Maine Ski Heritage Classic

Maine skiing & snowboarding kicks of the February vacation week with the first annual Maine Ski Heritage Classic at Sugarloaf. This fundraising event will benefit the Ski Museum of Maine, located in Farmington.

Glenn Parkinson, author of Maine’s ski history book, First Tracks, and a group of skiers will bring Maine ski history to life as they use vintage ski equipment and dress in period ski outfits. The Classic Equipment and Clothing “exposition” will take place at the base lodge from 2:00 – 3:30 giving skiers and riders a chance to see the equipment that sparked the sport from the 1930’s. Glenn’s vast knowledge of the sport’s history will provide insight to the major innovations that have taken place along the way.

Find a place to stay nearby the Maine Ski Heritage Classic at NEGetaway’s Maine Destination Guide.

Lake Winnipesaukee: Hard to Say, But Easy to Enjoy.

We have all seen the comedy classic, “What About Bob?” starring Bill Murray and Richard Dreyfuss. If you haven’t stop reading this and go out and rent it.Hopefully, you’re still with us and interested in learning a little bit about this century old tourist spot in New Hampshire.

Lake Winnipesaukee is the largest lake in the state of New Hampshire and the 6th largest lake in the United States that lies within the boundaries of a single state. Surrounded by three mountain ranges, the wooded shoreline and crystal clear water of this spring-fed lake make it a popular year round resort, a place to rest and relax in beautiful surroundings.

Whether you’re escaping the Boston and New York City sweltering summers or going for some spectacular winter scenes, Lake Winnipesauke is holding some truly memorable experiences in store. The lake has 253 islands within its waters, many of them containing lodging and camping facilities.

Cities and towns surrounding the lake include Alton, Gilford (home to Gunstock Mountain Resort), Laconia ( the main commercial city), Meredith, Central Harbor (don’t miss its famous Children’s Museum), Moultonborough, Tuftonboro, and Wolfeboro, known as the oldest resort town in America.

Winnipesaukee has been a vacation community for at least a century, particularly drawing people from the Boston region. The area is home to numerous summer theater troupes and offers a variety of land and water recreational activities. There are numerous hiking trails in and around the surrounding mountains, which include the Ossipee Mountains to the east, the Belknap Range to the west, and Red Hill to the north.

The paddle steamer Mount Washington, named after the highest of New Hampshire’s White Mountains, was launched in spring 1871 to carry mail, goods, and passengers on Lake Winnipesaukee, under the flag of the Boston and Maine Railroad. In 1982, the Mount was cut open and extended with an additional 20-foot hull section to add larger lounge and food service facilities. Still popular, it makes one or two round trips on the lake per day during the summer season, as well as numerous dinner dance cruises in the evenings.

Free In Boston: The Emerald Necklace Park

Boston was built for walking. With crazy cow-path streets and everything so compact, you can walk for miles just winding through one neighborhood or by crossing the entire city. Many visitors stick to downtown Boston or the Back Bay, but when your ankles and elbows tire of cobblestones and crowds and your wallet hurts from unending expenses, count yourself lucky because right around the corner is an oasis designed specifically as an escape from urban life: the Emerald Necklace linear park.

The Emerald Necklace Extending 1,000 acres and stretching five miles, the Emerald Necklace Park circles Boston’s western neighborhoods and is easily accessible from Boylston St. in the Back Bay. Created by Frederick Law Olmsted (designer of Manhattan’s Central Park), the Necklace is actually six almost consecutive parks reflecting natural New England scenery with dirt trails, grassy slopes, huge trees, natural ponds and twisty rivers. Walk the whole park or grab some T (subway) money to jump to the four best spots on the Necklace.

The Victory Garden in Olmsted’s Back Bay Fens Flowers and trees, birds and grass, peace and quiet? Yes, yes and yes. Once a tidal swamp, Olmsted’s ingenious drainage plan turned the Back Bay Fens from marsh into park. The area now hosts the oldest remaining Victory Garden in the country. Started in 1942, the garden enabled city-dwellers to grow vegetables and herbs during WWII’s rationing. Flowers have replaced veggies as the main crop, but plots are still actively cultivated by Bostonians. Colors cascade over plot walls as you meander down narrow wood-chip paths while whimsical garden styles invite you to peek in on hundreds of urban “backyards”. Feeling refreshed, wander across the Fens to the Museum of Fine Arts or cross Boylston St. to Fenway Park, the oldest baseball stadium still in use. Accessible via the ‘D’ Green Line T at the Fenway stop.

