Do you have favorite New England spots for a summer road trip?

May 29, 2016 9:00 PM

I'm looking to spend 7-10 days later this summer on vacation in New England. Areas of interest are Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, with Connecticut and Rhode Island as well if not too rushed. I would appreciate advice on feasibility but also would like to learn about neat things to visit in these states.

As part of my quest to visit all 50 states, I'm looking to vacation in New England this summer.

I definitely want to visit Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. If it makes sense, I'd like to fit in Connecticut and Rhode Island. I'll probably go to Springfield MA because my dad's from there and he'd like me to see some of his heritage.

I know shockingly little about New England so really am unsure of what to visit and how feasible this all is. Previous AskMe questions have been helpful but I could use some more input.

-By 'this summer' I mean late July through late August
-I have about 7-10 days for this trip
-At the moment, it makes the most sense to fly into Boston and rent a car but I'm open to alternatives
-I live in Texas (the road trip where five days in, you're still in Texas), so I am struggling with a not-too-rushed itinerary for this trip to the land of tiny states
-My budget is flexible
-Suggestions for hotels/motels/B&Bs/lovely couches are all welcome
-My priority is nature rather than culture and trees rather than beach--but I'll happily take any recommendations you might have

My current itinerary is entirely hypothetical and looks like this:
Fly to Boston, rent a car, drive to Springfield [day 1]
Drive south to CT and RI (Mystic Seaport? Newport Cliff Walk?) [days 2-3]
Drive back north to VT and NH (Mt Washington Auto Road? Green/White Mountains?) [days 4-5]
Drive to Maine (Two Lights? Mt Battie Auto Road? Moxie Falls?) [days 6-7]
Drive back to Boston and fly back to Texas [day 8]

Any blanks you can help fill in, especially with the doing $something in a given state, would be sincerely appreciated!

posted by librarylis to Travel & Transportation (22 answers total)

Each state has different regions with different characters, both in terms of culture and in terms of natural environment. Do you want to aim for variety, or pick a couple sub-areas to spend a little more time with? Do you want to see the main tourist nature sights, or go places that won't be as crowded? Do you want day hikes, stop and get out of car to briefly walk amongst and look at trees, or something in between? What's your take on walking up mountains? Does canoeing or kayaking interest you?

If you don't want just a driving vacation, I'd suggest concentrating either on southern New England (Boston to Springfield, detour north slightly to see Western MA/the Berkshires, swing down through CT, RI, and then Cape Cod) or northern New England. Maine alone could take the entire length of your trip - it's bigger than the rest of the New England states. A loop from Springfield, through Western MA into Vermont, up to northern VT then into NH, down through the White Mtns with a stop in Portsmouth in Seacoast NH would be feasible if you wanted to spend much of each day outside of the car.
posted by eviemath at 9:25 PM on May 29, 2016

Two things of note in Eastern Connecticut -

1. At the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs, there is a museum devoted to puppetry. UConn has one of the country's only masters programs in puppetry and they just opened that a couple years ago.

2. About a half hour drive from UConn you will find Shady Glen, one of the best burger places in the entire world.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 9:27 PM on May 29, 2016 [1 favorite]

Well, I live in RI, so I am biased to like it, but since you are looking for trees over beaches and nature over culture, it might make sense to give it a pass this time. There are beautiful nature-y and wooded spots in RI, but if I was doing this itinerary with your stated interests, I'm not sure it makes sense to go 2-3 hours outside of the loop you're already looking at for anything in RI.

A few places:

If you drive north from Springfield, Mt Monadnack is a nice hike that is easily manageable in a day/afternoon if you're serious about it, but still challenging and beautiful. However, there are similar and better hikes in the white mountains, imho.

Portland, ME is great, I highly recommend Two Lights and Cape Elizabeth.

The White Mountains are beautiful, I particularly love the Franconia Notch area but if you come at it from the north you'll drive through the whole thing.
posted by geegollygosh at 9:45 PM on May 29, 2016

Response by poster: I'm really excited to see these respsonses and hope to hear more. To answer the first question:

Do you want to aim for variety, or pick a couple sub-areas to spend a little more time with? Do you want to see the main tourist nature sights, or go places that won't be as crowded? Do you want day hikes, stop and get out of car to briefly walk amongst and look at trees, or something in between? What's your take on walking up mountains? Does canoeing or kayaking interest you?

