Getting There

White Mountains

Since New Hampshire is in the extreme Northeast, no matter where you start from, you'll end up coming in the same way.

Coming from anywhere in the Ohio Valley, you want to work your way up to I-80 which comes across northern Ohio and Pennsylvania and intersects with I-95 at New York City. However, we don't recommend you follow it to that intersection. To avoid New York City traffic, we suggest in eastern Pennsylvania you turn off on I-81 north and I-84 east. I-84 will cross New York and Connecticut and intersect with the Massachusetts Turnpike, which you'll take northeast to connect with I-95.

If you live in the Great Lakes area, Chicago or anywhere across the northern tier of the country, you want to come east on I-90. That will eventually put you on the Massachusetts Turnpike, where you'll turn north on I-95.

If you live anywhere in the middle third of the country, you want to come east on I-40, which intersects with I-95 in North Carolina. You then take I-95 north to New Hampshire.

If you live anywhere in the Southeast, you want to come North on I-95, which will bring you straight into New Hampshire. Prepare, however, for major traffic slowdowns in North Carolina, Washington D.C. and New York City. Plan accordingly. You will not make the time you think you will.

You'll spend time on the Massachusetts Turnpike and New Hampshire's Spaulding Turnpike, but there are no toll booths. Cameras record your license plates and you'll receive a bill in the mail. We paid $5.60 total both up and back on our last trip.

As you enter New Hampshire on I-95, you'll turn north on NH Route 16, which will first be a toll road called The Spaulding Turnpike, then the toll free White Mountain Highway. You'll enter the state down on the coastal plain near Portsmouth, but as you drive north you'll quickly see forests, hills and mountains rising around you.  You'll come to Conway first, then a few miles later North Conway. From the Pennsylvania or New Jersey border or from the Adirondacks in New York to North Conway takes about seven hours. 

You'll be coming past historic towns and scenic locations and you should stop and enjoy some of them. For those coming across I-80 and I-84, at the Pennsylvania - New Jersey border, we highly recommend an overnight stop at Milford (Pa.) at the Tom Quick Inn (photo, left). This is a Norman Rockwell / Walt Disney kind of small town, everyone's idea of an ideal place to grow up. The Tom Quick is a historic inn recently restored and updated. Rooms are quaint and classy but very functional, with excellent beds, bathrooms, TV, refrigerators and wifi. 

The restaurant is outstanding, widely known in the region for its Bread, Lobster Bisque, Red Oak Leaf Salad, Lobster Mac & Cheese, Crab Cakes, Amish Chicken, various Steaks, and locally sourced Pork Chops. They serve a fine Cider, but their signature drink is a Maple Bacon Old Fashioned. Service is professional and gracious and the ambience is pure 1950s.

And right at the edge of town is one of America's least known national parks : Delaware Water Gap.

As the top two photos and the one here at right show, this is a beautiful mix of flowing water and deep forest. It's filled with historic sites, old Revolutionary and French & Indian War battlefields, a still operating old mill, a ghost town, campsites and outstanding hiking trails. There's plenty of wildlife : Wolves, Deer, Bear, Wildcat, Moose, Fox, Pheasant, Owls, Hawks, Eagles, and a variety of reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. The Appalachian Trail comes through here. Short hiking trails lead to spectacular waterfalls, fly fishing waters and swimming holes. There's canoeing and horseback riding. This is a park where New Yorkers, Pennsylvanians and Jerseyites come for two week vacations. You could easily justify an extra day or two on the way to or from New Hampshire. This area is The Poconos, not quite the famous resort area it was back in the 20th Century, but still popular with its lodges and cabins, especially on Lake Wallenpaupak. 

If you're coming across New York on I-90 you should consider stopping off for the night at The Adirondacks. This is a huge 5000 square mile 1892 state park. But if it had not already been a state park, it would be a national park. This is a spectacular place, with 200 lakes, 250 mountains, an extensive network of hiking trails and canoeing rivers and lakes. It most famous landmarks are Lake Placid and Lake George. The Hudson River rises from the lakes here. There are beautiful cabins and lodges and some classic rustic motels. For 200 years people have been coming to the Adirondacks for two week vacations, and it's also popular as a Winter ski and snowshoeing resort. The Winter Olympics have been held here. The Adirondack Mountain Club maintains an extensive trail network and a series of lodges, some of which can only be reached by hiking. The Adirondacks reek of Native American and early frontier history and are a World Biosphere Reserve. They deserve a separate trip, but are a great stopoff en route to and from New Hampshire. Like everywhere in the Northeast, they're beautiful in Autumn colors. The Adirondacks are about 6-7 hours from North Conway.