Day 1 - Oct. 7th – Vermont

We got away in our motorhome at 7 a.m. and crossed the border at Cornwall, ON into New York State.  It was an easy crossing, we were the only ones at the border.  We drove on some secondary roads and then hit the back roads into the campground.  It was quite nice, our site faced the mountains. The colours were better than we anticipated. While we were driving here we did not see much in colour at all, but about the last 40 miles in Vermont the reds and oranges started to appear, it was very pretty. 

We arrived at our site about 2:30 so we had lots of time to wander about. We drove into one of the local villages to see what we could see and to scout out a dining place. We found a great diner and had a wonderful Thanksgiving turkey dinner (actually Columbus Day here in the US)

Day 2 - Oct. 8th – New Hampshire

We woke up to rain and fog, it was a miserable morning. We got away from the campground about 8 a.m. and it stopped raining but was very overcast and the clouds were low. When we drove through the White Mountains we could not see Mount Washington at all. Even with the dreariness the colours were still very pretty, we kept saying, “Wouldn’t that be beautiful if the sun was shining”. 

 We saw a moose today, there were signs everywhere to watch for moose and I figured we’d never see one but we did spot a female out in the marsh. We checked into the campground about 4 p.m.; it seemed like a lot of driving even though the distance was only about 160 miles but the roads are not the best and we drove slowly looking at the scenery. We went out for dinner at a local rib place, it was very good, they smoked all their meat so it had a great flavour. We were both tired so it was early to go to bed.

Day 3 - Oct. 9th – New Hampshire

We got off to a good start this morning; we woke up to clear skies and after a shower we were on the road by 9:00 a.m. The colours were not as vivid as we moved south, but at least with clear skies and sunshine we were able to see them. We covered about 150 miles this day, more winding roads, rocks, lakes and hills. Our travels took us from New Hampshire into Maine then back into New Hampshire and then through Massachusetts and back into New Hampshire. We hit the Atlantic coast at noon and drove down the beaches from Portsmouth to Rye Beach. 

We had a wonderful lunch at Petey’s, a seafood spot on Rye Beach. I had a 1 ½ pound lobster, and it is officially the most expensive lunch I have ever had, but it was great! Gary had clam strips and we both had clam chowder. We picked up a quart of their clam chowder (the best I’ve ever had) and took it back to the motor home for dinner.

From Rye Beach we went to a shopping mall at Salem, NH, I needed a Disney Store fix! Then back on the road, we pulled into the campground at 5:00 p.m. and Gary set things up while I walked the dogs. We heated up the clam chowder for dinner and settled in to watch a bit of TV before bed.

Day 4 - Oct. 10th - New Hampshire

This morning we woke up to a damp dreary day, so the only thing we could do was shop. It just had to be done! We found a couple of Disney stores and stopped at a few other places, Gary was pretty excited to find a “light up” palm tree for the RV and I loaded up with more lights and decorations for when we take the RV to Fort Wilderness for MouseFest. We drove around the Nashua, Merrimack and Manchester areas, it is a very pretty part of the state, even in the rain. After our marathon shopping trip we decided we had better get back to the dogs and have a quick nap before we went to dinner.  

We went to a place called Silos, it was an old barn that has been converted into a great restaurant. We had a wonderful evening with Mike and Carol Scopa, it was great seeing them and having time to visit. On the way back to the campground, at Carol’s suggestion, we stopped at the Christmas Tree Shops Store, what a place, I came out with a few bags from there!

Day 5 - Oct. 11th – New York

Today we got on the road by 8 a.m. and drove in the rain out of New Hampshire, and through Vermont. When we entered New York we did have a bit of a break in the weather so we were able to see some pretty colours and the mountains as we drove into the camp ground at Whiteface Mountain. It is a beautiful KOA campground, lots of trees, walking trails and privacy. The weather forecast wasn’t the greatest for the next day but we hoped to be able to do some exploring in the area without getting too wet. We went out for dinner at the Wilderness Inn, it was a very quaint restaurant and the food was great. It was a 250-mile long day so we were both tired, it was an early night.

Day 6 - Oct. 12th – New York

We got up and while it was overcast it wasn’t raining yet so we took the dogs and walked along one of the trails that follows a gorge and rushing river. It was very scenic and the dogs had lots of fun playing in the leaves. When we got back to the RV we cleaned up a bit and decided to go into Lake Placid for lunch, it was a pretty drive even though it was raining by now. We stopped to take some pictures of the mountain but it was pretty cloudy at the top, it also looked like the rain up there but it was actually snow, the temperature was dropping fast. We drove into Lake Placid and found a place for lunch then drove around trying to remember the places we had been to many years ago. Things change and memories fade so we were just guessing where the now not so familiar places were. By now this time it was raining hard and we were a bit chilled so we went back to the RV for a nap. Around 4 p.m. something woke me, what was that?  Wow!!  It was the sun, I woke Gary up, grabbed the dogs and we hopped in the car and drove around taking pictures with sunshine. It was extremely windy and very cold and the sun only lasted a short time but it was enough. For dinner we went to a local pub and had burgers, they were very good and the place was very warm and cozy. When we got back to the RV we started packing up so we could get an early start  heading home in the morning.