Variety is fine--I don't mind driving a bit and just doing one neat thing per day. Crowds are not my bag at all but it's New England in summer so I recognize that there are going to be lots of people around. Think easy-to-moderate day hikes, my asthma makes mountains hard, and I love kayaking. I recognize this itinerary might be a lot so am listening closely to what folks are saying about cutting it down.
posted by librarylis at 10:05 PM on May 29, 2016

I would suggest either focusing on north or south AND/OR doing more of a loop, because your proposed route has you doing some backtracking that could get annoying.

As for where to go, I'm more of a beach person, but I love the area right along the border of VT and NH, around White River Junction, and the area around Green Mountain National Forest (they are pretty close together, and both have nice towns nearby to stay in).

I have also heard amazing things about Acadia National Park, which is a mix of forest and beach. I bet the kayaking there would be great.

If you're going to Springfield, you should stop off in Northampton for a meal on your way up to VT/NH. Lovely, beautiful college town.

One thing I will say is that you're not going to get a TON of natural variety in New England. It's basically either woodsy mountains or beach. And it's all really lovely but depending on your personality, may start to seem a bit samey.
posted by lunasol at 11:24 PM on May 29, 2016

I can verify that the kayaking on Mount Desert Island (home of Acadia National Park) is great. Lots of outfitters offering guided trips as well as diy rentals. Acadia is great for lots of outdoor pursuits: hiking, cycling, rock climbing, kayaking.
posted by tractorfeed at 2:23 AM on May 30, 2016

Moxie Falls is way the heck up there, and it's a fair hike down a wooded path to get into the area where you can view the falls. Frankly, it would take you way out of your way, although the Forks area is quite nice, but too much for the trip you are planning, think you'd be worn out getting there and back down to Boston.

Here is what I would do, assuming you are entering Maine from near Conway, NH, toward Fryeburg, Maine:

1. Drive to Paris, Maine, you will go through the small town of Norway. If handbags are your thing, that is where coveted Rough and Tumble leather bags are made, great for yourself or as a gift.

2. Grab a sandwich and head 15 minutes up Route 26 to Snow Falls Gorge, a lovely picnic area with a sturdy foot bridge over the rushing waters of the gorge (not huge, like out west, but still, impressively beautiful). There are some foot paths on the other side of the foot bridge, nothing that goes too far, but walk across and take in the view from that direction. That is the Little Androscoggin River. There is an outhouse there, but it gets used a lot in summer, so you can drive up the road to a gas station that is on the left, a few miles. They also sell sandwiches, hot and cold, so you can wait until there if you feel like just stopping at Snow Falls Gorge first. Reason being, there are really no other stores once you are headed north on Route 26, except that one gas station.

3. There is a tourmaline picking place, where you buy a bucket of mine dumps (castoffs from blasting), and sift and sort through, looking for mineral specimens and of course, tourmaline. Think it is $20 a bucket, and you can pay more for seeded buckets. It's just a little trailer with tents over the sorting tables. Ask for a chair if your back gets sore.

4. Head back down 26 to Route 219, which will be on your left. At first, it will be hilly, as you are leaving the foothills of Western Maine, and head over to Winthrop, which is in the Belgrade Lakes area. It is a small town with maybe a couple of ice cream shops, and lots of resale shops. You can get a cone and go sit at the little park on Lake Maranacook, right next to to the downtown (you will pass it coming into town, on your left, then once past the lake, turn left to get to Main Street). A great place for lunch is Peppers, at the top of Main, in a strip mall, but the food is excellent, and the wait staff are friendly. There is a big grocery store nearby, in case you need to restock your supplies.

5. Take Route 202 to Augusta. At this point, you could stop for the night, or just stop and visit the Capitol, and go see the small but very nice Maine State Museum. There is a lovely display of tourmaline gems and jewelry there, including a necklace made entirely of Maine tourmaline and Maine gold (a big feat, as there is not a ton of gold in Maine compared to, say, Alaska).

6. Take 95 from Augusta to Waterville. You can also take either one of the roads that run alongside the river, the Mighty Kennebec. Route 201, going through Vassalboro, has some really lovely views of farms and such.

