Auto Travel during the New England winter months

<p>I can contemplating traveling from Providence, RI to Portland, Me and Concord, NH ending<br>

up in Boston during the latter part of December 2016.<br>

I was wondering of anybody could enlighten me and my wife on the possible<br>

winter driving conditions during this time of year.<br>

In addition to the various photographic possibilities.<br>

Thanks!</p>

<p>So long you drive during the day your chances (and safety) are improved. Haven't driven there since '82 (to Acadia)....so it might as well be previous lifetime :>). You can count, however, on day temps of 40-45 up to N. Hampshire > from there North the mercury drops, both in the day (30's) and even lower at night. As my friend (from Conn) smartly says, despite global warming, don't expect tropical temps. Besides, you can't dial this in, and temps tend to vary somewhat.</p>

<p>I'm familiar with some parks (historical too) there, waterfalls, etc., but wait to see what the locals would say.</p>

<p>Les</p>

 

<p>Its hard to predict what the weather is going to be tomorrow, much less six months from now. That said, one needs to understand that New England can have snow any time between mid-November and late March.<br>

With two possible reservations, it is likely that the roads will be clear and dry. Because winter weather is something that happens routinely in New England, the various jurisdictions are equipped to deal with storms and the roads are cleared within a few hour of the end of a storm.<br>

The two reservations are <br>

1. Traveling during a storm can be tricky.. It is impossible to predict this far ahead if that is likely to happen. In most cases, storms last for only a few hours, there rae periods of days to weeks between serious storms, so at most you might encounter a short delay. Yes, I know you've probably seen the TV new reports about storms that last for days - but those are on the news because they are rare and therefore newsworthy.<br>

2. Road conditions on the major roads are generally predictable. However, if you venture off onto back grads, things can be different. Your itinerary sounds like you will be mainly staying on I-95, and my experience is that the traffic is likely to be more of a concern than road conditions.</p>

<p>You should probably plan your trip carefully, and book ahead for lodging. This will be a holiday period, and if there weather is sufficiently winterish, lots of people will be traveling in the direction of ski resorts in New Hampshire and Maine. </p>

<p>You asked about photographic opportunities. Keep in mind that you are talking about winter, which miens that its cold outside and some attractions will be closed. Some suggesitons:<br>

Providence: the Brown University campus is interesting (and will be pretty much empty during that period). There is a river that passes through downtown Providence that has interesting walking paths and nighttime lighting - could be very nice with a little snow.<br>

Southern Maine and New Hampshire - frankly, these are more appealing in the Summer. The area around Ogunquit is nice, and the marginal wak could be interesting (but very cold) - its right on the Atlantic and exposed to fierce wind) <br>

Boston - you will likely find more here. Make a point of visiting Salem and Gloucester - they will be very quiet in the winter, but sill picturesque. Street scenes in Boston will be possible. I believe that the USS Institution is in drydock for a couple of years - I know that it's still open to visitors but I don't know how much you can see. Walk the Freedom Trail, stroll through the North End (Italian district - the smells from the restaurants will make you very hungry). Boston Common and the Public Garden will be open for strolling but the boats will be in storage for the winter.. Drive west on the Turnpike to Sturbridge - a historic recreation about an hour to the west. Plymouth is another possibility. Both are likely to be open because ithe week between Christmas and New Years is a major tourist period.</p>

The weather can be quite variable as explained above, however the amount of daylight is the shortest of

the year, check almanac info. I believe the Pilgrims landed in Plymouth on December 20. You might check

to see if the town has any special events on that day. Cape Cod, where the Mayflower first stopped should

be quite empty in December and might be worth a look. Portland has a good ferry service to the various

Casco Bay islands and a ride to one of the outer islands and back would be a good trip. The coast line

from Portsmouth down to Gloucester via New Castle, Rye, Newburyport, Plum Island, Ipswich, and Essex

has many scenic spots. Enjoy.

<p>Any time you travel in a place with a real Winter, there are risks. I have done it many times, on rare occasions being stranded, and once almost killed. Keep informed on what the weather is doing, pack a Winter survival kit, and have respect for the elements. You will be fine, and as all have mentioned, beat the crowds. New England in Winter can be very beautiful.</p>

<p>Would be nice if someone who actually lives in New England might confirm, but I suspect that there's a big difference between driving from A to B along main roads that are regularly cleared, and driving around to photograph which will tend to involve little roads. So is this a photo trip or just main road driving.</p>

<p>If the climatologists are correct, there will be less likelihood of the east coast mega-blizzards this winter due to the La Nina effect, although the temps will be colder than in past years.</p>

<p>To be honest, I'm wondering why anyone would contemplate a drive through New England in December -- autumn, yes, but winter?</p>

Having lived in the northeast US all my life, winter weather is certainly a concern but should not be a reason

not to contemplate a trip through New England in winter. As Sandy describes above, there are certainly

precautions to take but there is also incomparable beauty after a fresh snowfall. Also note that even a small

amount of snow (and especially ice) can result in treacherous driving conditions and a large storm can result in

impassable conditions.

<p>Thanks!!! so very much for all of your comments and suggestions.<br>

I will certainly adhere to your advice re: driving and weather precautions.<br>

My wife as always wanted to be in an arena of a potential White (Snowy) Christmas.<br>

With our living in Texas and California as you can imagine we have not had a real opportunity<br>

of such a Christmas; and, since we are avid travel photographers. Photography is always<br>

included in our various travels. Again we will appreciate your continual suggestions.</p>

<p>A thought on photographing in the snow seeing as you're not terribly experienced. Wanting more snowy photographs, I sold my sedan a decade ago and bought an all wheel drive SUV complete with mud & snow rated tyres. It works well, though there is a "but" and quite a big one. When driving along small roads under snow cover, you can normally see where to drive OK from others tracks and the edge of the road is often visible. What I find I can rarely do is see where I can stop the car to photograph. On the small roads where generally the photographs lie, there are few pull-offs and you often can't make out those there are. Neither can you tell the difference between a gentle flat verge that you can get on and off easily, and a ditch . Even a ditch a few inches deep will stop you getting any "normal" vehicle off unless you're good with chains and winches. So outside of stopping in the middle of the road for a minute or two, photographing with a car in the snow has proved an exercise in frustration. </p>

A further thought, Google up a map of the area, zoom in and out while switching back and forth between

the map and satellite views and note areas that look interesting. There are a lot of little roads that will be

dead ended when you reach the water but may have good scenery alone the way.

Weather here (I'm in the Boston area) is unpredictable. It was over 70 degrees this past Christmas Eve! The potential for

snow storms is always there though, and we're generally advised to stay off the roads DURING them, but we're used to

snow and the roads typically get cleared quickly. Someone may have pointed this out (I haven't read all of the

responses) but I would definitely rent a four wheel drive vehicle - it can make a significant difference with ice and snow.

Do that and you should be just fine.