Dream Vacation

[aberry]

I have just retired after 31 years of teaching; for each of those years I promised myself that my first fall would be in New England. We will be in Waitsfield in a b&b for Oct 2-7. We hope to experience as much of the area in Vt & NH as possible with day trips. Photography is our intense interest. Any suggestions for backroads or destinations would be apprecitated. Thank you in advance for making this dream vacation even better for this GA girl!

[margym]

Congratulations on your retirement!
I am sure that many people will chime in with ideas and suggestions. I've spent many years in search of the "must see", "must photograph" VT scenes, however many of my best pictures are from exploring back roads, small towns, etc. In my opinion, VT offers many opportunities for pursuing your photography passion- stay off of the main highways (there are only a few!) and you'll find lots to see/shoot.

there is a man named Arnold Kaplan who sells a small, inexpensive book titled "How To Find and Photograph The Photo-Scenics In Vermont" - it offers several specific destination spots including maps and suggestions for where/when to take photos.(you can "google" search and get to his order page.

Enjoy your time in VT!!

[aberry]

thanks so much for the title; I'll order it today!! I just can't wait to actually see those beautiful backroads!!!

[Andy]

The Kaplan book is excellent, and when I ordered it last year about this time, I emailed him to be sure I was going to get it in time. He responded personally. Its a low-budget production, which makes it very affordable, but useful. He gives directions for the places to go to set up and get the shot. He also gives you a feel for whether it is an early a.m. or evening shot. Some of the scenes are in out of the way places, and his directions are pretty good.

One caution. It is very dated. There are several of the locations which now have new growth which has obscured the shot. He sends an addendum for some of the locations -- not all. For example, in East Orange, the road he describes has new growth almost everywhere. We had to work hard to find an opening for a shot. I had the same experience with his "morning" location in E. Topsham.

My suggestion is to get to the location in plenty of time to "scout." We had good luck in Waits River and Peacham. I'll be back in Waits River again this fall.

[pwt54]

That's a good time for that area. Route 100 is the premier State route for color. Take that south to route US 4 east. Take route US 4 east to Woodstock and then route 12 north from Woodstock to Montpelier. Then take route US 2 west to Middlesex and then routes 100a and 100 back to Waitsfield. A few things to check out on this trip are; Moss Glen Falls on route 100 in Granville Gulf. There is no marker for it but look for a lot of cars parked on the right. There is a covered bridge next to route US 4 in West Woodstock. On route 12 in Woodstock is the Billings Farm Museum and the Marsh-Billings-Rockafeller Museum. Routes 17, 125, and 73 all start off route 100 and go over the mountains to route US 7. For (gasp) New Hampshire, I would get on I-89 south and go to exit 7. When you get off the ramp you will be in the left lane. Stay in the left lane. This road will take you to Main Street in Barre. Turn right on Main Street and you are on route 302 east. Drive route all the way to Woodsville NH. Drive through Woodsville for about 2 miles and look for route 112 on the right. Drive route 112 all the way to Conway, NH. Have fun!