Page 32 - AT SEPT 10

A32
FEATUREThursday 10 September
Leaf-peep around New England for colorful history lessons
WILLIAM J. KOLE
Associated Press
BOSTON (AP) — New Eng-
land’s iconic autumns can
be as much about brains as
beauty.
Some of the region’s most
stunning foliage is within
striking distance of Amer-
ica’s most storied living
museums: places like Old
Sturbridge Village and Han-
cock Shaker Village in Mas-
sachusetts, Strawbery Ban-
ke in New Hampshire, and
the Billings and Shelburne
Farms in Vermont.
Here’s how to hit them up
before this fall’s leaves are
history:
ROAD TRIP
Tourism promoters have
already done some of the
work: They’ve mapped out
a 275-mile (442-kilometer)
“living history and rural re-
laxation” tour that starts
and finishes in Boston, which
is convenient if you’re flying ke.org )
in from outside New Eng-
land. See a Google maps
layout at: http://goo.gl/
maps/z6QS .
This is an ambitious tour — it four centuries of history —
borders on odyssey class —
so give yourself at least 10
days to make all the rounds.
Alternatively, you can skip
a leg here and there and
adapt the route for a briefer
escape. This route takes in
Sturbridge, Massachusetts;
Woodstock, Connecticut;
Westerly and Bristol, Rhode
Island; and Plymouth, Mas-
sachusetts.
Other ways to combine a
little learning with some se-
rious leaf-peeping:
OLD STURBRIDGE VILLAGE
(Sturbridge, Massachu-
setts, https://www.osv.
org/ )
First stop, and a must stop,
is this famed outdoor muse-
um, which recreates what
daily rural life was like from
1790 to 1830. You’ll find
sooty-bearded blacksmiths
banging out horseshoes on
anvils and a working farm
with draft horses pulling
plows. The first two weeks
of October, which usually
coincide with peak color
in south-central Massa-
chusetts, feature an Apple
Days festival. There’s spec-
tacular color at Sturbridge
itself as well as on the leafy
country lanes leading to it.
Or stray off the beaten path
with a short hike along part
of the Mid-State Trail (www.
midstatetrail.org ).
HANCOCK SHAKER VIL-
LAGE (Pittsfield, Massachu-
setts, www.hancockshaker-
village.org )
Nestled in the Berkshires
of western Massachusetts
— synonymous with drop-
dead gorgeous foliage —
this cluster of 20 authentic
buildings and barns crafted
by America’s finest wood-
workers makes a stunning
autumn backdrop. Wan-
der the adjacent meadows
and herb and flower gar-
dens framed by majestic
trees. Along the way, en-
gage the costumed weav-
ers and carpenters and
learn about the Shakers’
faith and simple lifestyle.
On Oct. 3, local photojour-
nalist Ben Garver will teach
a workshop designed to
help you hone your digital
photo skills.
STRAWBERY BANKE MUSEUM
(Portsmouth, New Hamp-
shire, www.strawberyban-
Experience how people
lived and worked in this
typical American neigh-
borhood through nearly
and marvel at the traffic-
stopping autumn leaves
in coastal Portsmouth.
Strawbery Banke originally
was settled in 1630 by Brits
who couldn’t spell but sure
knew how to build homes
with staying power: Most
still stand on their original
foundations, creating an
elegant setting for foliage
photography. The ham-
let hosts the annual New
Hampshire Fall Festival on
Oct. 10; the leaves may be
past peak by then, but the
A covered bridge at Flume Gorge in the heart of New Hampshire’s White Mountain National For-
est. The gorge is a good place to see fall foliage.
Fallen maple leaves carpet a lawn across the street from the First Baptist Church of Kingfield,
Maine. New England’s iconic autumns can be as much about brains as beauty, and some of the
region’s most stunning foliage is within striking distance of America’s most storied living museums.
craft demonstrations are
garden tours will be worth
it.
SHELBURNE FARMS (Shel-
burne, Vermont, www.shel-
burnefarms.org )
Vermont’s Lake Champlain
shoreline is one of the most
stunning places for cal-
endar-caliber leaf peep-
ing. It’s also home to this
1,400-acre working farm, a
National Historic Landmark
beloved by foodies for its
artisanal cheeses, organic
market garden, maple sug-
aring and mushroom forag-
ing. Shelburne’s 37th an-
nual harvest festival is Sept. ral cultural heritage. Lac-
19, when the wash of color
should be approaching
(AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
optimal. Festival Weekend, held this
year Sept. 26-27; it features
BILLINGS FARM & MU- forest strolls, family wood-
SEUM (Woodstock, Ver- craft and other
mont, www.billingsfarm.
org ) HISTORIC DEERFIELD (Deer-
Holy cow, this place is field, Massachusetts, www.
pretty. It’s a meticulously historic-deerfield.org )
restored 1890 dairy farm Back in western Massa-
that’s still in operation, nes- chusetts, this authentic
tled in the verdant hills of 18th-century village in the
Woodstock, whose sugar Connecticut River valley is
maples explode in a bril- known for its well-appoint-
liant palette of oranges, ed museum homes with
yellows and reds. Through period furnishings. There
the milking of the herd and are guided and self-guided
the churning of the butter, tours of a dozen antique
you’ll get a glimpse into houses built between 1730
Vermont’s 19th-century ru- and 1850. If you’re into
demonstrations, there’s
tose intolerant? Come for dressmaking, tinsmithing,
the foliage, stay for Forest gunsmithing, silversmithing,
shoemaking, cabinetmak-
ing and open-hearth cook-
ing, all done as they were
three centuries ago. Don’t
leave without the leaves:
A stroll along the Channing
Blake Footpath (http://bit.
ly/1EDwhEO ) to the Deer-
field River will reveal au-
tumn vistas that will take
your breath away.
If You Go ...
OFFICIAL TOURISM WEB-
SITE: Discover New Eng-
(Gregory Keeler via AP) land, http://www.discov-
ernewengland.org/ . Pre-
dicting when and where
the foliage will be peak
isn’t an exact science,
but there are interactive
maps that do a fair job of
tracking the color in real
time. Bookmark http://
www.yankeefoliage.com/
peak-foliage-forecast-
map/ and check it often
for updates.q