7. You can stop in Waterville and see the old Hathaway Mill, where they used to make Hathaway shirts, with the famous ad with the man with a patch on his eye (inspiration for Ken's eye patch on Mad Men). There is a park near the river, and a metal walking bridge called the 2 Cent bridge, as it used to cost the mill workers 2 cents to cross it. If you walk around to the car bridge, you can get some good snaps of the falls looking up river. You can't really see them from the 2 Cent bridge. Do make sure your car is locked up in Waterville, not a lot of crime, but petty theft is becoming more common.

8. At this point, you could take 201 north and cross the river, and then 139 East to Unity, and visit the Amish general store. It's a pleasant drive with nice views.

9. Or, go directly to Camden and stop at a B&B there. The entire route, from Freyburg to Camden, is about 3 hours, so it's easily doable in one day, leaving you another day to head back south and explore oh... Wolfe's Neck State Park in Freeport, or drive to Portland and check out the views from the Eastern Prom, walk downtown and feel the vibe of the Old Port.

10. You can always stop at Portland Head Light on the way down south, and catch a road over to 95 or meander down via Route 1, depending on how much time you have. Personally, I would see if I could leave my car in Portland and take the Concord bus back to Boston, as traffic sucks there, sorry, but it does. I think it's $35, and they are nice coaches with a movie, etc.

11. Re: Two Lights. Well, that's just down the coast a few minutes from Portland Head. And they do charge an entrance fee, and beyond the rocks, not much else to see but open ocean. I like Portland Head and Ft. Williams better, and there is also a U-shaped cove with benches you can sit on. I think you will get more Maine bang for your buck by skipping Two Lights and doing Portland Head Light. You can see the city of Portland from there, which will give you some perspective of where you've been.

12. For the rest, I would get back on the highway and head back to Boston, unless you want to stop at any of the beaches in Southern Maine, York is good, or Ferry Beach is also nice and not quite as crowded as say, Old Orchard Beach, which is uber crowded and has amusement parks and a pier, etc. So continue on past there to Ferry Beach or York if you want a nice beach to sit on while you gaze at the ocean.

13. There are also a number of peninsulas from Camden down to Portland, where you can drive out for an hour (or less) and check out a lobster pound, and then get back to Route 1. Baileys Island is a beautiful drive.

That's my recommendation for a short snapshot of Maine, from the western mountains, through the lakes region (one of them, anyway) and on to the coast. Going to Acadia really needs at least 3-4 days, to take it all in, as someone said, there are many regions, and Maine is something like 35,000 square miles. Not big by Texas standards, but bigger than the other New England states.

MeMail me if you have any other specific questions, happy to help. These are just suggestions, that route will take you through lots of small towns and varied landscapes, with plenty of opportunity to stop when the moment takes you.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 4:03 AM on May 30, 2016 [7 favorites]

One travel trip - summer car rentals at Logan can be stupid expensive, like $80+ a day for an economy car. See if you can fly into Manchester NH - only about an hour North of Boston, on Southwest. I've saved hundreds doing that and then only paid $25 a day for the rental car.
posted by COD at 6:31 AM on May 30, 2016 [2 favorites]

These thoughts are pretty random.

Although the NE states are small compared to Texas, in combination they are big enough to take significant travel time in the context of a short vacation. From my home in SW Connecticut to Bangor, Maine is about 12 hours by car.

I am a huge fan of Mystic Seaport, have been a member for decades. However, if you are not already interested in sailing ships, fishing, whaling, boatbuilding, etc, you might do well to actually go sailing instead. You can do this in Newport, RI. See here and here. You may be able of find similar in other places up the coast.

Speaking of Newport, I doubt the Cliff Walk is worth the drive from TX, but a tour of one or more of the mansions may be. I would suggest RoseCliff if you are only doing one. Read Theophilus North for background.

If you want to do mountains, the first three that come to mind are Mt Greylock (MA), Mt Washington(NH) and Mt Katahdin (ME). They are the highest points of their respective states. You can drive to the top of the first two. Vermont and New Hampshire have many other choices.

I want to mention some things that are experiences rather than destinations. Mostly food. You want to have lobster at a proper, semi-rustic, outdoor venu, like Abbotts in Noank, CT (down the road from Mystic). There are similar places all along the coast. You want to sample clams, mussels, oysters, etc. Atlantic Cod is unfortunately mostly a thing of the past, but there is plenty of good fin fish. You also want to locate a New England Boiled Diner, apparently a legacy of Irish immigrants. In southern NE, and RI in particular, there is food of Portuguese origin (much via the Cape Verdes).

