DESTINATIONS | NEW ENGLAND’ S AUTUMN SHOW
• New Hampshire was named for Hampshire, England, by Captain John Mason.
• The weather station on Mount Washington holds the record for the highest wind gust directly measured at the Earth’ s surface at 231 mph in 1934.
• In New Hampshire, about 6.9 million cords of wood are harvested each year for lumber, paper, and other products. Replanting trees is rarely necessary as New Hampshire’ s forests reseed themselves.
by Randy Bray
• Cannon Aerial Tramway is the first aerial passenger tramway in North America. It was built in 1938 at Franconia Notch.
Vermont
The Green Mountain State provides plenty of forest-covered mountains with an abundance of multi-colored scenes for viewing. Highways and byways are numerous enough to get a good look of the state’ s natural beauty, but not to the point of too much traffic. Several routes highlighting the southern segment of Vermont’ s autumn show are: Route 7A from Bennington to Manchester; Route 30 from Brattleboro to Manchester and from Manchester to Dorset to Pawlet; Route 11 from Manchester to Chester; Route 100 from South Londonderry to Weston.
Near Dorset, just north of Manchester, lies Emerald State Park harboring 67 campsites spread across a heavily wooded ridge. The park surrounds its namesake, the 20-acre Emerald Lake, which offers adventure for water-based activities. Another state park, Gifford Woods State Park near Killington is not only a hub for hikers, but also a perfect base camp for RVing leafseekers. Whether driving through on a New England autumn photography trip, or escaping for a couple days to enjoy a fall season outing, the region caters to both.
For the history buffs along for the trip, a stop at the Bennington Museum in Bennington is worth consideration. The muse-
© istockphoto. com / Jaco Le Roux um highlights the heritage of southern Vermont and neighboring regions. Paintings and sculptures by Vermont artists and military artifacts are displayed, as well as an array of American glass from the 19th to the early 20th century. Onward north on Route 7A in Manchester is the American Museum of Fly Fishing. The museum holds the world’ s largest collection of angling and angling-related items. The exhibits document the evolution of fly fishing as a sport, art form, craft, and industry in the U. S. and abroad, dating as far back as the 16th century.
Call 1-800-837-6668 for Vermont travel information.
10 Autumn 2009 |