We hadn’t been on the road for very long, maybe forty minutes or so, and although we were excited to reach the mountains early, the sunset over The Great Bay, near Portsmouth was too much to resist. We pulled over into the parking lot, and raced under the highway to catch the orange and gold ball plunge into the horizon and light the waters with a stunning pink glow. As herons glided by, we watched the rays dance on the water and a full moon rise in the east. We reluctantly tore ourselves away and dashed back to the car, and pointed it north.
After another hour or so on the road, we pulled into the BIG red Pizza Barn in Ossipee Center for a quick dinner. The ambiance was very similar to Browns, only with pizza instead of seafood. The entire barn was packed with families, and the conversation and laughter was buzzing like a bee hive with everything from teenagers out for date night to bikers on their way up to cruise the White Mountain’s smooth and winding highways. Never fear, Depot Pizza in Andover and Badger Island Pizza in Maine still hold their positions as #1!!
Before long we were rolling by the familiar shops and restaurants in North Conway, and past Story Land and through the red covered bridge into Jackson Village. The Wentworth Inn, an historic country inn that has been in operation since 1869, and is part of the "golden age of New England resorts," looked inviting with its twinkling lights peeping through the darkness of the country road by the bubbling river. As we rolled the suitcases through the parking lot, we could hear the zen-like sounds of the water rushing over the granite-strewn river bed, full with this summer's abundant rains. This turned out to be a perfect location to launch a full weekend of hiking and exploring.
The next morning, fortified with omelets, home fries and coffee from the formal dining room, we headed up to Pinkham Notch. We parked at the visitor center, crossed the highway and headed straight up the trail to the Square Ledge. When we were almost to the top, we encountered a group in a rock climbing class who were learning to scale the cliff. We took the “back way” up the trail, instead and reached the top as the climbers came up the vertical cliff ledge. The view from the top was phenomenal and the day clear and dry, so you could see for miles through the notch. We hung out at the top for a while, watching various families take pictures perilously close to the dizzy edge of the ledge.
We came back down the mountain and then explored the beautiful Glen Ellis Falls. After hiking until our blisters made us pack it in for the day, we took a drive to The Balsams in world-famous Dixville Notch. This ranks among the most stunning places on the planet with beautiful mountains all around. Signs inside the resort hotel led us to the Ballot Room, where the residents of Dixville Notch cast the first votes in the nation for the presidential elections. A fine dinner at the Balsams after strolling around the grounds and admiring the view capped off the evening. On the way out of the resort, we stopped at the Balsams Spring, where fresh spring water bubbles constantly from the source, and we filled our hiking water bottles with the real thing!
With a little bit of daylight left in our hands, we continued north to the town of Colebrook, which is the home of Our Lady of Grace Shrine, and so far north that we were nearly in Canada. There was no one around as we drove through the grounds on this quiet, peaceful night. It was pitch dark by now, but as we cruised past Jefferson, we could still see Santa’s Village; and wished there was time to visit it.
On the way to the Inn, we stopped for ice cream and to our amazement; someone was shooting off some fireworks over one of the mountains. It was late when we arrived back at the Wentworth to recharge our batteries for more fun. Next day after church, we stopped into the Weather Museum in North Conway to see what they had to say about Mt. Washington weather! Mt. Washington is famous for having the world’s strongest winds, and the museum helped explain a number of weather-related phenomenons for the kids. We had a quick breakfast at the Eastern Slope Inn, and they stopped into the outlets for a “quick” look around. Several hours later, with some awesome deals in hand, we headed for Black Cap Mountain for a quick hike. You may remember from previous blogs, that to reach the trail on Black Cap, you first need to drive straight up Hurricane Mountain Road.
Since reservations were in high demand this week, we had to spend our third night in a new inn that was up the hill on the same road. We stayed at the Eagle Mountain Resort and Golf Club. It too was a vintage inn that was originally built in 1879. This evening we had hot clam chowder with traditional oyster crackers in the dining room, and the explored the old place, and even found a few minutes to sit in the line of white rockers that dotted the huge porch and admire the bright full moon.
Monday arrived too soon, had a sumptuous breakfast at the dining hall. We headed back to civilization, and stopped at the Base Station / Cog Railway in Bretton Woods for our customary pilgrimage. We had toyed with the idea of actually riding the cog that day, but heavy fog hung low over the mountain, which would mean the visibility wouldn’t be optimum at the top of mighty Mt. Washington. We watched as folks from all parts of the world lined up for a ride on the cog. Driving down the mountain, we stopped at the river gorge to watch the brave divers jump off the cliffs and into the deep pools below.
Next stop was the Bretton Woods Ski Area zip line. This is a new attraction that the ski resort has added for some summer fun. You are driven to the top of the mountain and ride the zip line back down in a matter of seconds. We then headed down 302 and north up Route 3 until we found the town of Whitefield, which the Wentworth folks had suggested as a great destination. After stopping at the only Dunkin’ Donuts in town, we found what we were looking for. The Mountain View Grand Resort and Spa, had the most stunning view of the entire mountain region. Definitely a place to return to someday to take advantage of the activities they offer. They were top of the list once we discovered that the small gift shop was loaded with Gamewright games!
We headed south down 93, past Canon Mountain and all of our favorite scenery, hoping to come back to the Franconia Notch Parkway, Route 302 and the mountains soon.
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| Labor Day Week-end 2009 |
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