Photos by Shannon K.

Click HERE to visit Shannon's photo-galleries.

I have to admit, before my visit to New England, I didn’t know much about the place.
I had seen some photos of colorful leaves, and had heard they has a good recipe for clam chowder…that was about it!
Travelling is my profession, besides being one of my major life passions,so I thought: "Why not?"
What kind of Travelling Bear would I be if I missed an opportunity to explore another corner of the world?

So…I packed myself up and off I went.

My host Shannon tried to show me many of the things that are considered "Classic New England" during my visit and give me a little education about the place.

I discovered that New England is really a region of the United States made up of 6 states …and I think Shannon mentioned a little something about the Pilgrims landing there.

I interpreted that as "New England is old"….or at least one of the oldest areas of the USA.

Shannon and I were able to visit all of the six states that make up New England – Connecticut where she lives, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

Each state in the region has something it’s known for and while we weren’t able to see everything, we did get to see a fair amount and sample a lot of the delicious food (and drink!) in the area.

Connecticut in the fall has absolutely great foliage, and it turns out leaf piles are a lot of fun to play in.
I also got to see a covered bridge on my way to Western Massachusetts.

Massachusetts had a lot of quaint towns, and a great brewery in Bear-ington…..um…I mean Barrington, MA.

Rhode Island is on the coast, so I got to see my first Atlantic Ocean lighthouse of the trip.
It was awfully windy that day though, so we didn’t stay long….especially when I knew the next stop on the trip was another brewery!
Are you seeing a pattern here?

Vermont is known for its orchards, so Shannon and I got to try some yummy apples and to see a really neat gorge…
it was a bit high up for my tastes, but the view was pretty impressive.

Maine is known for having an impressive coast line, so we stopped at another lighthouse right around sunset.
I have to say, it was very picturesque.
But it was a long drive and I was hungry (and thirsty)….so we continued on to New Hampshire.

New Hampshire had some great food – we stopped at…well, another brewery in the heart of a quaint downtown – and ate (and drank) to our heart’s content.

I give New England an A+!