Discovering The Best Of New England

In this very challenging summer for travel, road trips have emerged as arguably the safest way to go. So it’s little wonder that New England, with its charming 18th and 19^th century villages, as well as its dramatic seascapes, forests and mountains, remains a favorite destination. But where to go? I asked longtime New England-based travel writer Steve Jermanok, who has just published New England in a Nutshell.

Everett Potter: Steve, you’ve been writing about New England for years. What inspired you to finally put your wisdom and research into a book at this point in time?

Steve Jermanok: I had plans to publish New England in a Nutshell next summer, to celebrate the 25^th anniversary of my first book on the region, Outside Magazine’s Adventure Guide to New England. But once this pandemic reared its ugly head, I realized regional travel would be the best option this year. I had all this content in my computer from the past quarter century and I wanted to get it out to the public so they could explore and hopefully find some solace and serenity during these trying times. So I hunkered down from early March to late May and pounded it out. I distilled all of my work down to an easy to read round-up format, with more than 50 categories and 300 entries.

EP: I’m guessing that even for old New England hands, there will be a few surprises in this book. So give us an example of a great hike that we may not have heard about it?

SJ: I love the northern fringes of New England. Most people don’t realize that it might take 2 hours to drive from Boston to Portland, but then another 6 hours if you want to head from Portland to Allagash to canoe the Allagash River. Maine is a massive state. Gulf Hagas isn’t quite that far, around a 4-hour drive from Portland. Smack dab in the Hundred Mile Wilderness Region, this 8-mile hike is a remote wilderness gem. A raging river drops precipitously through narrow canyon walls, and the result is a series of frothy waterfalls and swimming holes so frigid that only a native Mainer could dip his head.

EP: How about a foliage drive away from the madding crowds?

SJ: Peak foliage typically appears around Columbus Day in Vermont. But I like to head to the state a week before the crowds and visit the northern tier, specifically the Northeast Kingdom. East Burke is best known as home to the world class mountain biking network called the Kingdom Trails. It’s also home to Darling Hill Road, where century old barns and their fresh coats of red paint form a striking contrast to the green velvety meadows. Start here and then continue along Route 5A North to Westmore and the glacially carved blue waters of Lake Willoughby. To get a better look at this stunning scenery, get out of the car and hike Mt. Pisgah overlooking the lake. Breathe in the fragrant pines, be wowed by the colorful maples, and be happy that you’re far away from the traffic in this unvarnished chunk of the state.

EP: If you could get away this weekend, (assuming it wasn't July 4th), which three inns would be on your shortlist?

SJ: This time of year, I like to be close to the ocean. All it takes is a short stroll from the circa-1876 Cliffside Inn to understand its allure. Within minutes, you’ll access Newport’s famed Cliff Walk, a 3 ½-mile long trail perched above the Atlantic offering views of the sloping lawns and backsides of those summer “cottages” the Vanderbilts, Whitneys, and Astors built during the Gilded Age.

If you yearn for pounding surf and a long stretch of sand to walk barefoot for hours, then it’s hard to think of a better beachfront locale in New England than Blue on Plum Island. This 13-room inn is smack dab on the beach, next door to the coastline and marsh of Parker River Wildlife Refuge. Though in mid-July, be wary of those nasty greenhead flies.

At Grey Havens Inn in Georgetown, Maine, plant yourself in an Adirondack-style rocking chair and wait for the fog to lift. You’ll soon be able to spot the lobstermen cruising from buoy to buoy to pick up the day’s catch, and the occasional harbor seal popping his head out of the water to see what all the fuss is about. By all means, try that lobster, fresh off the boat, and accompanied with steamers and corn on the cob at the nearby Five Islands Lobster Company.  

EP: New England abounds in small art museums that often have amazing collections, typically thanks to the largesse of a local collector. What are your favorites among them?

SJ: Vermont’s St. Johnsbury Athenaeum is America’s oldest art gallery. Built in 1873, many of the gilded-framed works here are by prominent Hudson River School painters like Asher B. Durand, Sanford Gifford, and Jasper Cropsey. Yet, the crowning achievement of the collection is the immense piece of art that fills the entire back wall of this small space, Albert Bierstadt’s 10-by-15-foot panorama, Domes of Yosemite. When this mountainous vista of Yosemite Falls was first painted in 1867, the New York Times stated that it was “worth a week’s travel to see this great picture.”

Other favorite picks include the impressive collection of Impressionist paintings by Monet, Degas, and Pissarro found at the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts; the Orozco murals seen at Dartmouth University’s Baker Library in Hanover, New Hampshire; and the rooms devoted to Andrew Wyeth’s work at Rockland, Maine’s Farnsworth Museum.

EP: As you were researching and writing this book, was there anything you unearthed that really surprised you?

SJ: Really, the surprising amount of content I created over a 25-year span. I kept on coming across more and more articles I forgot all about, like one on unusual winter adventures such as dogsledding, ice fishing, and backcountry snowboarding. Another story for The Boston Globe was on snowmobiling across international borders from Presque Isle, Maine into New Brunswick, Canada. Loved researching that story! It’s where I met the gifted wildlife photographer, Paul Cyr, who took me out late at night to view the Northern Lights.

It’s amazing how easily the outdoors section of this book stood the test of time. I had to do very little updating or revising. In fact, I have no doubt that the exceptional ridge walk between Mount Lincoln and Mount Lafayette in the White Mountains will be the top hike to take a century from now. Most resorts and inns have also survived. Restaurants are the lone category that didn’t fare as well. Those James Beard winners of the past like L’Espalier and Hamersley’s Bistro in Boston are unfortunately no longer with us. So instead of including high-end dining, I chose to put the spotlight on clam shacks like Woodman’s, which has been around since 1914, and pizza joints like Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana, in operation in New Haven since 1925.

EP: Tell us more about the giving back aspect of New England in a Nutshell?

SJ: Yes, half of the proceeds from sales of the book will be spent on gift cards to support the many businesses I’ve highlighted. They’re all in dire straits right now and could use the much-needed financial support. All readers have to do is send me an email at steve@activetravels.com and say they purchased an ebook or book and I’ll put them into the many raffles for free giveaways. Depending on the number of books sold, this could translate into a guided bike ride on the outskirts of Portland to 5 lighthouses with Summer Feet Cycling, a membership to the Peabody Essex Museum, or a weekend getaway at the Saltair Inn in Bar Harbor, Maine.

EP: Finally, the question that everyone wants an answer to is, ‘Where can I get the best lobster roll in New England?’

SJ: If you’re yearning to find the best lobster roll with a view, then it’s hard to top the Lobster Shack in Cape Elizabeth. Not too far from where Winslow Homer set up shop on Prouts Neck, this lobster-in-the-rough joint overlooks that same boulder-strewn coastline Homer loved to paint. Order your food at the window of the rustic shack, wait for your number to be called, and grab a picnic table that rewards you with vistas of the Atlantic as it pours into Casco Bay and is framed by two lighthouses. They’ve been serving lobster on this salty spit of land since the 1920s, but it wasn’t until 1969 that the Lobster Shack made its debut. Three generations of the same family have been running the show ever since. Every day in summer they make the 20-minute drive to Portland Pier and purchase their daily allotment of some 200 lobsters.