to Bretton Woods and explored one of the last remaining “Grand Resort Hotels” of New Hampshire – the Mount Washington Hotel – on a little self-guided tour. The hotel has been in operation since 1902, and hosted the conference, on which the International Monetary Fund was established in 1944. The Mount Washington Hotel still preserves its class, and I half-expected to see guests in gowns and formal coats, instead of sneakers and t-shirts.
An interesting fact about the hotel: there is a small post office on premises with its own zip code. It serves as the only post office for Bretton Woods village, and the residents have to come in person, since there is no local post delivery. Many operations are still performed in the old-school way, with hand-stamping and such.
We did not get to explore the resort’s spacious grounds and many amenities, which include a golf course, a canopy tour, horse stables, hiking trails, and more.
Our second adventure of the day was a ride up Mt. Washington on the historic Cog Railway, which was the first of its kind in the world when it opened in 1869. We reserved tickets for the traditional steam engine, which operates on coal and needs a water refill midway, but most of the rides nowadays use biodiesel. It takes about an hour for the journey to the top (and a bit less down). With the steepest incline of over 37% in the Jacob’s Ladder section, and about 25% incline on average, The Cog is among the world’s steepest railways.
Mt. Washington is notorious for its nasty weather, strong winds and poor visibility, and our visit, sadly, was not an exception. With cold, rain and thick fog welcoming us at the summit, we didn’t spend more than 5 minutes outside, staying for the rest of our allotted 40 minutes in the Visitor’s Center. There we sent postcards from a tiny post office, and checked out the Extreme Mount Washington exhibit.
Upon return to the hotel, it was time to get out our trusted George Foreman grill and to prepare for Shabbat. Our Friday night meal was delicious (kebabs, burgers, and fresh salads) and peaceful – perhaps even too peaceful.
Day 4
It was raining pretty much the whole day with temperatures in low 60s – what a bummer for a July 4th weekend. Since we didn’t have any activities planned on Shabbat, the weather affected us minimally. When the skies took a break, we did get out for a 2-hour walk along the bike path passing near our hotel. Otherwise, sleeping, eating and reading in peace and quiet cannot be underestimated.
Day 5
We checked out of our resort and headed for our short-term base in North Conway, NH along the amazingly picturesque Kancamagus Highway. There is a number of scenic overlooks and recreation areas along the way, and it took us almost 5 hours to drive the length of 32 miles. Multiple trailheads can be accessed from the Kanc, some of them next to several large parking areas. You can even stay in one of the 6 campgrounds for a full wilderness experience. This time, however, we just drove through, stopping at each breathtaking vista. Here is a list of our stops: Hancock Overlook, Pemigawasset Overlook, C.I. Graham Wangan Overlook, Sugar Hill Scenic Overlook, Sabbaday Falls, Russel-Colbath Historic Homestead Site, Rocky Gorge, Swift River Lower Falls, and Albany Covered Bridge.
The weather cooperated for the most part, and it started raining only when we approached North Conway. So for a few hours we roamed the Settlers Green Outlet Village (remember, no sales tax New Hampshire!). Besides the Settlers Green, North Conway is home to a number of other stores and outlets, including a massive REI store.
We checked into Colonial Motel, a modest, but clean and comfortable enough place, close to the center of town (area around Schouler Park and Conway Scenic Railroad station). Thankfully, the rain stopped in the evening, so we took a walk, and explored two cute stores (Zeb’s General Store and Penguin), full of crafts, foodstuffs, funky souvenirs, and whatnot. We finished the day with July 4th fireworks in Schouler Park.
Day 6
I had to work half-day, and WiFi in Colonial Motel did not disappoint.
In the afternoon we hit 2 popular picturesque spots nearby: Cathedral Ledge Overlook, offering beautiful vistas (easily accessible via an auto road), and Diana’s Bath, a series of cascading waterfalls perfect for wading and rock hopping (accessible by a 0.6 mi trail).
Having to wait in line for a spot in the Diana’s Bath parking lot, we finally felt the force of the July 4th weekend. Overall, the town of North Conway is bigger, busier and more touristy than Lincoln. By the next day, however, the crowds disappeared. The last treat of the day was a spontaneous stop at a strawberry picking field.
Day 7
It was not easy to say goodbye to the beautiful New Hampshire, so we made another stop on the way home – in the Lakes Region. We visited Castle in the Clouds (Lucknow Estate) in Moultonboroguh, NH – a 16-room house built in 1914 by the millionaire Thomas Plant, surrounded by over 5,000 acres of beautiful landscapes. The house was built in just 18 months, with meticulous attention to details and using all the cutting-edge technology of the time. We took a guided basement tour (housing servants quarters and auxiliary rooms, including a refrigeration room and a vault room), and then walked through the 2-story house on our own. Breathtaking vistas surround the house from every window and terrace.
Multiple hiking trails can be explored on the estate property, but we only went for a short and easy (1 mi out and back) Brook Trail, which follows a brook with 7 small waterfalls.
And after that – it was indeed time to drive home…
Keeping Kosher
Except for takeout from Yosi Kosher Catering in Windsor, CT, we relied on the food we brought with us, as well as shopping in the local supermarkets for produce, dairy, eggs, cereal etc. We brought frozen pre-seasoned burgers and kebabs, which worked well with freshly made salads for Shabbat and other dinners. For quick dinner options we also brought microwavable Meal Mart and Tasty Bite (Indian) meals. Breakfast was cereal, or crackers with cream cheese and eggs, or cottage cheese & salsa, and for lunch on-the-go we normally took along sandwiches (either with cheese, or cold cuts and avocado) and snacks. We did not kasher the kitchen in the hotel, and only used their microwave when double-wrapping food. We brought an electric kettle, a George Foreman grill, a small electric egg cooker, and a hot plate for Shabbat.
In addition, in July and August Chabad of New Hampshire holds weekday minyans in Lincoln, NH and often organizes Shabbat minyanim by demand. Their website also provides information on kosher food availability in Bethlehem, NH.
