The Value of Luxury

arts festival, complete with food, wine, beer, and entertainment. 802-4253399; craftproducers.com

OCT. 8–9: WEST DOVER, 19th Mount Snow Oktoberfest. German fare and oompah music in the air—fun for all ages at Mount Snow Resort. Festival games, face painting, pumpkin painting, and the famous schnitzel toss for the kids, plus yodeling and stein-holding contests, a keg toss, and horseshoes for the grownups. 800-245-7669; mountsnow.com

OCT. 8–9: WINDSOR, Harpoon Octoberfest. With the Upper Valley’s peak-foliage scenery as the backdrop, visit Harpoon Brewery and toast the season with nonstop oompah music, chicken dancing, delicious German fare, and freshly brewed beer. harpoonbrewery.com

OCT. 22: WARDSBORO, 14th Annual Gilfeather Turnip Fest. Newly named as the state’s official vegetable, celebrate the Gilfeather turnip with a day of family fun at the town hall and under the tent on Main Street: turnip contest, crafters, farmers’ market, live music, turnip tastings, and more. friendsofwardsboro library.org

OCT. 30: WOODSTOCK, Family Halloween. Billings Farm & Museum offers a treat for the kids (and kids at heart) with a day of delightful activities, including doughnuts on a string, pumpkin carving, costume parades, Halloween tales, wagon rides, and more. 802-457-2355; billingsfarm.org

Sage Farm Antiques

Autumn Spectacular

Fri. Oct. 7 8:30 am – 5 pm

Sat. Oct. 8 10 am – 5 pm

Sun. Oct. 9 10 am – 4 pm in the barn at Rochester Fairgrounds, Rochester NH

Featuring 100 antique, vintage, repurposed, upcycled and folk art dealers along with the Sanborn Hope Farm Farmer’s Market. Food vendors, live music and guests Marian Parsons and Victoria Elizabeth Barnes. More information at: sagefarmantiques.com • 603-964-3690

Please remember to call ahead or check venue websites to confirm dates, schedules, and possible admission fees. To find more events in your area, visit: NewEngland.com/calendar

Correction

In July/August’s “A World of Their Own,” the photo on p. 89 was taken at Sebasco Harbor Resort in Sebasco Estates, Maine. The Ruth is the resort’s own tour boat, offering scenic nature and harbor cruises, pirate cruises, and sunset cruises. For the Ruth ’s schedule, plus more on the resort’s accommodations and activities, visit: sebasco.com

Autumn along the Connecticut River is a four-part, month-long ride through the very heart of New England. Follow the foliage on its ever-changing journey from source to sea.

DANIEL SULLIVAN & EILEEN TERRILL

PHOTOGRAPHS BY CARL TREMBLAY

TYPE DESIGN BY LUKE LUCAS the region’s Native Americans called it when they first explored the “Connecticut” (a Colonial variation on an Algonquian name) thousands of years ago. And indeed it is long, trickling from humble origins 300 yards below the Canadian border, then plunging 410 miles through four states before emptying into Long Island Sound. From mid-September through mid-October, this verdant landscape, the very core of New England, wears the vibrant colors of autumn, as a spectacular panorama of foliage lights up the valley. The itineraries that follow—just a small sampling of the valley’s many opportunities for exploration—will give you a feel for the river along the way, each week a mini-season all its own. From the Great North Woods to the Tidelands, we feature four distinct stretches—one each within the valley’s four major regions. Each trek can be a destination in itself, or you can spin them all into one of the most memorable autumn outings anywhere, as you watch the color riding the river on its sinuous north–south plunge.

Our Connecticut River Valley adventure begins close to the Canadian border, in the farthest reaches of New Hampshire’s Great North Woods, then heads south through the remote Connecticut Lakes region (p. 93) and our base in the town of Pittsburg. We’re in the heart of “Moose Alley,” a stretch of U.S. Route 3 that will take us through some of the most beautiful territory in all of New England, where pristine lakes and tumbling waters feed the Connecticut River, cradled amid imposing mountains.

Three peaceful tributary streams—Perry, Indian, and Halls—burble along to the west. In 1832, however, armed rebellion was in the air here, when this little corner of New England produced the secessionists of the Indian Stream Republic (p. 94). Today it’s home to rustic camps, woodsy resorts, and all the outdoor recreation any hiker, paddler, or fisherman could wish for. We’ll visit a handful of these storied wilderness lodgings, but first let’s take in a few unique North Country sites.