Jamaica Pond Stroll through the eclectic neighborhood of “Pondside” Jamaica Plain on your way from the T to Jamaica Pond. Elegant Victorian mansions sit next to funky mom and pop shops and the aromas of Indian and Thai spices on Centre Street will entice you. Across the tree-lined Jamaica way a mock Tudor boathouse launches the one and a half mile trail around the reflecting-pool surface of Jamaica Pond. Walk alongside a sunset captured perfectly on the spring-fed pond, which was glacially-formed and is so clean it serves as an emergency source of drinking water for Boston. Interested fishermen can catch annually stocked salmon, trout and bass, though it seems easier to find the small sunfish and yellow perch that linger at the shore. The grassy-knolled shores of Jamaica Pond provide a beloved and tranquil refuge to the community and visitors alike. Accessible via the Orange Line T at the Green Street stop.
Arnold Arboretum and Franklin Park Traffic slips away upon entering the Arboretum’s gates, exactly as Olmsted planned. Five minutes from Jamaica Pond, Arnold Arboretum is 265 acres of forest paths, lilac trees, marshes, rivers and rose gardens. Bring a blanket to spread on the spongy grass and watch bunnies spring from bramble homes or climb Bussey Hill and envision rolling down the emerald hillside like a child. To really feel like a kid again visit nearby Franklin Park, 527 acres of natural woodlands and host to Boston’s zoo. The maple and oak background makes it feel less like a zoo and more like a New England forest inhabited by giraffe, apes and lions. At 72 acres, it’s small enough to see in an afternoon and totally worth the visit. Check zoonewengland.org for more information. Accessible via the Orange Line T at the Forest Hills stop.

So when you feel cash-strapped or tired of the urban pace, remember there is a sanctuary in the heart of Boston that was created just for you. Even if you are not on cobblestones, Boston was built for walking.

by Emily Anderson Allen

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New England Hotels

A Hike to Remember

 Tucked away from the shopping, away from the sweeping shorelines, away from the crowded islands where all the tourists go is a little town called Weld. You won’t find much in the sleepy Maine town, but the gem it hides behind its unobtrusive storefronts is well worth the forty-minute drive west of Farmington.

Tumbledown Mountain, standing 3,068 feet tall, challenges the serious day-hiker and welcomes the picnicking family. Next door to Mt. Blue State Park and all its campground convenience, Tumbledown is still not under the protective umbrella of the Maine State Park system, and doesn’t cost a dime. The trails are clearly marked and the way is clear. The reward for your time? A summit that overlooks lovely Lake Webb, and an alpine pond of its own so clear and cool you won’t be able to resist cooling your tired feet in its welcoming ripples.

If you’re bringing your children and dogs with you, or your hiking legs need an easy warm-up for the summer ahead, take the gentler slope of the Brook Trail. With a reassuring outhouse at the bottom and a wide trailhead, you’ll have no difficult finding your way. The trail runs, in many places, parallel to a burbling brook that flows from the top. For the first mile, a jeep could easily make its way along the trail. The final mile and a half is steeper and trickier, but with enough water and pacing, you’ll reach the pond a little less than two hours from the time you started out.

The pond on Tumbledown is all the reward any climber could ask for—a beautiful, peaceful places to enjoy a picnic and makes friends with the other hikers who made the climb. If you’re not quite ready to sit down after a two hour hike, wave good-bye to the pond and follow the Tumbledown Ridge Trail across the summit. Here you’ll get nothing but splendid expanses of rock to run across and extraordinary views. Even if the pond was your ultimate goal, it’s worth taking another few minutes to poke your head up over the ridge. Half a mile along the ridge will bring you to a decision: to pursue the East Peak, or to traverse the tricky Park Loop Trail.

The Park Loop Trail is the true highlight of Tumbledown, but one that reads better bottom to top than top to bottom. The sign at the top warns descending climbers: “Not suitable for small children and dogs.” If you’re a first-time climber seeing that sign after climbing the Loop, believe me, you’ll be relieved at the implication that there is, somewhere, a trail that small children and dogs can manage. You’ll be ready for the break.

The trailhead for the Loop Trail is a little more tucked away than that of the Brook Trail, putting you from the beginning on a narrow trail paved with rocks. Everywhere you look, the vibrant green of the moss on the stones and trees will beguile you, and if you’re on your toes, hint at the damp path ahead. The Loop Trail demands balance, caution, and a head for heights. Much of the climb is almost a hand-over-hand affair, leading you up a sturdy but sometimes obscure natural staircase. The path is always marked: you won’t always believe what you see. Just before the Loop Trail meets the paths to the pond and the peak, a single blue blaze adorns a stone and apparently impassable wall. When you, in disbelief, approach cautiously closer, you’ll see a crevice set with iron rungs on the underside of an overhang. It’s safe enough, but you’ll emerge the short chimney feeling like a veritable James Bond. For all the labor and care the Park Loop demands, it will reward you all along the way with stunning glimpses of the landscape you’re slowly rising along. After about two miles and two or three hours (depending on how hard you push yourself), the Park Loop Trail meets the Tumbledown Ridge, pointing the lazy way to the pond.

