Delights of New England in spotlight

Festivals, train rides and rambles around New England all offer opportunities for enjoying the region’s autumn colour.

The September-October issue of Yankee magazine lists many suggestions for activities and destinations.

Yankee’s recommendations for fall foliage trains include the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad in Maine; Hoosac Valley train rides operated by the Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum out of North Adams, Massachusetts; the Conway Scenic Railroad based in North Conway, New Hampshire; the Mount Washington Cog Railway out of Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, and the Essex Steam Train in Essex, Connecticut, with a riverboat ride option on the Connecticut River.

Events showcased in the fall issue of Yankee range from country fairs to food festivals to the Jack-o-Lantern Spectacular, Oct. 5-Nov. 5 at the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence, Rhode Island, a display of 5,000 carved and illuminated pumpkins.

Other events include Westport, Connecticut’s Oct. 1 Chowdafest; the Pawtucket Arts Festival, with a month’s worth of events in Rhode Island; the Mount Snow Oktoberfest, Oct. 78, in West Dover, Vermont; Maine’s Fryeburg Fair, Oct. 1-8, plus Harvest on the Harbor in Portland, Oct. 17-22; the Big E expo in Springfield, Massachusetts, Sept. 15-Oct. 1, and the Topsfield Fair, north of Boston, Sept. 29-Oct. 9.

Yankee also takes a look at offthe-beaten path spots to enjoy Vermont autumn scenery, from the Falls of Lana and Mount Ascutney to a cruise on Lake Memphremagog and a forest drive on the unpaved Bayley-Hazen Military Road between Lowell and Montgomery. Other recommendations include enjoying the rocking chairs on the sidewalks of Brandon and paying tribute to beloved departed canines at the Dog Chapel and Dog Mountain in St. Johnsbury.

For those who get more excited about Halloween than fall colour, Yankee also profiles Salem, Massachusetts, famous for its 17th century witchcraft trials and executions.