White Mountains Road Trip

Road Trip Ideas in White Mountains of New Hampshire

Want to take a road trip in and around the White Mountains of New Hampshire? There are many cool places to see both natural and man-made attractions, some are hidden places in New Hampshire that not many people know about, until now!

Starting at I-93 in North Woodstock NH take exit 32 head West onto Rt. 112, this is the famous Kancamagus Scenic Byway. Along the way across this 34+ mile stretch of road you will first encounter the downtown area of North Woodstock New Hampshire. Filled with little shops, coffee shops, attractions, NH hotels, and other tourism focused businesses. As you continue West you will notice a sudden drop off of businesses as you enter the raw wilderness part of the Kancamagus Scenic Byway. Be sure you have enough fuel in your vehicle to make the 34.5 mile ride as there are no gas stations, or other businesses in this area. You can stop at many different scenic areas and viewing points along the Kancamagus. The area is rich in history and offers short to long hikes, waterfalls, and other natural attractions. You can expect this to take a minimum of 1 hour assuming you stop at least once to take in the scenery for a short time. As you reach the end of the Kancamagus Scenic Byway you will come into North Conway, New Hampshire. Take a left onto NH Rt. 16 to head north.

North Conway New Hampshire is much like North Woodstock, except you are more likely to find larger chain store and hotels on this end of the Kancamagus. There are malls, chain stores and restaurants, as you head further north you will begin seeing smaller, more quaint little shops again. This area may have more traffic depending on the day and time you end up there so be sure to plan for this.

After leaving the downtown area of North Conway there is another natural attraction we would recommend seeing at this point called Cathedral Ledge State Park. Cathedral Ledge lookout is something you can drive to most times of the year (closed in winter). You will have an awesome view of the area from the top of this ledge, and if you’re lucky you may also see some daring rock climbers on the other ledges nearby. (view on Google Maps)

After leaving Cathedral Ledge State Park You can see a waterfall called Diana’s Baths. Diana’s Baths are just a short hike (30 mins or so) from the parking lot.

Leaving Diana’s Baths you can choose to ride down Rt. 302 east to head back to I-93 which is another scenic ride, or you can continue to our next natural attraction called Glen Ellis Falls. Glen Ellis Falls is a short walk, maybe 15 mins or so to get from the parking area to the falls.

After leaving Glen Ellis Falls you can head further north up Rt. 16 to view Mount Washington. Here you can take the Mt Washington Auto Road, or the Cog Railway Train which both take you to the summit of Mount Washington.

This should conclude a full day of road trippin’ in New Hampshire, but if you find yourself with less time in the area for this NH road trip you may want to consider doing this road trip in reverse order so you can get to the summit of Mt. Washington.