First Trip - PA to New England ... Canada

[BSBIKER]

Hi, everyone.

My wife and I will be traveling from Connellsville, PA, about 50 miles south of Pittsburgh, up through New England, maybe as far as Canada, leaving around the middle of or third week in September.

We have no real destination or time frame but definitely want to be on the Coastal Highway for awhile but are very flexible. I am not looking for detailed sightseeing information but some casual stops or places to definitely avoid.

We will not be saying in any campgrounds except for maybe overnight, but also may stay in a Wal-Mart parking lot if you think that would be OK. Hope to hear from somebody soon. Thanks. Bill and Jan

[theoldman]

Well, it does not look like many folks head up that way. Or not this time of year, anyway. Don't forget Lowes, Sam's and places like that also for the night. Goof luck and have fun.

[tbutler]

I hadn't responded, hoping you would get some responses from some local people. You didn't mention if you travel with a toad, or a bike. We travel with a toad so we can park at an RV park for several days and explore with the toad. If you are traveling in a motor home without a toad, you will have to park it anywhere you stop to explore. In New England this is a particular challenge. It doesn't make the trip impossible by any means but does eliminate some things you could see.

We've made several trips through New England and find it to be well worth the trip but also a bit high tension for RV travel. The roads, except major highways and interstates, tend to be narrow. We found frequent signs obscured by vegetation. This led to discussions that started, "That was our turn now how do we turn around?" On one small road to a campground I actually got out of the motor home, climbed on the roof with my camp saw and cut several branches so we could get through without being scraped by branches. I swore if I ever won the lottery I would buy chain saws for the Massachusetts DOT. We also came across routes that were blocked by low overpasses and bridges. We ventured onto the New York Parkway and immediately bailed out as the overpasses were not suitable for RV's with no warning or indication of overpass clearances given in advance. Get a good truckers map or GPS to help you assess routes. You will want to be careful about taking any route not designated a truck route. A good truck atlas will have a state-by-state listing of low clearances on truck routes.

For all of these reasons, you will have to stick with the major US highways and interstates unless you have a toad. Upstate NY offers great scenery, we particularly enjoyed traveling along the St. Lawrence Seaway and Lake Ontario from the Eisenhower Locks to Buffalo. In the NE part of this route, Hwy 37 runs close to the seaway and gives some spectacular views. There are also large pull-outs with good views and picnic tables. These are suitable for overnight stays and we enjoyed them very much. We made this whole route without unhooking the toad.

We enjoyed Newport, RI. We stayed in a park there, drove the toad around town to visit places. There is a walk along the bay, on one side water on the other side the mansions of the wealthy from the late 1800's to early 1900's. Many of the mansions are open for tours.

Cape Cod is interesting but I really wouldn't recommend it without a toad. The roads are small and traffic is heavy. We stayed at a park on the western end of Cape Cod and then explored to Provincetown with the toad. Boston has spectacular Revolutionary War sites including the Freedom Trail. Cemeteries with tombstones of the founding fathers and many famous buildings and war sites are highlighted along this trail. There is an aquarium with whale watching day trips into the Atlantic.

Further north, you can travel along the coast in Maine on US 1 which gets you to many coastal cities. We enjoyed Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park, both are best seen with a toad. We particularly found the coastal area north of Acadia NP to be beautiful and interesting. Again, much exploring with the toad here.

In western Maine, Hew Hampshire and Vermont we traveled US 2 and made several stops at RV parks to explore areas nearby. Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream plant tour is good, you get free ice cream! Their parking lot is motor home friendly. We drove through the Lake Champlain area with the motor home. We also enjoyed Mt. Washington (definitely with the toad) and visited Dixville Notch of national election fame (first voting results). It turns out to be a huge hotel resort, worth the stop.

Campgrounds in New England are typically family campgrounds. They have hundreds of sites, most of which are occupied on a seasonal basis as families come for weekend or vacation retreats. As a result, there tend to be few sites for travelers. Also, when the families stop coming to stay at the campgrounds they close for the season. This usually is immediately after Labor Day. Get a good guide to campgrounds, Trailer Life or Woodalls, and look carefully for the closing dates for campgrounds before planning to stay at any particular one. We stayed at several Wal-Mart stores when traveling and also found some locations that restricted overnight stays. Near the heavier populations there tend to be restrictions on overnight stays.

[BillyM]

Bill and Jan,

Here are a few suggestions from a New Englander:

While the side roads may be narrow, please do not forget to check them out. From PA I would presume that your coming up either Route 84 or 95, yes stay off of any road that says Parkway. I would suggest a stop in Mystic CT, an old sea port with a great deal of history. Follow on to Rhode Island and dont forget to check out Newports mansions. A great campground is located across the state line in MA called Normandy Farms, from here you can home base to Boston, Providence RI and check out Foxboro stadium (if your so inclined. While in Boston check out the Freedom Trail, take a Duckboat ride, tour Fenway Park.

When your ready to move north take RT 495 north to 95, this road you go through many of the cities of the Industrial revolution (Lowell, Lawrence) as well as nearby American revolution areas (lexington and Concord)each of these communities have State heritage , national or local parks and tours.

I would follow RT 495 to 95 and up the coast of NH and Maine, check out the seafood and lobster. Portsmouth NH has many great tourist areas as well as Portland Maine. Of course Kittery and Freeport (LL Bean) should be on the agenda. Up the coast either Rt 1 or 95 to Acadia and Cadilac MTN. Now comes the tricky part cut across Maine to NH Rt 202 or 16 check out the White Mountains, great time of the year for the scenery (the trees will be poppin soon) cut across to Littleton, Linclon or woodstock, do not forget to get to franconia Notch in NH, the former home of the Old Man of the MTNS. Now over to 89 and the State of Vt, head south (your about 20 miles from the Canadian border) check out all of the covered bridges Queeche gorge (nice KOA nearby) yes do not forget the Cabot Creamery and Ben and Jerrys.

Head down rt 91 to Brattleboro VT (off of rt 5 a nice KOA) and check out the area, Mt Greylock in North Adams, Basketball Hall of Fame in springfield.

Hope this helps, most of all enjoy the fall in New England.

[jehjira]

Just saw your post. For sure stay out of the New York City area and go around downtown Boston.

Otherwise I've had a great time from New Stanton where I live all the way up to Maine....best wishes and have fun...