Photos by Hui-chen & MJ Klein with some FOOD PHOTOS!
Part of the 2010 USA Trip Series
After spending time in the Mt. Washington area, and taking the cog up to the summit, we continued north to the very northernmost parts of New Hampshire.
We passed the entrance to the Mount Washington Auto Road on our way out of the area, heading north.
So we headed north and HC got the camera ready to capture the beautiful scenery along the way.
Scenes like this are typical of northern New Hampshire.
One of the towns we passed through is Lancaster.
We passed this Dunkin’ Donuts, but we didn’t stop!
Later we went through Colebrook. I hadn’t been there in many years.
We passed close to a border with Canada on our way past Vermont at the intersection of Route 3 (US) and 253 (Canada).
We noticed these signs at frequent intervals. This is no joke – there is a thriving moose population in northern New Hampshire and they frequently cross roads at random.
This is a shot of the First Connecticut Lake. Before I forget, I want to tell you that many of these photos are geotagged with the geographic information about where they were taken. Click on each photo to take you to the Flickr site for more information.
By the time we got to this area, things started to look familiar to me. I used to spend time up in northern New Hampshire and it was great coming back.
Notice the sign on the side of the road above:
This area is known as “Moose Alley” and is a great place for spotting moose. I camped out in this area once for a week, and saw over 70 moose! One needs to exercise caution when driving in Moose Alley.
When driving north in Moose Alley, one will suddenly find themselves at the US/Canada border. This happened to us and as we didn’t want to cross into Canada, we turned around quickly.
I remember days when you could spot several moose by the roadside, grazing.
It was unseasonably hot though, and the moose were in deep cover trying to stay cool.
We approached our destination for the evening:
The Partridge Cabins and Lodge. This article is geotagged at this location. View the location on our map.
This turned out to be the only moose we saw!
Partridge Cabins did not disappointed though!
This is where we stayed.
Situated on a lovely tract of land, the area was nice and quiet. That’s our rental car on the right, by the way.
Inside, the cabins are nicely appointed, very clean with ample space for a family.
You can do your own cooking while you’re there too.
They even had satellite TV! I admit that I did watch one TV show but for the most part, it was about getting away from everything.
This is the view from our cabin, looking towards the lake. Fantastic!
Hui-chen and I went to eat at one of the local restaurants.
This is what we ordered:
Italian sausage sub.
Seafood platter. Both dishes were very good.
Outside, Hui-chen photographed some of the pretty flowers.
We enjoyed the peaceful views of the lakes in the area.
The next morning, Hui-chen and I got up around sunup to go see if we could find any moose. Unfortunately, people told us that this year was the hottest summer on record and that the moose had all gone deep into the forest for cover to keep cool. We saw cars with other people driving up and down Moose Alley, looking for moose, but none were to be found. I felt bad because I wanted Hui-chen to see one!
We took a few more photos in the nice morning calm before heading out for the day.
On the way out of town, we stopped for some fuel.
America: The Land of Self-Service. I always forget about that when I return to the US for a visit. Here I am attempting to clean the bugs off the windshield. We have photos to take, afterall!
The Lake Francis Country Store had this great map painted on the floor. I felt strange walking on it!
Hui-chen loves cherries, so I couldn’t resist getting this famous Ben & Jerry’s flavor for her. In retrospect, we should have toured the factory in nearby Vermont!
I like geek waypoints like this!
We headed to Littleton and Interstate 93, but it was quite a way from where we began.
If you follow the signs for 93, you will eventually end up in Littleton, NH.
I took Hui-chen to the famous Littleton Diner. I used to eat here on the way back from camping in northern New Hampshire.
This is Hui-chen’s chicken fillet sandwich. The food at the Littleton Diner is always great.
Apparently the Littleton Diner has been around for longer than I thought!
One last shot of the Post Office and Courthouse across the street.
This is the only shot we have of the front of our rental car. I have to tell you that this 2011 Toyota Camry was the nicest car I’ve ever driven.
The way to 93 continues through Littleton, and we headed in that direction.
Finally, we reached Interstate 93 and headed South.
One of the many ski resorts in the area.
This is Cannon Mountain, viewed from the North, heading South.
We stopped at one of the many roadside attractions along 93. This is the area called “The Basin” and I wanted Hui-chen to see the natural beauty of this place.
The water is so clean and clear.
The water running down these rocks for so many years has formed a natural water slide of sorts.
Here we see that the water has cut a slot into the granite rocks.
This is The Basin itself.
Hui-chen had enough of hiking around, so we skipped some attractions for the next time we’re in New Hampshire.
Next, I had in mind to show Hui-chen the famous Indian Head, which requires no hiking at all (it’s visible from the road).
This part of NH is just gorgeous!
This sign explains what the Indian Head is and how it was formed.
And this is the famous Indian Head itself.
Across the street is the Indian Head Resort.
The resort features a viewing tower for the Indian Head. I’ve never stayed here, but I do know someone that did stay here and they gave it rave reviews. The area is absolutely stunning and Hui-chen expressed a desire to stay here sometime in the future.
If you’ve been here, please let us know how you enjoyed your stay!
On the way back to the highway, we passed 2 other famous NH landmarks: Whale Tale Waterpark….
…. and Clark’s Trading Post. I wish we had more time to visit but we were on a tight schedule.
It was a beautiful day for traveling by car!
Eventually we headed down into Massachusetts, which will bring us to our next installment…. coming soon!
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Hui-chen and you take wonderful pictures. I enjoyed seeing this part of NH that I have never seen. Those cabins were spotless. The chain motels I have stayed in are never that clean. I could have stayed for a week and enjoyed the beauty and peacefulness of the area. I am sorry that you did not get to see any moose.
thanks so much Carolyn. we had fun traveling about and taking photos of the different sights in the area. we both love New Hampshire and i’m sure that Hui-chen and i will be back again someday. we can recommend the Partridge Cabins because they were so well kept and the location is peaceful and relaxing. maybe next time we’ll stay there for a week! thanks Carolyn.
I’ve never been north of Mt Washington… so it was interesting to see the area north of there… as well as the US/Canada border. There are lots of places in northern New England where you see signs to beware of moose and deer… neither of which you want to hit when in a car.
I’m surprised you didn’t go to Vermont to see and take a tour of the Ben and Jerry’s factory. I guess something else saved for your next trip to New England (Vermont is the only New England state that I haven’t been to).
mike01905´s last post ..2010 Head of the Charles Regatta
Mike, you don’t know what you’re missing. the North Country is really something. it’s like another world up there. Hui-chen and i have discussed going back to New England and to the Ben & Jerry’s factory in Vermont next time. that’s something she would really enjoy doing. naturally we’ll blog on it! lol take care, Mike.
You are showing us so many interesting things, it’s hard to pick one to comment on. 🙂
What kept you from crossing the border to Canada, is it a visa issue for Hui-chen? Partridge Cabins looks nice, just the kind of place my daughter could run around it, exploring every nook and cranny.
thanks Stefan, we hoped it wouldn’t be too boring, even though we didn’t see any moose! Hui-chen doesn’t have a visa for Canada, and that place is so unique that we didn’t have enough to to explore it. someday we’ll go to Canada directly and to Montreal, my favorite international city! we can highly recommend Partridge Cabins, so if you ever go there, please tell them we sent you!
MJ, all I can say is amazing. Thanks for sharing such a beautiful place with all of us again. This has been a great series to date. I look forward to more of your trip.
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thanks Brunty. we hoped that the series wouldn’t be boring! glad you’re enjoying it. in our next installment we’re going to visit a historical city north of Boston. that should be interesting. take care and thanks.