11 Great Things to Do at the Annual Lupine Festival

White Horse in a Lupine Storm                        Wayne D. King

11 Great Things to Do at the Annual Lupine Festival

1. Have Breakfast at Polly's Pancake Parlor in Sugar Hill. Polly's has been serving yummy breakfasts for 75 years so they must be doing something right!

2. Drive the Lupine Loop (ok we made up the name but it works) Start in Franconia and Take Rte 116 through Franconia, and Easton to the Village of Bath. Then 302 to Lisbon and from Lisbon go right on 117 through the beautiful town of Sugar Hill.

3. While you are driving the Lupine Loop, Stop at the Bath Brick Store, America's Oldest General Store.

4. Have lunch at the Woodstock Inn and Brewery. You won't find better food anywhere in New Hampshire and the Microbrews are to die for; then,

5. Drive Rte 112 From North Woodstock. Stop at Indian Leap - also known as Agassiz Basin in honor of the Harvard Geologist who lost the great Evolution debate to Charles Darwin (He was still a great mind!). If you have the courage, jump from the highest outcrop (about 50') into the frigid waters. Have someone spot you if you are not use to cold water because its going to be a shocker!

6. Stop another mile up the road and tour Lost River Reservation. Unlike many of the tourist destinations this is a very interesting and educational excursion and well worth the modest price of admission.

7. Fishing Lost River. If you are a fisherman or woman Lost River has some nice trout fishing.

8. Shop and walk down street Littleton. Littleton has developed into a really fine main street shopping destination. If it's breakfast or lunch time, stop in and say hello to Jeanne McKenna at the Coffee Pot and order just about anything on the menu, lovingly prepared with friendly banter.

9. Shop at Chutter's Candy Shop purporting to have the longest candy counter in the world but you'll also find a whole lot of gourmet food locally made and ready to take home.

10. Visit the Rock's Estate in Bethlehem. Best known as a popular NH Christmas tree farm. But as the North Country Conservation & Education Center for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, the 1,400-acre property offers much more. Beyond the neat rows of Christmas trees lined by perfect stone walls lies a world of history, wildlife, and experiential learning. The property is open to visitors year-round, presenting both structured and self-guided tours and programs. 

Originally the summer home of the well-heeled Glessner family, The Rocks Estate includes several buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A maintained trails system welcomes visitors year-round, meandering through the Estate, leading guests on short, easy strolls or longer hikes, past magnificent views of the Presidential Range and preserved wildlife habitat.

11. If you have high school aged kids and have been thinking about a change in their educational atmosphere, pay a visit to the White Mountain School in Bethlehem. WMS has developed an experiential learning curriculum that reaches those kids who tend not to fit in well in a traditional educational system, but even young people who aren't inclined toward rock climbing, winter camping and south american adventures can find a place here among faculty who really care about the kids. Their new Gold certified Science building is worth a tour to see how a green building should be made. If you go into the Main hall don't miss the photo of the founders riding on two oxen as if they were out for a casual horseback ride!

There are lots of other things to do at the Lupine Festival, we have only scratched the surface here. 

Dance of Lupine and Birch Poster

Participating Towns: Twin Mountain (Carroll), Littleton, Franconia, Sugar Hill, Bethlehem, Easton, Lisbon,

New this Year: Lincoln, Woodstock,