From Pittsburg, take Route 145 South through Clarksville into Stewartstown Hollow to stop at Poore Farm Historic Homestead & Museum (get there before the September 30 close), a unique early-19th-century settlement and a venture into bygone days. A bit farther south on 145, pull over at Beaver Brook Falls, one of those surprising, beautiful sights that seem to just appear along the roads here. A few minutes more and the “big city” of Colebrook (pop. 2,300) emerges, with a café, a tavern, a nifty arts-and-crafts shop—and Le Rendez Vous, a bakery so beloved by townspeople that their victorious fight in 2009 to keep it open when the State Department didn’t renew its French owners’ visas brought the New York Times to town.

Now let’s travel U.S. Route 3 and find a couple of those classic lodgings that pulse with the flavor of the North Country. (See p. 95 for a longer look at a third option.)

Tall Timber Lodge, on Back Lake, started life as a sporting camp in 1946. The Caron family took it over in 1982, and their descendants run the operation today. Cindy Howe (née Caron) creates the hearty breakfasts, while her brother, David Caron, is maestro of the Rainbow Grille (try the Woodsman Steak, Filet & Crab, or One Fat Fish for world-class wilderness dining). Tall Timber offers 26 cabins and eight individual rooms in the lodge itself.

You’re here for the outdoors, and Tall Timber provides its guests with canoes, paddleboats, and kayaks; you can rent a fiberglass fishing boat (or a family-size pontoon boat), or meet up with a professional fly-fishing or birding guide.

Nearby are The Cabins at Lopstick. Begun as the Currier Camps in the 1920s, Lopstick is a complex of more than 50 fully equipped cabins spread out around First Connecticut and Back lakes, along the Connecticut River, and on nearby Perry Stream. Lopstick is an official Orvis-endorsed fly-fishing outfitter; its guides can teach you technique and steer you to the best spots.

On The Water

The Connecticut Lakes

Here’s a 14-mile drive to give everyone, from the avid outdoorsman to the casual nature lover, a taste of the river system near its source. If you don’t have your own equipment, local inns, lodges, and outfitters can lend a hand with rentals.

Start just a half-mile south of the Canadian border (and tiny Fourth Connecticut Lake) along U.S. Route 3 at Third Connecticut Lake, a mile long and a half-mile wide; a boat launch lets paddlers and trout fishermen enjoy these intimate waters. For walkers, a stone path hugs the shore on either side of the water for much of the way; look back at majestic Salmon Mountain, rising 3,364 feet to the east.

Continue on to Second Connecticut Lake—1,200 watery acres for paddlers and fishermen. Three more miles south and there it is: magnificent First Connecticut Lake, more than five miles long and two-and-a-half miles wide. Magalloway Mountain, at 3,360 feet, towers over the eastern shore, showing off its fall color. Paddle over to Picnic Island, a delightful spot to spend a few hours.

And the chain of lakes continues: Although not officially one of the Connecticuts, Lake Francis (manmade in 1940) is nonetheless a part of the river. The state park here offers campsites and canoe and kayak rentals.

Local Secret

Indian Stream Republic

In 1832 a lot of people in what became Pittsburg weren’t happy with one another or pretty much anyone else.

So, on July 9, a 250-square-mile area between Halls Stream and the Connecticut Lakes (including Indian Stream and Perry Stream) declared itself a sovereign republic, independent of both the U.S. and Canada, which were engaged in a double-team taxation-without-representation maneuver. Thus, as all rebels do, they fought a war (a short one with Canada) and then defended themselves (against the New Hampshire militia). Order was eventually restored and the “Streamers” ulti- mately returned to the fold—although if you see people around here celebrating wildly on the 9th of July, don’t assume they were simply five days late remembering the 4th.

Nearly a century later, this area was once again involved in anti-government doings—as a conduit for illegal booze shipped from Canada to the U.S. during Prohibition. Two miles up Indian Stream Road, look for a clearing called “the old holding place,” where a cache of alcohol was diverted during transport from Quebec and is, supposedly, still buried. On Tabor Road you’ll find Indian Stream Cemetery, where some of the 19th-century rebels and 20th-century bootleggers are said to be buried together. Old habits die hard.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME The Glen at Bear Tree

Inhaling the deep, refreshing aroma of sawn pine, we wound our way up a stout timber stairway to our log-walled room in the lodge at The Glen in Pittsburg. Just below us, double doors led to a spacious, Adirondack-style porch. In front of us lay First Connecticut Lake in all its blue tranquility, with Magallo way Mountain overlooking the scene.

