Sugaring Season is Right Around the Corner

Maple Syrup (and other maple products) might as well be one of the four major food groups...at least in New Hampshire and the exciting news is that the maple sugar season is just about here.  The precise date of the start of sugaring season varies from year to year (depending on the right combination of cold nights and above-freezing temperatures during the day).  However, sap houses are gearing up for the season which could start in the next few weeks (the season in the Monadnock Region runs roughly from mid-February to mid-April).

In the meantime, mark your calendars for the New Hampshire Maple Weekend which will be held this year on March 23 & 24, 2013. During that time, you can visit one of the many sugar houses that open their doors and give you the opportunity to become maple connoisseurs.  You can learn all about how maple sap is collected and the process by which it becomes syrup.  Learn about the different grades of syrup and sample many tasty treats made from the sweet delicious liquid.

Learn more about the New Hampshire Maple Weekend and participating Monadnock Region sugar producers.

General Stores - the way people used to shop...and still can

In this age of big-box stores, you can still step back in time to another generation and experience an old fashioned New England country village store.

In the Monadnock Region there are still many of these General Stores with soft worn wooden floors, a bell jingle as you open the front door and a warm welcoming smile from the merchants.  Make sure to stop by and pick up some items you need, get information on the town, and stay a while to get the flavor of an old time village store.  Many make great lunch stops with their delicious deli counters, small dining areas...and some have even more sophisticated menus.

Your local innkeeper can point you in the right direction but there are General Stores in most towns.

Bookstore Tourism in the Monadnock Region

Travelers who are bibliophiles can’t help but wander into local bookstores when visiting a new place. Visiting an independent, used, or antiquarian bookstore is an exciting adventure for book lovers … the thrill of the “local authors” section, the delight in finding a rare book, and then there’s the relaxation of sitting down and reading the first page of a coveted hardcover.

According to Larry Portzline, the author of “Bookstore Tourism: The Book Addict's Guide to Planning & Promoting Bookstore Road Trips for Bibliophiles & Other Bookshop Junkies”, bookstore tourism is a growing grassroots travel niche that encourages book lovers to plan group trips to cities and towns with interesting, fun and unique independent bookshops.  “It taps into this thirst for literary adventure,” he writes. Portzline suggests combine your bookstore trip with other literary attractions, such as writing retreat centers, sites of well-known books and tours of famous authors’ homes.

Here are some bookstores along the way if you plan a literary adventure in the Monadnock Region. Asterisked (*) booksellers are open by appointment or by chance only, so make sure you call ahead. And don’t miss the upcoming “Round the Mountain Book Sale” on April 11-14, 2013. For more information about this sale and participating bookstores visit:

Aard Books*
31 Russell Ave., Troy NH
603-242-3638.

Bequaert Old Books*
37 Rt 119 W, Fitzwilliam, NH
603-585-3448

Callahan & Company Booksellers*
Rte. 123, Sharon, NH
603-924-3726

Eagle Books*
19 West St., Right off Central Square in Keene, NH

603-357-8721 


Homestead Books
221 East Main St. (Rt 101), Marlborough, NH

603-876-4213


Hurley Books, Inc.*

1752 Rte. 12, Westmoreland, NH 03467
603-399-4342 


Ray Boas, Bookseller*

On the Common, 44 Elm St., Walpole, NH 03608

603-756-9900


Ted Cole Books*
7 West Street, Antrim, NH 03440

Books also for sale at New Hampshire Antique Coop in Milford, NH
603-588-3145


The Book Preserve*
33 North Main St., Antrim, NH
603-588-4020


Toadstool Bookshops
3 Locations:
  12 Depot Sq., Peterborough, NH
  222 West St., Keene, NH
  586 Nashua St., Milford, NH