A cautionary note: the Highway Depts of the NE states think the tourist season is the very best time to repair and rebuild roads. Check ahead for delays as best you can. The CT Turnpike (Rt 95 along the coast) is notorious and draws many complaints from out of state visitors. In the western sections, it is very slow every day at both morning and evening rush hours.
posted by SemiSalt at 6:59 AM on May 30, 2016 [2 favorites]

At the risk of over-simplifying, to "see New England" you need to visit the seacoast, the mountains, and some well-preserved (aka "quaint") villages and towns. The southern New England coast (Cape Cod, Martha's Vinyard, Block Island, etc) is sandy and flat, and has a very different feel from the coast north of Boston, and especially in Maine (rocky and hilly), so you should see some of both. The iconic New England mountain range is the White Mountains in New Hampshire, and I think are worth spending the time getting to. The most attractive tourist towns are ones that were prosperous in the 19th century but not since - hence the attractiveness of the old port towns. You don't need to see every beach, every waterfall, every town green. Everybody has their own favorites, but you can't see them all. I'd recommend driving up the coast from Boston as far as Casco Bay, then driving inland to the White Mountains, then across to Vermont, down the Connecticut river valley to the coast, and back up the Rhode Island coast to Boston. The following itinerary attempts to check all the boxes while keeping drive time to a minimum.

- you should visit at least one of the canonical New England seaports, and I'd pick Newburyport MA, which is right off I95 on your way to Maine. It's attractive and typical, and you can also visit Plum Island while you're there (sand dunes, wildlife refuge, beach bars).
- You should spend a little time meandering up the coast of Maine. I think the best stretch starts with Portland, but you don't need to drive all the way to Acadia.
- the interior of Maine is the beginning of the great North woods, and is worth experiencing at least a little. Driving inland on your way to the White Mountains will get you a little taste of it.
- You can drive to the top of Mount Washington, but paradoxically the best views may be of Mt Washington from other places. So an alternative is to drive the Kancamagus Highway over to I93, and then north to Franconia notch, and take the Canon Mountain tramway to the top. You'll get a great view Mt Lafayette, and on a clear day of Mt Washington.
- to my mind, the mountains in Vermont seem very different from the Whites, so it's worth at least driving through them. I don't have a specific recommendation, but you might target Montpelier as a stop on your loop.
- The Connecticut river will take you through Springfield.
- The coast from Old Lyme (at the mouth of the Connecticut) up through Mystic and to Narragansett reminds me a bit of what Cape Cod was like 30 or 40 years ago when I first visited it, and is a more than adequate substitute
- I won't argue against a visit to Newport but by this time you may have seen enough 18th century houses and 19th century custom houses turned into brewpubs. And it's a bit out of the way.
- If you have any time in Boston, and it's not closed for renovations, you should tour the USS Constitution. And maybe take the park service tour of Faneuil Hall.
posted by mr vino at 7:35 AM on May 30, 2016 [5 favorites]

Seconding Mr. Vino's advice, but with some edits to make it more doable. You don't want to spend all your time driving. That rules out southern New England and a lot of the coast since you said you preferred mountains. Rhode Island is the very devil to get around in because of its zigzaggy coast. Everybody's on the same poorly maintained roads.

--Newburyport/Plum Island/lobster shack experience right after you leave Boston is a great recommendation.
--On to the interior to the mountains. Choose no more than two from White Mountains (NH), Green Mountains (VT) or Berkshires 9MA). Stay in or near towns with the white steeple, town green experience. Then back to Boston via Mass Pike so you can stop by Springfield for your dad's memento visit. Sadly, it's now a rundown city with not much to do at night. If you do eat there, go to the Student Prince for lunch, but stay elsewhere.

Set your Google search engine to: New England pre-colonial/colonial cemeteries; roadside ice cream stands, Creemies (soft ice cream) and town greens; meeting houses; farmstands, Springfield.
posted by Elsie at 7:58 AM on May 30, 2016 [1 favorite]

RE: Maine, There can be impressive surf crashing on the rocks at Two Lights if you catch it when the tide is coming in, interesting stuff in the tidal pools if you catch it when the tide is out. If you do wind up in that neck of the woods, Pine Point beach in Scarborough (about 20-30 minutes south) is quite a contrast from the craggy rocks at Two Lights; it's wide, flat, and sandy, and it doesn't get very crowded. You can eat giant piles of fried seafood at The Clambake. If you go a few miles further south you hit Old Orchard Beach, which is a quintessentially touristy beach town, with a pier, amusement park, arcade, numerous bars, lots of junk food and tacky souvenir shops.
posted by usonian at 8:01 AM on May 30, 2016

Mr vino nailed it.

