Fall foliage season is just a couple of weeks away and some of our trees are beginning to show signs of the changing colors. If we had to name our favorite season of the year fall would definitely be it. Our Holderness B&B is ideally located for folks who are coming to New Hampshire to see the colors. The brilliant colors of our hardwood trees not only cover the hillsides surrounding our lakes, but the clear calm waters of Squam Lake also reflect the shoreline trees giving an added visual bonus.
Throughout New Hampshire’s Lakes Region we have miles of walking and hiking trails providing the opportunity to get out and see those colors up close. There’s something very special about walking a trail covered with fallen leaves and breathing in that crisp fresh air that has a particularly clean smell to it in the fall. The air is dry, the temperatures are moderate and the mosquitos have disappeared. Of course, we’re in the foothills of the White Mountains so for anyone who would like to combine some leaf peeping with a more challenging hike you won’t have to go far.
For many fall is the perfect time to take a driving trip. The most popular drive for fall foliage is through the White Mountains and across the Kancamagus Highway which is a perfect day trip from the Inn. We’ve included this route on our website. But there are other lesser known drives that offer wonderful views of Mother Nature’s work as well which we’ve also included in our day trip section. We suggest you stay at least a couple of nights so you can take in some local scenery and get to see some of the off the beaten path side roads which offer a real insight into New Hampshire.
For those who may not have time to take a hike or devote an entire day to a drive in the area you’ll be happy with the spectacular scenery you’ll get looking out from our breakfast room or from our spacious guest rooms to our back yard and surrounding woods. We’ve got Maples, Oaks, Birch, Beech and the evergreen Pines – a terrific mix of colors. If you haven’t made your plans yet don’t delay. Available rooms are getting scarce for our peak foliage season.
As we enter the fall season one can’t help but think that this is really the best season for hiking in the White Mountains and around New Hampshire’s Lakes region. Temperatures during the days are generally very pleasant and the summer humidity has disappeared. And if you hike mid week most of the crowds have disappeared as well.
We like hiking on the many trails in the Squam Range which runs along side of Squam Lake between Holderness and Sandwich. They’re some of New Hampshire’s best trails maintained by the Squam Lakes Association. Most popular are Rattlesnake Mountain and Mount Morgan. But there are others which offer great views and good exercise. We’ve always liked Mt. Livermore which is relatively easy and is a good starting point if you want to hike the Ridge Trail which crosses the entire range. You can hike without seeing another person on several of the lesser used trails.
The Inn is also located about a half hour from Franconia Notch which has several great hiking opportunities. Artist’s Bluff, Mt. Pemigewasset and Lonesome Lake are three excellent hikes ranging from relatively easy to challenging.
Of course, one of the great things about hiking in this area is that at the end of the day you can return to the comfort of our Holderness inn. Our spacious guest rooms are just the answer for those who want to be pampered after a day of recreation. So if you want to get out and enjoy some great outdoor recreation in the Holderness, Plymouth, or Sandwich, NH area give us a call.
Last night we enjoyed an evening out taking in a wonderful performance of “Chicago” at the Summer Theater in Meredith Village. What a great job these young performers do! We are very fortunate to have such professional theater here in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region. This particular troupe performs throughout the summer at the Interlakes High School in Meredith. “Chicago” will run for two weeks followed by two weeks of long time favorite “Camelot” and then the season ends with a two week stretch of the Broadway hit “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” Performers are primarily college students and recent graduates who come for the summer from all over the country. We envy their energy and are in awe of their acting, singing and dancing talents.
The theater is an easy 15 minute drive from our Squam Lake B&B. With performances beginning at 8:00 pm it’s convenient to have a leisurely dinner beforehand at one of the area’s many excellent restaurants. And after an evening of great entertainment you get to retreat to your comfortable room here at the Inn On Golden Pond for a great night’s sleep. How can you resist?
Close by entertainment like this is just one more reason to choose our Holderness Inn when you’re looking for Lake Winnipesaukee or Squam Lake area lodging.
Roxy and her lawyer preparing for trial in a scene from “Chicago”
The New Hampshire Lakes region is pretty compact which makes it easy for visitors to see a variety of sites without having to move from lodging place to lodging place. Meredith, NH is just 15 minutes south of us so if you’re looking for a Meredith bed and breakfast the Inn On Golden Pond should be high on your list.
