With a lurch and a bang, we were finally off! Before we departed we attached our GoPro to the roof of the car, setting it to take a picture once ever 10 seconds. Our first stop this morning was Dysart’s, a Maine staple gas station/rest stop. The purpose of our visit was three fold. Dysart’s offers a decent breakfast offering and we needed to put air in the tires. Also, a 15 year old local girl by the name of Nichole Cable was abducted in the area, and we had been given flyers to hang along our route for Jane. After a quick stop at the neighboring Dunkin’ Donuts we headed West from Bangor on Route 2. Paul’s father Orrie, and Ben had both recommended Route 2 since we are trying to stay off the freeway and major interstates as much as possible. Paul turned on the “On The Road” audiobook and we explored Route 2.

Paul’s Aunt Jane and her fiance Bill at our departure.

The drive along Route 2 was gorgeous. It threatened to shower on a couple of occasions, but by the time we reached Mexico, Maine (sadly no tacos to be found here) it had really cleared off and the sun was shining. We pulled over at the Rumford Falls Dam park for a truly spectacular view of the dam, reservoir, and park.

The Rumford Falls Dam in Mexico, ME.

We wound our way along it until we came to Route 113, which took us through White Mountain National Forest. White Mountain National Forest is a beautiful spot with a number of hiking and primitive camping areas. Being that it is spring everything is lush and green. Route 113, a very narrow road winds its way along a small river and through trees that overhang the tiny road by a good three or four feet. We drove South looking for route West. We got turned around a couple of times looking for a road that went over the next mountain.

Photo Credit Paul Perkins – One of the roads that did NOT take us where we wanted to go.

When we reached the South end of the forest we turned back West on the tiniest road we could find. We had to stop at a garage and gas station just to find it! It was during this stop that I saw the biggest Dalmatian I have ever seen. This dog looked like a Great Dane with a Dalmatian print. Hurricane Mountain Road is a seasonally open, tiny road that goes straight up and then straight back down Hurricane Mountain. It drops you somewhere between Conway and Glenn. From there we stopped for some gas and jumped on Route 302. We took Route 302 all the way up to Interstate 93 and rode that into Littleton, NH. Initially, our plan was to stop at Burlington in Vermont, but it became clear it wouldn’t be feasible if we wanted to erect our tents in the daylight.

We drove through Littleton looking for camping spots and didn’t find any, so we turned to Google. Crazy Horse Campground had the highest ratings and was quite close, so we drove over and secured ourselves a spot. Unfortunately, the tent sites at Crazy Horse are on the expensive side at $33 (including a discount that we didn’t understand). Fortunately, we found the best BBQ restaurant on the East Coast in Littleton: the Screaming Boar Smokehouse. This place was so good that it merits its own (forthcoming) review, but I will summarize the experience here. The BBQ was great, the proprietor was awesome, and the bar was well stocked.

The Screaming Boar Smokehouse bar is very well stoked. The owner is very knowledgable, and has excellent beer recommendations.

After dinner we headed back for a little campfire, a little blogging, and a lot of Zs.

Goodnight!