New England

I’d always wanted to take a trip around New England. One without the traditional sightseeing but more like a meandering road trip. So I did. My son was traveling with me, and we left Boston and headed north. I’ll give you a general idea of what New England is like, and then we’ll all return to visit Maine in the summer.

Our first detour off the freeway was in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. There was no reason. I wanted to see what a small town in that state looked like. It was quaint next to the harbor, somewhere I’d like to spend several weeks or maybe a month. I hoped my husband would sail that far north, but he only made it to Maryland before returning south. Except for the crab traps, the bay below looks like a great place to anchor (well, depending on the depth, of course.)

Then we stopped to play tourist in Portland, Maine. Unfortunately, the town was packed with tourists like us, and after stocking up on food at Whole Foods, we decided that since a return visit to Maine was definitely in order, we would try again later. We got back in the car and headed west, selecting the road from Google Maps that looked the most scenic.

As you can see, we took the most scenic route, which cut through the White Mountains close to Mount Washington. It was not the shortest route but well worth the additional time.

On the way, we saw the Mount Washington Hotel. The hotel is famous for hosting the 1944 Bretton Woods Monetary Conference, which established the gold standard and the US Dollar as the currency. It looked like a great place to write in the future when my husband needs a quick ski trip.

I expected more snow than we saw, but there seems to be much less snow toward the Atlantic than closer to the Great Lakes.

After seeing the hotel, we continued through the White Mountains. Everywhere looks like the photo below. Remember how far you are from civilization on a road trip like this. The locals do NOT allow you to use their bathroom even if you buy food or gas. I felt the essence of Deliverance for several hours until we crossed into Vermont.

Arriving in Vermont, we stopped at Montpelier, one of my favorite small towns, and had tea at The North Branch Cafe. It overlooks the Winooski River in the heart of the Capital. The town was hit on July 11, 2023, with a horrible flood, and they are still rebuilding. This photo is from the year before.

This cafe caught my interest because of the jade plant below. I’ve been trying to grow something large like this for years, but I’ve failed. We keep moving, and that jade pot bites the dust each time.

Because I was looking at houses (I’m always looking at houses. I was a real estate attorney for thirty years, remember?), we drove to Stowe to discuss purchasing a home to live in during the winter. My husband loves to ski, and I have books to write. It seemed like a great place. The town is cute, and it was not very busy when we were there. I did not take time to go to the ski resort, so no photos of that.

The houses in the neighborhoods below were cool. We liked the style, and the price was not horrendous in the real estate insanity wars. However, we learned that all the owners rent them as Airbnbs year-round when unused. We would have no one we knew, no neighbors we could call on in a pinch. It was not the kind of lifestyle we were looking for. We needed a community, not just somewhere to ski.

The views were great, so I continued to think about it until the realtor and I had a heart-to-heart and realized this area was not for me. While I like solitude, being buried under many feet of snow isn’t my idea of fun.

Our next stop was Burlington, Vermont, where I saw Lake Champlain. It was completely frozen, along with a forlorn empty marina. New York is across the water in the photo. Everywhere was covered in snow and ice, which was so different from what we saw in Portland, Maine.

We enjoyed Burlington. After checking into the hotel (Hilton Burlington Lake Champlain), we wandered around the city. At first, the city appeared deserted, but that was a warm-weather Southerner’s thought. Because of the cold, everyone was inside, and we learned that the bars and restaurants were full. We found ourselves a diner and had a great time.

The remainder of our trip, besides a stop at the Miraval Berkshires for a free night’s stay, a great dinner at Firefly Gastropub in Lenox, and breakfast at Haven, was mostly…more mountains and trees. And we all know how much I love mountains.

And other little towns along the way.

And farms. Cool barn, huh?

Then, we were back in Boston.

This is what happens on a warm day in Boston in March. Everyone puts on a short-sleeved shirt and comes outside.

While I enjoyed all of New England, it didn’t seem to be the right place to call home. I’m not used to shoveling snow in the winter, and after a week of severe cold, I’m ready to go somewhere else.

But I still want to see Maine in the summer. Have you been?