The Kancamagus Highway

Up early once again, we enjoyed the motel breakfast and quickly hit the road before 8 a.m. Our initial destination was Conway, New Hampshire -- on the Maine/New Hampshire state line -- just less than 2 hours west of Augusta. The journey began on Interstate highway, but finished on winding 2-lane roads.

At Conway we refueled and hit the Visitor's Center for the White Mountain National Forest. Armed with maps and lists of highlights, we set out westward on New Hampshire State Highway 112 -- known as "The Kancamagus Highway," and designated as a National Scenic Byway. This highway is the main tourist route through the National Forest. And the big draw at this time of year, of course, is the fall colors.

First stop for us was the Albany Covered Bridge. Reminiscent of Madison County, Iowa, this covered bridge was first constructed in 1882, though it has be refurbished a time or two to keep it in shape. We enjoyed the bridge, and the scenic Swift River that it crosses. But as we walked a gravel trail parallel to the river, we noted that we found the leaves rather disappointing. While better than eastern Maine, they were far short of peak.

Only a few miles farther west, we began to notice the colors were more abundant. At Rocky Gorge, just three miles down the highway, we could already notice a difference.

We stopped at the Russell-Colbath House, built in 1832, where a National Park Historian gave us a private tour and run-down on the house and the rather eccentric family who built it and lived there for three generations. We walked a short, half-mile loop trail that ran between the house and the river, and then had lunch at a picnic table beside the barn (a very recent reconstruction).

At Sabbaday Falls (named for an historic event that took place near there on a Sunday) we took another short walk and climbed up hill a bit to see a cascade of water that reminded us a great deal of Dunning Springs in Decorah.

By the time we reached the C.L. Graham Overlook -- near the highest point on the highway and only about 20 miles from Conway -- the leaf color had advanced to the "spectacular" category! This was confirmed a few miles later at an unnamed overlook, and again at Hancock Overlook. These two overlooks are only about a half mile apart, but the first looks from the highway toward the south, and the other looks north. The forest was aflame with reds and yellows in both directions (the photos don't really show how beautiful it was).

We visited the Swift River a couple more times, briefly, at Otter Rocks and at Lincoln Woods. Otter Rocks is what the name suggests -- just a very rocky place in the riverbed that kids would enjoy wading in. Lincoln Woods features an old suspension bridge, suitable for pedestrians only. There were longer trails here, but we elected to save our energy for what was to come.

We left the Kancamagus Highway and the White Mountain National Forest upon reaching the town of Lincoln, and turned north on I-93/U.S. 3, almost immediately entering Franconia Notch State Park. The Park's main feature is Flume Gorge, a natural wonder that New Hampshire has turned into a paid attraction. 

While the rest of the park is free to all visitors, we paid $18.50 each to walk the 2-mile loop up to the Gorge and its waterfall. It was pretty spectacular, as were some of the views and lesser falls along the way. So, I think we got our money's worth.

We stopped along I-93 a couple more times for overlooks and short walks, including a rather interesting pool in the rocks, called "The Basin."

The GPS took us off the main highway onto a series of winding, 2-lane roads to get to our overnight stay at Bethlehem, NH. This little town boasts two big golf courses and lots of resorts. We thought we'd be staying in town, but discovered that our lodging was 3 miles out in the country. It was a charming old inn, right along the swiftly-flowing, rocky Ammonoosuc River. This was a delightful surprise. And even better, the inn featured a first-rate restaurant where we enjoyed a most excellent dinner while looking out at the river.

We passed some of the evening sitting in the inn's common room, in front of one of the original fireplaces from when the oldest part of the house was first constructed in the 1820s. It was a delightful treat to enjoy an old New England inn.