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Pleasures and PastimesBeachesLong, wide beaches edge the New England coast from southern Maine to southern Connecticut; the most popular are on Maine's York County coast and the coastal region of New Hampshire. Many are maintained by state and local governments and have lifeguards on duty; they may have picnic facilities, rest rooms, changing facilities, and concession stands. Depending on the locale, you may need a parking sticker to use the lot. The waters are at their warmest in August, though they're cold even at the height of summer along much of the Maine coast. Inland, there are small lake beaches, most notably in New Hampshire and Vermont.
BikingBiking is popular in the New Hampshire lakes region and Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. Biking in Maine is especially scenic in and around Kennebunkport, Camden, and Deer Isle; the carriage paths in Acadia National Park are ideal.
BoatingIn most lakeside and coastal resorts, sailboats and powerboats can be rented at a local marina. Maine's Penobscot Bay is a famous sailing area. Lakes in New Hampshire and Vermont are splendid for all kinds of boating.
DiningSeafood is king throughout New England. Clams, quahogs, lobster, and scrod are prepared here in a number of ways, some fancy and expensive, others simple and moderately priced. One of the best ways to enjoy seafood is in the rough -- off paper plates on a picnic table at a clamboil or clambake -- or at one of the many shacklike eating places along the coast, where you can smell the salt air.
At inland resorts and inns, traditional fare dominates many menus, although an increasing number of innovative chefs are bringing contemporary regional fare to the table. Among the quintessentially New England dishes are Indian pudding, clam chowder, fried clams, and cranberry anything. You can also find multicultural variations on themes, such as Portuguese chouriço (a spicy red sausage that transforms a clamboil into something heavenly) and the mincemeat pie made with pork in the traditions of the French Canadians who populate the northern regions.
FishingAnglers will find sport aplenty throughout the region -- surf-casting along the shore, deep-sea fishing in the Atlantic on party and charter boats, fishing for trout in rivers, and angling for bass, landlocked salmon, and other fish in freshwater lakes. Maine's Moosehead Lake is a draw for serious anglers. Sporting goods stores and bait-and-tackle shops are reliable sources for licenses -- necessary in fresh waters -- and for leads to the nearest hot spots.
HikingProbably the most famous trails are the 255-mi Long Trail, which runs north-south through the center of Vermont, and the Maine-to-Georgia Appalachian Trail, which runs through New England on both private and public land. You'll find good hiking in many state parks throughout the region.
ShoppingAntiques, crafts, maple syrup and sugar, fresh produce, and the greatly varied offerings of the factory outlets lure shoppers to New England's outlet stores, flea markets, shopping malls, bazaars, yard sales, country stores, and farmer's markets. Maine sales tax is 5 1/2%, Vermont, 5%. New Hampshire has no sales tax.
ANTIQUES - In Maine, antiques shops are clustered in Searsport and along U.S. 1 between Kittery and Scarborough. People sometimes joke that New Hampshires two cash crops are fudge and antiques. Particularly in the Monadnock region, dealers abound in barns and home stores that are strung along back roads. Best antiquing conentrations are in North conway; along Route 119, from Fitzwilliam to Hinsdale; Route 101, from Marlborough to Wilton; and the towns of Hopkinton, Hollis, and Amherst. The stretch of U.S. 4 between Barrington and Concord is another mecca.
CRAFTS - On Maine's Deer Isle, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts attracts internationally renowned craftspeople to its summer institute. In Vermont, Burlington and Putney are crafts centers.
OUTLET STORES - In Maine shop along the coast, in Kittery, Freeport, Kennebunkport, Wells, and Ellsworth; in New Hampshire, North Conway; and in Vermont, Manchester.
PRODUCE - Opportunities abound for obtaining fresh farm produce from the source; some farms allow you to pick your own strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and apples. October in Maine is prime time for pumpkins and potatoes. There are maple-syrup producers who demonstrate the process to visitors, most noticeably in Vermont. Maple syrup is available in different grades; light amber is the most refined; many Vermonters prefer grade C, the richest in flavor and the one most often used in cooking. A sugarhouse can be the most or the least expensive place to shop, depending on how tourist-oriented it is. Small grocery stores are often a good source of less-expensive syrup.
SkiingThe softly rounded peaks of New England have been attracting skiers for a full century.
LIFT TICKETS - a good bet is that the bigger and more famous the resort, the higher the price of a lift ticket. A single-day, weekend-holiday adult lift ticket always has the highest price; astute skiers look for off-site purchase locations, senior discounts and junior pricing, and package rates, multiple days, stretch weekends (a weekend that usually includes a Monday or a Friday), frequent-skier programs, and season-ticket plans to save their skiing dollars. Some independently owned areas are bona fide bargains for skiers who don't require the glamour and glitz of the high-profile resorts.
Fodor's Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont 2000 contains other sections not included in this excerpt.