“At Bear Tree” is the official name of an assortment of lodges, lakeside and woodland cottages, and guest rooms at a yellow-clapboard inn, home to Murphy’s Steakhouse. However, the heart of this operation, in our minds at least, is The Glen: the lodge and seven sweet cabins dotting the lakeshore below. It’s the site of what was perhaps this region’s most iconic sporting camp, established in the late 19th century. Current owners John and Georgie Lyons took over in 2012, carrying on from the previous owner of more than 50 years, Betty Mae Falton, a North Country legend for her hospitality and hearty cooking.

At around 10:30 p.m. on this cloudless night, we were sitting on the porch watching the near-full moon as it hung over the lake, Magalloway’s faint purple outline in the background. An eclipse stole slowly across the scene, turning the moon a dusky red before finally snuffing it out like a smoky candle. Then a thousand stars popped against the sky’s black velvet curtain … A oncein-a-lifetime show—one for which we, lucky devils, had front-row seats.

From the verandah of the “Little Studio” at the SaintGaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, New Hampshire, we’re staring at a perfectly framed view of Mount Ascutney across the Connecticut River in Vermont. We’ve followed the river 150 miles south from Pittsburg, and here on rural Route 12A, we’ve happily left civilization behind.

In Cornish, the renowned sculptor’s former summer estate is replete with blooming gardens, nature trails, and stop-and-stare views of the surrounding valley. Civil War buffs (and fans of the movie Glory ) won’t want to miss the Bowling Green, which contains the final casting of the stirring bronze Shaw Memorial that graces Boston Common.

From Cornish, a happy choice awaits: Continue south along the Connecticut’s eastern bank to explore New Hampshire’s farm country, or head west to Vermont over the much-photographed Cornish–Windsor Bridge (longest wooden covered bridge of its vintage in the U.S., at nearly 450 feet) to chase outdoor adventure?

On the New Hampshire side, off Route 12 just outside tree-lined Walpole, we’ve made Valley Farms our base (p. 101). Across the road is 450-acre Alyson’s Orchard, a must visit for its 50 varieties of classic and heirloom apples and its breathtaking views. On a smaller scale, along River Road South lies Boggy Meadow Farm, on land worked by the same family since the mid-1600s. Their Fanny Mason cheeses, made in the original 18th-century barn, are the real deal. (Still more 18th- century history awaits along Route 11 at Charlestown’s Fort at No. 4, p. 98.)

On the Vermont side, off U.S. Route 5, intrepid travelers should head north to Great River Outfitters in Windsor (p. 98)—or visit nearby Artisans Park, where you’ll find Harpoon Brewery, with its impressive array of craft beers and ales paired with hearty lunch fare. While at Artisans, you can also walk Great River’s sister operation, the inspiring Path of Life Garden, on 14 landscaped acres. You may well be tempted to camp overnight here in one of two roomy Native American tipis.

Lifelong apple grower Homer Dann oversees the cultivation and harvest of Alyson’s Orchard’s fruit.

Lifelong apple grower Homer Dann oversees the cultivation and harvest of Alyson’s Orchard’s fruit.

OPPOSITE , TOP : View to the south from the summit of Vermont’s Mount Ascutney. Ascutney was a prime inspiration to the artists of the Cornish colony, just across the river in New Hampshire. The 1,500-acre state park here features hiking trails, awesome views, and a campground. Ascutney is also a popular hang gliding launch site (permit required).

OPPOSITE , TOP : to the south the summit of Vermont’s Mount Ascutney. Ascutney was a prime inspiration to the artists of the Cornish colony, just across the river in Hampshire. The 1,500-acre state park here features trails, awesome views, and a Ascutney is also a popular hang gliding launch site (permit required).

OPPOSITE , BOTTOM : Guests of Great River Outfitters put in below Sumner Falls (a.k.a. the Hartland Rapids) as they head out for a day on the water.

OPPOSITE , BOTTOM : Guests of Great Outfitters put in below Sumner Falls (a.k.a. the Hartland Rapids) as they head out for a day on the water.

Don’t leave this area without visiting Mount Ascutney State Park. Buckle up, because the nearly four-mile summit road, although completely paved, will make you feel like a competitor at Le Mans. Your reward is an impressive view to your right just beyond the three-mile marker, then an even more eye-popping one at the summit parking lot to your left. If you hike the 0.7-mile summit trail, you’ll marvel at the knockout panoramic view of the entire region in glorious fall color from the observation deck.

