holy crap... our first big trip.! Stowe VT for the fall color change.

[Ron & Izzy]

So here we are.. my DW and I decided to have her retire and get on the road. We've had our 5th wheel now for about 5 months... but have only taken one trip, so we're definitely excited (or at least i am!).

I've always wanted to see the fall color change in New England (NE) for just about forever.. Izzy mentioned that, this might be a good trip that we can take for a month or longer.. and that we could start in NE, head for the coast and then drop down to Florence SC where our retirement house is. (i was thinking about state parks when heading south on the coast (and of course we don't have to stay on the coast)) When in VT, i'm thinking private campgrounds.

I've looked at Stowe VT, but looking for any help for this adventure as this will be our first BIG trip... lol. Excited... and nervous

We'll be leaving from Dallas, and i'm thinking of drive 300/6hrs, and stop for a few days and continue on.

If you have any suggestions for places (CG's) from the Dallas area to Stowe VT., please let me know..

Thanks,

r-

[mlh]

In the fall see the Blueridge Parkway. Get on at Roanoke Virginia and travel to the end at Smoky Mountains NP. It follows the crest of the Blueridge mountains with elevations over 6000 feet. It’s my favorite place close by to vacation. It’s only ten miles from us so it’s my favorite place to ride my motorcycle. Well worth seeing. I say it’s a must see.
Lynwood

[Columbo]

My wife and I go to Stowe (without the camper since we just purchased our first) every summer. We are natives of New England too. So, I can’t help with campgrounds between VT and TX but if you’d like my opinion on places to visit in New England I’d be happy to share it.

[Dave W]

Just be aware that many (most!) Upstate NY and New England CGs start closing Columbus Day weekend (Oct 11 or thereabouts). You will need to do your CG search now to ensure that what and where will be open. If you are heading to the Stowe area, add some more time to also head to the Maine Coast after wandering the NH White Mountains - Mt Washington/Franconia Notch then Conway areas.

[Ron & Izzy]

Originally Posted by mlh

favorite place to ride my motorcycle. Well worth seeing. I say it’s a must see.
Lynwood

Should i be trailering my RoadGlide?

r-

[Ron & Izzy]

Originally Posted by Columbo

if you’d like my opinion on places to visit in New England I’d be happy to share it.

Oh.. please do..!

Ron-

[Ron & Izzy]

Originally Posted by Dave W

Just be aware that many (most!) Upstate NY and New England CGs start closing Columbus Day weekend (Oct 11 or thereabouts). You will need to do your CG search now to ensure that what and where will be open. If you are heading to the Stowe area, add some more time to also head to the Maine Coast after wandering the NH White Mountains - Mt Washington/Franconia Notch then Conway areas.

noticed that.. even Oct 10th is about the latest.

As for the NH coast, that was my exact thought. then hop on down the eastern seaboard until we get back to Florence SC, our final retirement area

r-

[mlh]

Originally Posted by Ron & Izzy

Should i be trailering my RoadGlide?

r-

By all means. It’s one of the best places in the country to ride. Go slow take your time and enjoy the ride with little traffic and no body entering the road and great views. Just watch out for the deer. They are the most dangerous things on the parkway. Take a picnic lunch, heaven on earth.
Lynwood
Let me know if you come through here, south of Roanoke and we’ll take a little spin on the parkway.

[MandK]

This country is so beautiful that you will certainly be able to get great recommendations from all of us. We live in western NY state and we love the outdoor amenities this state offers. If your travels bring you through NY, I would suggest the finger lakes area as a stop. I could recommend many but I’ll just stick to one as we are there right now. Historically known for it’s scenic beauty and wine trails, more recently it has become popular for craft brewing and distilleries as well. You will want to be in Stowe for the peak foliage season which should be about October first so you may be looking at mid Septemberish in the Finger Lakes, too early for colors there, but you will find plenty to do. As mentioned, we are currently at Sampson State Park on Seneca Lake. $22/ night with 30 amp power. We are going to be hitting the wineries and a couple of breweries over the next 4 days. Tough to get in here on weekends but we pulled in earlier today and I would say the park is about 50% occupied tonight, so weekday availability is pretty good outside of July and August. As you head east toward Vt, either the Adirondack Mountains or the Mohawk River valley have a lot to offer also. Enjoy your trip.

[Columbo]

So, Stowe itself is great, very relaxed downtown area. Typically I avoid touristy areas but Stowe is an exception. If you’re eating out The Bench and Idle Thyme are excellent. Drive through Smugglers Notch but don’t bring the trailer, that would be a great ride on the motorcycle!

When coming through NH I’d recommend the Kancamagus Highway, it is very scenic (but also popular with the tourist crowd). Also a good ride on the motorcycle. North Conway is the tourist Mecca up there, it will have everything you need but gets very busy for foliage season.

Depending on your route South you may consider going through the Berkshires in western Massachusetts and avoiding the coastal traffic. Hope this helps!

