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In England one of the most popular tourist attractions is the changing of the guard. In New England they have the changing of the leaves. The changing of the guard happens every day, but the leaves change only once a year. The guards are stiff and formal, while New Englanders and their leaves are carefree, colorful and windblown.

Different
rainbow colors
New England in the fall

By Larry Olmsted
Photos courtesy of State of Vermont

The two attractions do have one thing in common: both draw camera-toting visitors from all over the world, and both send them away with happy memories.

Fall foliage season occurs throughout the world, but New England is justly famous for what locals call “Mother Nature’s Fireworks Display.” A unique set of environmental conditions makes this the top spot for great foliage viewing.

The best and most vibrant colors are provided by maple trees, especially common in New Hampshire and Vermont, both world-famous for maple syrup. These turn yellow, orange, red and even purple. The region also sports a fair amount of birch, which add to the color palette with striking white bark and leaves that turn yellow. Oaks, also common, imitate the maples with dark red hues, but change later, extending foliage season.

To best appreciate these bright colors, you also need contrast and visual relief. Contrast comes from the large numbers of evergreens, which stay green year round, and relief comes from the area’s steep mountains, whose slopes turn into a three-dimensional work of art.

When planning a fall-foliage tour, bear in mind that colors change earlier as it gets colder, or as you head north or into the mountains, and later in southern New England and along the coast, so the time you visit affects where you should go. Foliage season kicks off in mid-September and runs into

late October, but “peak” season is elusive and changes every year with weather.
The one thing everyone in New England seems to agree on is that early October is always a good bet.

Tour 1: Vermont (mid-September to early October)

The Green Mountains of Vermont are the epicenter of fall foliage, with the smallest towns and grandest resorts. Work your way North to South, starting with Stowe, the East’s most historic ski town.

The summit of the Mt. Mansfield ski resort is a state park, so enjoy a unique and scenic foliage view on the gondola ride up, and then explore the nature trails atop the state’s highest peak. Great drives surround Stowe, including the pass to Smuggler’s Notch, so steep it is closed in winter. Stowe has the state’s best assortment of restaurants, and three impressive resorts, Topnotch (www.topnotchresort.com), the Stoweflake (www.stoweflake.com), and the Trapp Family Lodge (www.trappfamily.com).

The town also has a unique recreation path, with several paved miles free of cars open to walkers, bikers and in-line skaters, running through the woods within arm’s reach of the foliage experience.
Drive quaint Route 100 south to the state’s center and tourism hub, Woodstock. Perhaps the most popular tourist destination in Vermont, Woodstock is built around a quintessential town green, surrounded by art galleries, antique shops, ice cream parlors and the like. From here Route 4 west takes you into high peaks in just minutes, a wonderful foliage drive.

Also nearby is Quechee Gorge, “Vermont’s Little Grand Canyon,” which you can hike down into (20 minutes). Towering over Woodstock is Mt. Tom, which can be easily climbed on a gradual switchback trail (45 minutes). This offers walkers of all fitness levels the chance to see foliage close up. At the base of Mt. Tom is the only national park in Vermont, Billings-Marsh-Rockefeller NP. It includes the working Billings Farm, a treat for kids, and the Rockefeller Mansion, a more adult pleasure.

Woodstock also has one of the nation’s premier resorts, the Woodstock Inn (www.woodstockinn.com), still owned by the Rockefeller family and right on the green, complete with golf course, spa and even its own ski area. It also has a new challenger, The Laurel Inn, a unique contemporary “boutique bed and breakfast,” combining New England tradition with iPod docking stations (www.thelaurelinn.com).

The foliage drive to Manchester, in the southwest corner of the state, is stunning. Manchester is famous for some of the best outlet shopping in the country, with no malls but rather stores sprinkled throughout the quaint village, featuring names you rarely see elsewhere, including Armani and Allen Edmonds. Shopping has a rich history here, since the town is home to Orvis, the nation’s first catalog retailer, and Orvis’ flagship store is impressive. Surrounded by mountains, Manchester has the Equinox Resort, one of the best in the state (www.equinox.rockresorts.com).

Tour 2: New Hampshire & Maine

The best fall foliage in the Granite State is along the I-93 corridor in the White Mountains in the northern part of the state. This is where several ski areas, including Cannon, Loon, Attitash and Wildcat can be found, and these same mountains offer stunning vistas.

For an aerial foliage perspective ride the tram to the top of Cannon, or drive up the famous auto road to the summit of Mt. Washington, the state’s highest peak, infamous as “home of the world’s worst weather,” with the highest wind speed ever recorded on earth. There is a museum and information center on the summit, from which you overlook the high Presidential Range.

The quaintest town in the Whites is North Woodstock, and from here you should traverse the Kancamangus Highway through the mountains, perhaps the most scenic drive in the entire northeast. The lodging of choice in the region is the grand Mt. Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, site of the famous International Monetary Conference that took the U.S. off the gold standard (www.mtwashington.com).

The drive down to the state’s southern seacoast region will take you through amazing foliage. Then follow the shoreline, with a stop in Portsmouth, New Hampshire’s most attractive coastal city. From here it is just a few more miles to the Maine border and Kittery, a town equally famous for its huge array of factory outlets and its lobster shacks.

From Kittery you can follow the Maine coast almost endlessly, but the first 60 miles or so feature one fishing village after another, and must-see sights include Ogunquit, with its cliff-top Marginal Way walking path; Kennebunkport, home to the Bush family compound and the nearly as famous Mabel’s Lobster Pound; and Freeport, home to LL Bean flagship store, which is so popular it is open 24 hours. This means you do not have to miss any leaves to do your shopping here.

The final stop is Portland, Maine’s largest city, which has a wonderful restored old waterfront district where you won’t see any leaves but you can have lobster one last time.

Tour 3: Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island (mid-late October)

In southern and coastal New England, it stays warmer and leaves change later, so begin in the mountains of the Berkshires and head east. Small roads offer great viewing all through the range, so make your base in the region’s heart, Stockbridge.

Culture surrounds this historic village, famous for summer stock theaters and performing arts. The Norman Rockwell museum is here, as is the Berkshire Scenic Railway and Berkshire Botanical Gardens.

For lodging you could hardly do better than the downtown Red Lion Inn, immortalized in Norman Rockwell’s painting Main Street, Stockbridge and one of the few remaining coaching stops still in use as a hotel, open since 1773. For a more active alternative, the Berkshires are home to the east coast branch of the famous Tucson-based Canyon Ranch wellness spa.

From here cross the state to Boston, the urban hub of New England, worth a visit any time of year. Head south, detouring to visit the robber baron mansions of Newport, R.I. before crossing into Connecticut, whose eastern coast is packed with attractions.

Mystic Seaport is one of the world’s finest maritime exhibitions, with several historic ships and a complete recreation of a 19th century seaport village. Nearby are the Mystic Marinelife Aquarium and Olde Mistick Village, a living museum replicating a 1720 New England town.

Take in more leaves as you head inland to a newer sight: the world’s largest – and most profitable – casino, Foxwoods. With a gaming floor larger than any in Las Vegas or Monte Carlo, three hotels, innumerable restaurants, and a museum devoted to the history and culture of the Pequot Indians, first-time visitors are often surprised by the sheer size. Not to be outdone is another first-class casino resort nearly next door, and almost as large, the Mohegan Sun.

This part of the state is quite rural so take in some more leaves as you visit New Haven, the home of Yale University. For those seeking luxury or pampering within a short drive of all these sites and casinos, the top choice is the Norwich Inn & Spa, a luxury small hotel on more than 40 acres with a full service spa and wellness program.

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