June 2025 TransNH Expedition Recap

Wow! I can't believe it's been almost a month since this trip. We had a fantastic time, and hope all our guests did too.

Day 0 started out for the ExploringNH crew by heading up to Pittsburg for our usual overnight stop at the Buck Rub Pub. We enjoyed an awesome dinner and hospitality and had an opportunity to meet some of our guests who were also staying at the Buck Rub.

There was a hazy start to the morning, but the weather cleared in time for an amazing breakfast at Green Acres, a lovely little shop and cafe we found. This will become a regular stop for sure! The breakfast sandwiches and bowls were delicious, and the kids gave 2 thumbs up to the donuts and cannolis.

We met up with the rest of the crew at the border, then headed to our first logging roads. The clear sky had one disadvantage this time - dust! Despite heavy rain the week before, the recent hot, dry days made for dusty conditions on Day 1. However, I think it was worth it for the absolutely perfect views from Mt. Washington that afternoon. Day 1 also included two waterfall hikes, a picnic lunch, the Milan ski jump (Big Nansen), a provisioning stop at LL Cote, and a personal tour of the Red Barn Museum at Mt. Washington.

The day ended at The Beach Camping Area, a long-time favorite of ENH. Clouds moved in during dinner, but the rain held off until bedtime, allowing us time for an amazing dinner (more on that in a minute) and some campfire chat. We were lucky again that the heavy rain moved out at 7am just in time for us to pack up and have breakfast before moving on.

Day 2 started with a drive along the historic Kancamagus Highway, exploring a covered bridge, and learning about the history of the area. The trek west also included some easier Class VI roads and a new lunch stop. After lunch we increased the excitement on the Class VI's and learned more history before heading to Newport and our overnight accommodations at Northstar Campground.

Once again, the weather cleared just in time to set up camp and have dinner. For the first time, we provided our guests with all meals on the trip. We brought along our friends Ryan and Corie. If anyone has had Ryan's food at another event, you know why we asked him! Friday night featured grilled bread and cold soup appetizers and paella. For Saturday night, Ryan made hummus and several other sauces to go with grilled chicken schwarma, grille veggies, and a couscous salad. All our meals were complimented by baked goods from Crosby Bakery (Nashua, NH) and mustards and hot sauces from Butterfly Bakery of VT (who was recently featured in Food & Wine Magazine and has had 3 sauces featured on Hot Ones). We learned a lot, got some great feedback and are looking forward to September!

After breakfast and packing up camp, we started out Day 3 with more Class VI roads. This road is one of our favorites. It looks intimidating, but everyone made it through and had fun. Many of our guests headed off after lunch as they had longer drives and had to work on Monday. A few more local folks followed us to the seacoast for the official end of the June 2025 TransNH Expedition.

Thank you to everyone who joined us. We hope to see you again soon!