[SaraLouwho]

Stowe and all of New England are spectacular especially when the leaves are falling. But be sure to research and get reservations before you go. Remember New England get very cold (less than 32F) often at night. We have had sheets of ice falling off our slide topper when in Frieberg Me in October. For that reason the majority of campgrounds close the Tuesday after Columbus Day.

[MandK]

Couple pictures from our stay at Sampson State Park mentioned in post #9 above. Golf about 5 miles away, many wineries, Watkins Glen gorge Watkins Glen NY.

[bigred715]

Not to throw water on peoples plans, but we did the complete Blue Ridge Parkway, over 450 miles and were somewhat disappointed. We flew from Eugene Oregon to Atlanta and started trip north to where to Parkway starts. The colors were not we expected to be. We were told 1/2 thru the trip that due to global warming the colors were not as vivid as many years before. We rented a car and backtracked almost every day so we saw a lot of beautiful sites and it was a great trip, but colors not all that great as shown in pictures from years ago. Do take the trip, just don't expect great colors.

[Mikelff]

Don't know about the campgrounds but planning your trip/route now is a good idea. Once you decide on your campgrounds, I would make reservations ASAP. LOTS of people do exactly what you are thinking of. With fuel prices like they are you might find it easier to find vacancies but I wouldn’t want to take the chance. You can always cancel should you change your plans but at least you know you have a place to land for the night. Sounds like a great trip!

[Mikendebbie]

Originally Posted by bigred715

Not to throw water on peoples plans, but we did the complete Blue Ridge Parkway, over 450 miles and were somewhat disappointed. We flew from Eugene Oregon to Atlanta and started trip north to where to Parkway starts. The colors were not we expected to be. We were told 1/2 thru the trip that due to global warming the colors were not as vivid as many years before. We rented a car and backtracked almost every day so we saw a lot of beautiful sites and it was a great trip, but colors not all that great as shown in pictures from years ago. Do take the trip, just don't expect great colors.

I have never done the Blueridge Parkway during Fall or any other time, but I have experienced the disappointment of a driving tour to see the spectacle of a number of natural showy colors here in Texas. Some years the Bluebonnets are not as pretty as other years. Some years the fall colors of the lost Maples (near Uvalde) are not as pretty as others...etc. etc. If I was to blame anybody (besides ME for picking the wrong weekend) I would blame El Nino and La Nina for the quality of the show.

[bcrvman]

Originally Posted by Ron & Izzy

So here we are.. my DW and I decided to have her retire and get on the road. We've had our 5th wheel now for about 5 months... but have only taken one trip, so we're definitely excited (or at least i am!).

I've always wanted to see the fall color change in New England (NE) for just about forever.. Izzy mentioned that, this might be a good trip that we can take for a month or longer.. and that we could start in NE, head for the coast and then drop down to Florence SC where our retirement house is. (i was thinking about state parks when heading south on the coast (and of course we don't have to stay on the coast)) When in VT, i'm thinking private campgrounds.

I've looked at Stowe VT, but looking for any help for this adventure as this will be our first BIG trip... lol. Excited... and nervous

We'll be leaving from Dallas, and i'm thinking of drive 300/6hrs, and stop for a few days and continue on.

If you have any suggestions for places (CG's) from the Dallas area to Stowe VT., please let me know..

Thanks,

r-

Great place to see the fall colours, not to mention the cider house, cheese shop and of course the Von Trapp lodge etc.

One thing to be aware of, most cg's in the NE are NOT geared for big rigs, so do your homework, I use Harvest Hosts and Boondockers welcome plus of course RV Life's RV Trip Wizard. On the road of course a Garmin RV GPS is mandatory.
I am from Canada, and the best color I ever saw was the drive from Lake Placid along 21 to 86. Start opposite the Olympic ski jump and follow the River Rd. Just google Flaming Leaves Lake PLacid for details on events etc.

Lake PLacid is 2.5 hrs away and there is a big KOA on 86 a short drive to where 21 starts on the way back to Lake Placid. One of my favorite places, in fact we honeymooned there while the US Olympic team was in town and they opened the site to tourists for the first time.

[Dave W]

Originally Posted by bcrvman

Lake Placid is 2.5 hrs away and there is a big KOA on 86 a short drive to where 21 starts on the way back to Lake Placid. One of my favorite places, in fact we honeymooned there while the US Olympic team was in town and they opened the site to tourists for the first time.

Unfortunately that KOA closes Oct 10 this year which is the case of most Adirondack CG. About the only CGs that may be open are the NY State campsites such as Fish Creek Pond. The state website is a horror but there is a phone number to call. Being a past 15 year seasonal camper fairly near Lake Placid can attest to the beauty of the Adirondacks and the Lake Placid/Whiteface Mountain area at any time of the year. Last Oct and a week before Columbus Day we wandered and were able to find a couple farm stands and bought Cortland apples that had been on a tree the day before (near Plattsburg)

[TenOC]

Check out Wildwood https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/270967

[Doug Brown]

Be aware my wife and I took the Blue Ridge Parkway on a locals of advice. What she didn’t know was that the tunnel clearance was 12 .4 foot for clearance we almost lost our rig.