White Mountains Road Trip
Growing up in New Hampshire, spending time in the outdoors was just part of life. I was a proud member of the elementary school hiking club after all! When I would bring friends or suitors from NYC to see New Hampshire, the White Mountains would always be a part of the itinerary. I knew even those bred in the city would swoon after driving through Franconia Notch surrounded by the White Mountains.
After living in New York for almost 13 years now, visits to New Hampshire have become more infrequent and in the last 6 months I’ve been regretful for taking it for granted all those years. After almost 6 weeks of being inside I was itching to get out of New York and into nature and New Hampshire seemed like the perfect place to do it.
After spending the night at my parent’s home in southern New Hampshire we hit the road north, early, armed with bagels and coffee from BagelWorks (a New Hampshire institution) sharing the busy highway with skiers and boarders ready to hit the fresh slopes after a night of snowfall.
First stop on our road trip: Bretton Woods Nordic Center to do some snowshoeing. Although there are plenty of trails that don’t cost anything to access we chose the Nordic Center since it was our first time snowshoeing and we thought it would be good to have access to the 60km of groomed trails they maintain. The movement of snowshoeing took a little getting used to but it really is just like walking just stepping more deliberately. We were eager to discover some backcountry trails; which we did!
After a full morning, sweaty and hungry we walked up to the Mount Washington Hotel for some lunch. The Mount Washington Hotel is one of those classic old-fashioned grand hotels where proper Northeasterners would spend summers. Lucky for us, the hotel is now four-season equipped. All of the bars and restaurants have perfect views of the presidential mountains and more specifically, the crown jewel, Mt. Washington. We treated ourselves to cocktails over lunch at Stickney’s; our cabin fever nearly vanished by now.
From there we headed through Crawford Notch to Littleton, where we spent the night. We found Thayers Inn via Booking.com and chose it for 2 reasons: One, they allow 1-night stays and it was CHEAP! Rooms start at $70. Our expectations were low but were pleasantly surprised by the comfort level at this inn build in 1843. We settled into our cozy room collapsing into our large, definitely new bed, for a nap while it snowed outside.
We chose Sugar Hill Inn in nearby Sugar Hill for dinner mainly because I’d been reading about the bed and breakfast for years and always wanted to check it out.
We showed up early so we could enjoy a pre-dinner drink. With a hot-buttered rum in hand we sat in front of the fire recollecting our day and vowing to come back more regularly. Dinner consisted of a well-priced leisurely 4 course pre-fixe meal. The restaurant was filled entirely with couples staying at the inn. With ample portions I indulged in brown butter gnocchi with local mushrooms, roasted and pickle beet salad, sous vide pork tenderloin, and cake for dessert. We were stuffed and my plans to have breakfast the next day at Polly’s Pancake House were shattered!
Unfortunately, our Sunday was cut shorter than we hoped due to rain and even though Franconia Notch was doused in dense fog the White Mountains had swooned us.