Meredith is a charming town located at the northern end of Lake Winnipesaukee. It’s the home to several very good restaurants and some great shopping. The town has developed an inviting park along the shoreline of Lake Winnipesaukee and there is a wonderful walkway/boardwalk which follows the edge of the water. It’s a great place to take an evening stroll, perhaps with an ice cream cone in hand.
There is also top notch summer theater in Meredith. Summer Theater in Meredith Village offers musicals throughout the summer season. Performances are held at the Interlakes High School just a short distance from the downtown.
Of course, there’s quite a difference between the activity level on Lake Winnipesaukee and that which you’ll find here on Squam Lake. Squam is more low key offering an excellent place for canoeing, kayaking and smaller motor boats. And while Squam Lake is the state’s second largest it is considerably less developed than its larger counterpart Lake Winnipesaukee. It’s nice to be able to stay in Holderness where things are quieter, but have access to the hustle and bustle of Meredith and similar towns in the lakes region.
So if you’re looking for a B&B in Meredith you might want to think about traveling up the road a few miles to Holderness and to our quality bed and breakfast – the Inn On Golden Pond.
This week we had a free afternoon so we decided to take a hike in Sandwich Notch. The Notch is about a 25 minute drive from our Squam Lake inn, down Route 113 meandering beside Squam lake and out to the quintessential New England town of Sandwich, NH. Here we picked up the Sandwich Notch road which is about 14 miles long, open only in the good weather, and best traveled with an SUV. There are numerous trails which can be accessed along the road.
We chose the Guinea Pond trail for a special reason. Last year we hiked this trail and discovered two things. First the trail doesn’t actually take you to Guinea Pond – close, but not to the shoreline. The maintained trail stops short of the pond and the vegetation is too thick after that to find your own way. The second thing we discovered which made the hike really worthwhile were dozens of Lady Slippers. I’m not sure where else in the New Hampshire lakes region you can walk to see so many of these rare wildflowers. We have 50 acres surrounding our bed and breakfast and I’ve never come across one on our property.
We picked a great time for this walk. The Lady Slippers were abundant and there were lots of other wildflowers to enjoy as well. So we’ve made a mental note to do this every year around the 1st of June.
There are wonderful walks and hikes throughout the Lake’s Region, around Squam Lake and in the Squam Range. I think that’s why many people who are searching for New Hampshire lodging decide to stay with us. The area is perfect for those who want to get out and enjoy the wonders of Mother Nature. For those who might not be so ambitious there’s always the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center right here in Holderness within walking distance of our bed and breakfast. The Kirkwood Gardens are stunning, filled with perennials and well maintained by a crew of volunteers.
Lady slippers we found on the Guinea Pond Trail in Sandwich Notch
This past week I attended a Board retreat for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. I’ve been on the Board for about three years. The retreat was held at the Minary Center just down the street right here in Holderness, NH on Squam Lake. At one point in our meeting someone mentioned geocaching, and I must admit that while I had heard the term I really didn’t know much about it. When I got home I did a little reading about it. It’s a pretty amazing new (relatively speaking) sport which gets people of all ages outdoors on what one could describe as an electronic scavenger hunt.
Simply put you use a handheld GPS unit to find hidden caches (items.) Cache locations are listed on geocaching.com. Once you get the coordinates for cache sites from the website you enter them into your GPS unit and off you go. It’s a great way to get outdoors and enjoy an afternoon of walking or hiking. According to the website there are about 1,000 hidden cache locations within 25 miles of our Squam Lake bed and breakfast!
Of course, like all web based and electronic things this phenomenon is BIG. There are over 1 million geocaches around the world with who knows how many geocachers looking for them. Many states have geocaching organizations. Since we like to hike maybe we’ll use this game as a different twist to get out and enjoy New Hampshire’s lakes region and the White Mountains. My guess is that with Plymouth State University next door to us there are probably geocaches in downtown Plymouth, NH since locations are often in urban settings as well as rural areas.
Maybe we’ll set up a cache site here at the Inn. In addition to folks who are looking for quality lodging in Holderness and the Squam Lake area we’ll get visits from all sorts of geocachers out on an afternoon search! Here’s a little intro to geocaching if you’re new to this world.
New Hampshire’s Lilacs in Bloom
Black Bear around Squam Lake New Hampshire
Loon Mountain, Waterville Valley – Great New Hampshire Skiing
P.O. Box 680 | Route 3