Whether you’re up for a rigorous hike or in the mood for an inclined amble, climb Tumbledown Mountain. You won’t regret it.

article by Lyss Sullivan, http://www.sullivanseclectic.blogspot.com/

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Take Advantage of the MLK Weekend

The combination of snowguns and the hefty snowfall that Vermont has seen this season guarantees resorts will be running full tilt as travelers make their way to the mountains for this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. ski weekend.

“In addition to the blizzard-filled winter, Vermont ski areas have been making their own snowstorms with snowmaking systems running full tilt,” said Ski Vermont President Parker Riehle. “Vermont’s ski resorts boast 4,000 acres of terrain served by over 600 miles of snowmaking pipes and guns — that’s enough capacity to fill Gillette Stadium with over 40 feet of snow in one hour.”

Winter in Vermont features immense snowfall coupled with easy highway access for all skiers and riders who live within a day’s drive of our mountains. That means people can ski and ride more, travel less and get here safely with all their luggage intact. And, Vermont resorts provide the perfect learn-to-ski/ride experience for those thinking about jumping into the sport with a quick weekend getaway – the perfect way to take advantage of the MLK long weekend.

Hello and Welcome to the NEGetaway’s New England Travel Guide

Hello and welcome to the New England Travel Guide blog.

We will be publishing seasonal trips and vacation ideas for the New England area, and announcing special attractions and opportunities throughout the year. Check back often for special deals and packages for all types of recreational activities.

 Make sure to read all of our unique vacation ideas and planning guides on NEGetaway.com

Mystic Seaport Hosts World Premiere of The Real McCoy

Local Filmmaker Unveils Latest Production at Garde Arts Center 

Mystic, Conn. ~ The world premiere of The Real McCoy, a feature-length documentary detailing America’s rum war at sea during the 1920s, will be presented by Mystic Seaport Saturday, February 23, at the Garde Arts Center in New London. 

      Directed and produced by Bailey Pryor of Mystic, the documentary was adapted from the forthcoming book, The Actual McCoy by Stephen Jones and published by Flat Hammock Press. Pryor chronicles the quest of Bill McCoy, America’s pioneer rum runner of the Prohibition era, whose exploits took place along much of the Eastern seaboard. The bootlegger became famous for not watering down his liquor, an act which eventually coined the expression “the real McCoy.”   Complete with never-before-seen footage from the National Archives and a recreation of “Rum Row,” the movie details the tumultuous Roaring Twenties– an age of decadence, political intolerance, emerging social freedoms and opportunity. Taking advantage of such opportunity, McCoy fuelled the era by importing illegal alcohol and challenging the United States government to a war on rum.  Proceeds from the event will contribute to the education and preservation efforts of Mystic Seaport. “We’re extremely excited and thankful to Bailey Pryor for donating the premiere showing of this maritime documentary to Mystic Seaport,” said Museum President Doug Teeson. “The film highlights the pivotal period of our nation’s history, including its influence on the growth of the U.S. Coast Guard and advances in marine engine and hull design.”

     The evening begins at 7 p.m. with a cash bar and live jazz. Period dress is welcome.Screening of the film starts at 8 p.m. and will be followed by a question and answer session with both the filmmaker and author from 9-9:30 p.m.A special movie VIP party will be held from 7-8 p.m. and will include: a chance to meet Pryor, Jones, and Teeson; live jazz entertainment; priority loge seating; a post-film question and answer session; a copy of the movie DVD and one book on rum running. Tickets for the VIP party are $100. As seating is limited, reservations are required. General admission tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Tickets are available online at www.gardearts.org (ticket price subject to a $2 Internet convenience fee,) or by calling 860.444.7373. Military, students and seniors will be given $2 off admission. All ticket prices include a $2 Garde restoration fee.  Mystic Seaport is the nation’s leading maritime museum.

     Founded in 1929, the Museum is home to four National Historic Landmark vessels, including the Charles W. Morgan, the last wooden whaleship in the world. Mystic Seaport also features a working preservation shipyard, a re-created 19^th-century coastal village, exhilarating exhibits and a planetarium. The Museum’s collection of more than two million artifacts includes more than 500 historic vessels and the largest single collection of maritime photography in the world. For more information, visit www.mysticseaport.org.