We kicked off day 2 of our New England Road Trip with a stop at Dottie’s Coffee Lounge, a cute local restaurant in Pittsfield, MA. The main plan for the day was to stay off interstates and take in the lovely fall colors.
Stop 1: Shelburne Falls, MA
After breakfast, we made our way to Shelburne Falls, MA to see the Bridge of Flowers. We weren’t to sure what to expect, but it was a really cool thing to see. A lot of the plants were still in bloom and there is a walking path on the bridge, so you are right in the middle of all the flowers. While checking out the bridge of flowers, we also saw signs for Glacial Potholes and knew we needed to see what those were. On the way to the Glacial Potholes, I spotted a couple cool spots for some fall leave pictures with rushing water in the background.
I think I learned a new skill of mine on this trip. While I may not take the best photos, I do seem to have a knack for finding good spots to take photos. After taking some photos and finding the Glacial Potholes, we walked up the street to Baked and got some drinks to warm us up.
Stop 2: Mohawk Trail
From Shelburne Falls, we hit the Mohawk Trail and made our way towards Vermont. Along the Mohawk Trail the Wigwam Western Summit caught our eye, so we pulled off and got some souvenirs.
Stops 3 & 4: Bennington & Wallingford
Once we got into Vermont, we decided it was time for lunch and stopped in Bennington at The Dutchman’s Tavern. We then continued driving through the Green Mountains. While driving through the small town of Wallingford, VT, we passed an old stone shop with a sign saying Handmade in Vermont. I had to pull over and see what was in the shop. My instincts were right, there were gorgeous light fixtures, blown glass ornaments and more.
Stop 5: Ben & Jerry’s Factory
From Wallingford, we were on our way to Smuggler’s Notch when we realized we had just passed the Ben & Jerry’s Factory, so we pulled a U-turn and stopped for some ice cream. At the factory, unless you pay for a tour there really isn’t much to see, but they do have a small gift shop and ice cream for sale. There is also the flavor graveyard onsite, but we wanted to make it to Smuggler’s Notch before dark, so we didn’t check that out.
Stop 6: Smuggler’s Notch
Smuggler’s Notch is a mountain pass in Vermont on Route 108 that takes you along the highest peak in the Green Mountains. It is a great road with a Sunday drive, nice and easy type of atmosphere. There are sections of the road that are extremely tight and you will even find signs saying, “Smugglers Notch – You Shall Not Pass (if your vehicle is too long!)”. When we got to the top of Smuggler’s Notch, there were some resort parking lots, so we were able to pull off and get some pictures of the scenery.
Stop 7: Woodsville, NH
We ended day 2 in Woodsville, NH and stopped at Village Pizza for dinner. After some delicious pizza, we checked into Nootka Lodge for the night. It is what I imagine the lodges from Hallmark movies to be like. They were log cabin lodges with real keys to open your room doors. They also had a fantastic map of the Kancamagus Highway that we were planning to drive the next day.
| Route for Day 2 | Roads | Time | Miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsfield, MA – Shelburne Falls, MA | MA-9E, MA-112N | 1 Hour | 45 |
| Shelburne Falls, MA – Williamstown, MA | MA-2W (Mohawk Trail) | 50 Minutes | 35 |
| Williamstown, MA – Bennington, VT | US-7N | 20 Minutes | 15 |
| Bennington, VT – Wallingford, VT | US-7N | 50 Minutes | 45 |
| Wallingford, VT – Waterbury, VT | US-7N, VT-100N | 2 Hours | 80 |
| Waterbury, VT – Smuggler’s Notch, VT | VT-108N | 30 Minutes | 20 |
| Smuggler’s Notch, VT – Jeffersonville, VT | VT-108N | 10 Minutes | 5 |
| Jeffersonville, VT – Woodsville, NH | VT-15E, VT-5S | 1 Hour 40 Minutes | 70 |
| TOTAL | 7 Hours 20 Minutes | 315 |
Take a look back at Day 1 of our Road Trip here.
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