On The Water

Great River Outfitters

Offering kayaks, canoes, and big family rafts, Great River Outfitters in Windsor, Vermont, will strap your choice of vessel to a carrier, put you on their shuttle bus, and take everyone to the launch five miles upriver, just below Sumner Falls. Flanked by fall scenery on both banks, it’s a leisurely three-hour trip downriver, with dramatic views of Mount Ascutney in front of you. Below the rapids, the Connecticut is classified as “moving flat water,” which means that it’s more like a lake, with a gentle current propelling you downstream.

You might also opt for a longer halfor full-day trip, traveling farther downriver and under the Cornish–Windsor Bridge. Stop at any time to do a little fishing; or to let your kids take a turn on the rope swing on the Vermont side, just off the old railroad bridge; or to picnic on Chase Island in the middle of the river, south of the covered bridge; or maybe to just kick back and observe the waterfowl and other birds.

Local Secret

The Fort at No. 4

Though not as widely known as some other restored settlements, such as Old Sturbridge Village, The Fort is an equally worthy site: a historically accurate reproduction of the fortified stockade built in 1744 to safeguard the people of Charlestown, then known as Plantation No. 4, the northwesternmost Brit-

The volunteers of The Fort at No. 4 in Charlestown, New Hampshire, re-create both the joys and the hardships of colonial life as it was lived on the then-frontier. Their mission, notes director Wendy Baker, is to bring the valley’s 18th-century heritage alive and to spark “a better understanding of who we are today through the lens of the past.” ish settlement in the American colonies at the time. Protecting the first settler families became a pressing issue when the Brits had to contend with some pushy French elements, allied with various Native American tribes, who were looking to stop “New England” from consuming “New France.” In 1747, militia captain Phineas Stevens repelled a raiding party of French and Indians who had devastated the British frontier during the winter of 1746–47; Colonial hero Major Robert Rogers found safety here when hurriedly retreating from his attack on the French-supporting Abenaki at St. Francis in Quebec.

In Walpole, New Hampshire, Valley Farms innkeeper and expert organic farmer Jackie Caserta serves lunch to a furry friend.

In Walpole, New Hampshire, Valley Farms innkeeper and expert organic farmer Jackie Caserta serves lunch to a furry friend.

OPPOSITE TOP : From the Quinnetukut II, the iconic span of western Massachusetts’French King Bridge, built in 1931–32 to carry Route 2 (the Mohawk Trail) over the Connecticut River, comes into view. OPPOSITE , BOTTOM : As seen from the French King Bridge, the Millers River near its confluence with the Connecticut in French King Gorge. The Connecticut turns west here for 3 miles before heading south again below the Turners Falls Dam.

OPPOSITE , TOP : From the Quinnetukut II, the iconic span of western Massachusetts’ French King Bridge, built in 1931–32 to carry Route 2 (the Mohawk Trail) over the Connecticut River, comes into view. OPPOSITE , BOTTOM : As seen from the French King Bridge, the Millers River near its confluence with the Connecticut in French King Gorge. The Connecticut turns west here for 3 miles before heading south again below the Turners Falls Dam.

Later, during the American Revolution, General John Stark massed forces at No. 4 to deploy at the decisive Battle of Bennington in August 1777, and again before the crucial Battle of Saratoga. You, as a visitor, can witness a reenactment of General Stark’s exploits on Revolutionary War Weekend, October 1–2 this year. Other fall events include “Women of the Fort,” “Pickpockets, Rogues, and Highwaymen,” “Native Heritage Weekend,” and the festive November “Harvest Dinner.”

HOME AWAY FROM HOME The Inn at Valley Farms

There are two ways to enjoy your stay at this 105-acre farmstead in Walpole, New Hampshire, set amid surroundings so beautiful you may never want to leave. Two tastefully appointed guest rooms and a spacious suite, all on the second floor, are as charming as they are comfortable. Downstairs you’ll find a sitting room, library, and elegant dining room, where innkeeper Jackie Caserta serves sumptuous three-course farm-totable breakfasts. Out the back door are a terrace and gardens with views of the rolling hills beyond. Or, if you’ve come en famille, two guest cottages (with fully stocked kitchens) and Sunnyside Farmhouse, a splendid retreat, are available.

But best of all is the farm itself. Wander around and enjoy the fields, and visit the expansive barn, which dates back more than 100 years. Come with a cooler so that before you leave you can visit the farm store and extend your experience for a few extra days back home.