Adding my favorite destination, Mount GREYLOCK for it's quaintness, history, incredible nature + thoughtful accessibility & beauty.

Bascom Lodge is at the top. Even on casual walks you will see or meet thru hikers of the Appalachian Trail. Pittsfield is nice. Writers! When you get there, you will instantly understand why so many writers visited this place.

I can't urge you enough to skip the CT and RI coast. Much prettier the farther you get from NY. And holy geezus it will take so much driving time from a trip better spent elsewhere. Mystic is especially Meh. Dirty, touristy. Do it better with more heart on The Cape or above.
posted by jbenben at 8:03 AM on May 30, 2016 [3 favorites]

Ordinarily I would come in and vouch for the Newport Mansions (esp. the Breakers), but that's been covered already.

If you do wind up with 1-2 days in Boston: Consider taking the shuttle across to Provincetown, on the tip of Cape Cod. It's about a 90-minute trip. Once there, P'town is walkable, and you can take a shuttle or taxi (or walk, though it's kinda far) to the beaches on the Atlantic side. It's really nice, and the Outer Cape is a wild-looking place, with big sand dunes.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 9:42 AM on May 30, 2016 [1 favorite]

One travel trip - summer car rentals at Logan can be stupid expensive

Agreed. Plus when you get your rental car you are in downtown Boston! Check Manchester and also Providence which is a lovely little airport and also not that far from Boston. Burlington and Portland airports are probably too small to achieve decent savings. I love all of New England and would also second: ocean beaches, tiny towns, Boston history. Feel free to contact me if you wind up....

- in Central VT (I have an apartment there which will likely be empty and you are welcome to it and can cross "quaint town" off of your list)
- on the South Coast of MA - Fall River and New Bedford both have some really interesting New England history (mill towns and whaling area) as well as some seafood to die for and great Portuguese food. It's also really near Providence which is worth a visit. I'm usually down there in summers, happy to put you up.

mr vino's advice is great. You could actually take Route 2 across from New Hampshire down into Montpelier (the smallest state capitol in the country!) and then get on 89 and scoot back down into NH. Or go 89 to 91 to .... Windsor VT and then there's this massive covered bridge you could drive over (and back) and THEN head back south.
posted by jessamyn at 6:01 PM on May 30, 2016 [1 favorite]

Also: on the off chance that your handle might suggest places you'd like to go... notable New England Libraries

- Boston Athenaeum
- Harvard's Houghton Library (with MeFi's Horace Rumpole often willing to give you a tour)
- This weird place on the south coast
- Derby Line (VT) library which is half in canada and half in the US (far from everything but SO COOL)
- St. Johnsbury Athenaeum (more on the way and very lovely)
- This place in an old monastery in RI
posted by jessamyn at 6:21 PM on May 30, 2016 [1 favorite]

Ignore my comment and listen to mr vino. That sounds like a perfect, if packed, New England trip.
posted by lunasol at 10:04 PM on May 30, 2016

jbenben, I am a Midwesterner and often slag off New England, but I must speak up and say that Mystic Seaport is very nice, and some parts of the RI shore are wonderful. Not all, but many nice bits.

Little Rhodey might be well managed if you skip Newport, but go to Blithewold Mansion in Bristol. (Just don't go during July 4th weekend, for goodness sake!) Then drive up to Providence, visit Prospect Park to look out over downtown (no need to actually go there) and walk around Brown University campus. Drive down to the little fishing town of Galilee and have some fried food as the boats come in for the night. Then go to Connecticut.

I have only seen some parts of CT, plus Route 95 (ugh). Traffic in New Haven will continue to be awful until forever, I'm afraid. Visit the Seaport with the understanding that it's not an organic town, but instead a collection of buildings and vessels from all over the region. And they've just re-launched the Charles W. Morgan, America's last surviving whaling ship. Totally awesome!

