Highway 2 across New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine is a very different experience from Highway 2 west of Lake Superior. In the west the road was straight and wide and fast; in the east it’s curvy and narrow and slow. However, it was a beautiful green ride through the Green Mountains, the White Mountains and the Mahoosuc Mountains as I drove from Burlington to Acadia National Park. As usual, I only wish I’d had more time.
The meandering pace allowed for easy distraction. Not that there were many sites on my list of things to see, but those I sought out were easy to access. Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream has been on my radar since the days of their activism in the 1980s. In Waterbury they were easy to find. Locating Mt. Orne covered bridge was simple too as it bridges the border of VT and NH over the Connecticut River and was less than a mile off my path.
As I approached Maine the local heritage seemed to shift away from farming and towards lumber. Mills, clear cutting, and tributes to the lumber industry were in abundant evidence. Paul Bunyan seemed to be the local hero. When finally I got to Bangor I learned that Maine was once the world capital for lumber but that was many, many decades ago.
It took five days to drive from Everett, WA to Sault Ste. Marie, MI along Highway 2 following the path of the Great Northern Railway. That stretch had a grand story to tell. It took one day to drive from Burlington to Bangor and while its story was a quiet one, the ride was pleasant.
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