For people who like to hike, the Appalachian Trail is fabulous. A hike up Mount Bigelow, northeast of Kingfield, affords amazing views of Flagstaff Lake and the surrounding mountains. It’s always neat to talk to thru-hikers, too. We take granola bars and bottled water to pass out to them. There are other fantastic shorter day hikes in the area if anyone ever wants to contact me.
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I’d second the recommendation for visiting Oqunquit–it’s a great spot on the Maine coast. Lots to see and do.
A little farther up the coast is Rockport, which is home to the Farnsworth Museum. If you like artists Jamie Wyeth or Andrew Wyeth, you can see their work at the Farnsworth. You can also visit the Olson House (nearby) that was the site of Christina’s World (Andrew Wyeth’s painting). I went to visit last fall and loved it.
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Isn’t the Farnsworth in Rockland? There’s a nice lighthouse there too.
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You are right—it’s Rockland, not Rockport!
I concur with @thumper1. If you want NH and Maine, no reason to fly into Boston and then have extra driving. I personally prefer the feel of Vermont to NH, but the hiking in NH can be really good. Remember to prepare for all weather types (the day can look nice and warm and you could later have pouring rain or worse).
I also agree with @vwlizard that Legal Seafoods, which was once really terrific, has decline as it has become a chain. Both lower quality and higher prices. There are great fish and lobster places – I’m sure that folks here will be able to direct you to locals.
You could take the ferry over to Provincetown but that leaves you without a car unless you arrangeto rent there. Or you could drive. The Outer Cape is beautiful, has lighthouses, tons of galleries, several National Seashore beaches and visitor centers, plenty of nice (but not altitude gaining) hikes, and isn’t that crowded at that time of year. But alas, no mountains, so it would have to be its own half of the vacation
Posting this here too…because the OP might now be doing this trip at the end of July.
I think we might do that at the end of July now
Got it. That is the peak of the tourist season. If you plan to go this July to ME, NH, you probably need to get an itinerary set, and make lodging reservations. And you will NOT want to stay at the place in North Conway I recommended upstream, because it will be challenging to turn onto the main road from there. In fact…driving though N Conway in the summers is a challenge.
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I also recommend avoiding North Conway in July. Other places to see the mountains that might work are the Lakes region, just at the base of the mountains, Wolfeboro and Meredith are cute towns, both have hiking with spectacular views. If you want to be right in the mountains, Lincoln is nice; it is still be crowded in the summer, but not busting at the seams like North Conway will be.
And I echo thumper1’s advice to make lodging reservations as soon as possible.
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If June is still on the table, be aware of Bike Week traffic in New Hampshire 10-18 June.
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Wow, good point. I learned that groups of bikers don’t think they need to stop at red lights. I almost ran into a motorcycle last year. If they’re going to do that, they should at least have a lead bike or car block the intersection.
High-risk behavior certainly complicates things. It’s a huge influx of vulnerable traffic even in the best of conditions – makes me hypervigilant when out and about.
Well…good that this trip has been postponed until end of July.
If there is some flexibility in timing…I would suggest maybe looking at the week after Labor Day. It’s post main tourist summer season and before leaf peepers. It’s actually a beautiful time to be in Maine and NH, and way less crowded!
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