We have stayed at (and loved!) the Topside Inn in Boothbay Harbor up in Maine, but there are a lot of lovely little towns where you can buy lobster right off the boat in summer. There's very good regional beer in New England, too, once you're done driving for the day. Oh, and the park in Lexington & Concord, MA, is better than I thought. :7)

I am still adopting the area (after 25 years!), but it's a great place to visit in the summer. My family always has a good time when they come out for a few days: salt water beach, seafood, some piney woods, and a good dose of American history.
posted by wenestvedt at 9:14 AM on May 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

Definitely Derby Line for the library and the uniqueness of the international border running through town. Love that place.

Stayed once at the Sugartree Inn in Warren and loved it. Nearby is the Inn at Round Barn Farm, where we had fantastic wood-fired pizza.
posted by Gridlock Joe at 4:05 PM on June 1, 2016

Response by poster: Thanks so much to everyone for the fantastic advice! I've spent much of the last week reading up on everyone's suggestions and booking my flights. A special thanks to mr vino for putting ideas all together in a helpful form.

In case this is of use to future readers, here are the details so far (note that this isn't a final itinerary):

Day 1: land in Manchester and settle in
Day 2: Newburyport, Plum Island, or nearby
Day 3: up to Maine (Marie Mon Dieu has a fabulous list that is very intriguing)
Day 4: still in Maine
Day 5: Franconia Notch and environs, NH
Day 6: Montpelier and one of the VT libraries
Day 7: Springfield (but not all day: either leave VT late or leave for CT--and Shady Glen Burgers--early)
Day 8: coastal CT on the way to RI
Day 9: back home via Providence, RI

Also, for future travelers: it's much neater to start and end in Boston and Boston is a fabulous city! I agree with jessamyn about downtown and I was just in Boston last summer, so I skipped it this trip.

A sincere thanks again to everyone. As you can probably see, I took pieces from everything said and I'll probably continue to do so as I finalize my general itinerary.
posted by librarylis at 9:01 PM on June 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

About Connecticut, with your itinerary, from Springfield I would go south to Hartford, then down route 9 to the coast. No need to see any of the CT coast west of the CT river. It's a slight detour along the way to Essex which is an attractive river and tourist town with a bit of arty and historic flair. Also a museum. Check out the web site of Gillette Castle to see if it appeals.

If you should want a beach, Rocky Neck St. Park is not the best, but it will do.
posted by SemiSalt at 8:48 AM on June 8, 2016

Response by poster: One final update, for posterity:

I had a blast! Thank you so much. I've provided a detailed final itinerary below for future readers and as a thanks to y'all.

A caveat: I love windy country roads up in the hills where there's hardly a soul for miles, so I optimized for as much of that as I could. Maine was a joy and delight in that regard as well as several others. Highly recommended.

Day 1- fly to Manchester NH: Amoskeag Falls Overlook (recommended but I missed: the Currier Museum and Zimmerman House)
Day 2- Manchester NH to New Castle and Portsmouth NH*: Great Island Common, North Church, Portsmouth Athenaeum, Gundalow Sail
Day 3- Portsmouth NH to Camden ME: Portland Head Light, Camden village green & public library, Mt Battie Auto Road/Camden Hills State Park, Blue Harbor House Inn
Day 4- Camden ME to Waterford ME: Maranacook Lake (ate at Pepper's) & Snow Falls Gorge, Waterford Inne (word to the wise: no Wifi, no AC, no credit cards. Pure bliss!)
Day 5- Waterford ME to Barre VT: Kancamangus Highway, Flume Gorge & Cannon Mt Aerial Tramway, St Johnsbury Athenaeum
Day 6- Barre VT to Brattleboro VT: scenic route 100 and the Green Mountains to the Vermont Country Store, Brattleboro Books/Twice Upon a Time/Brattleboro downtown (recommended but I missed: choose between tours of Ben &Jerry's, Cabot Creamery, Rock of Ages, or Cold Hollow Cider Mill)
Day 7- Brattleboro VT to Old Saybrook CT: family stuff in West Springfield, Student Prince for lunch, Abbott's for dinner
Day 8- Old Saybrook CT to Westport MA: Mystic Seaport, Newport Mansions, Cliff Walk
Day 9- Westport MA to Providence RI: fly home via PVD

*Newburyport had to be crossed off the list for reasons too tedious to mention (mainly greenhead flies)
posted by librarylis at 10:03 PM on July 22, 2016 [3 favorites]