Sights & Scenes: Northeastern MA

Our final day of Sights & Scenes brings us to northeastern MA, from the Concord area up through Haverhill and out to the coast. See the previous few days' posts in Connecticut & Rhode Island, the Worcester area, south and west of Boston, Boston itself, and north and east of Boston. Click on any of the headings here to see the stores in that group.

Greater Lowell & Northern Middlesex and Return to Lowell

Pepperell, MA - My first trip through this area was on an incredible fall day when I biked from Worcester up to a friend's house in Nashua, NH, winding my way through the country roads of Middlesex County. Here are some of the most beautiful scenes from Pepperell, a quaint town where we saw two little grocery stores.

Littleton, MA - Same day, different location, at the postcard-perfect train station in Littleton.

Carlisle, MA is about halfway between Concord and Chelmsford, and home to this former cranberry bog that's now a nature preserve. Although it's tranquil and feels remote, it's not far from residential areas in South Chelsmford, so it's a common spot to go for a run or walk a dog. The roads through Carlisle, which is a very small town, wind through the forests.

Just to the north, Lowell, MA is a midsized city and a former mill town, and the sprawling brick mill buildings still line the Merrimack River that cuts through the city. It's also a college town, as it's home to UMass Lowell, and is the hometown of Market Basket.

Central Middlesex

Concord, MA - There's some great food in this area, too, such as this bread from the wonderful Nashoba Brook Bakery in Concord, whose Slow Rise breads appear in grocery stores across the region. The bakery also has a retail store and restaurant in Concord. And down in Bedford, MA, is another spot for amazing baked goods called Eva's Little Kitchen (which also now has a location in West Concord not far from Nashoba Brook).

Lawrence & Haverhill

Sorry, no more pictures from this group.

Mass/NH Coast

Rockport, MA - Between Gloucester and Rockport is the breathtaking Pebble Beach -- not a spot to set up a beach chair and an umbrella, necessarily, but an incredible view out to the Atlantic.

Ipswich, MA - For a very different type of beauty, visit Ipswich's Riverview Restaurant -- an old-school cash-only joint turning out some exceptional bar pizzas.

Newburyport, MA - Newburyport's most exciting draw isn't the supermarkets, but its waterfront downtown. The big-box retail -- including the Shaw's and Market Basket -- is outside of town, to the west towards Haverhill.

Possibly an unpopular opinion: the best time to visit Rye, NH's Jenness Beach is on a cold winter day. The fog and crashing waves are dramatic and exciting. Just as long as you don't want to go for a dip.

But the beach is pretty stunning in beautiful weather, too...

And that brings us officially to the end of our travels through Massachusetts (plus Connecticut, Rhode Island, and a tiny sliver of New Hampshire)! Thanks for taking this journey with me, and I hope you've enjoyed it. Tomorrow we're back to regular supermarket coverage, and we're taking a look at the 10th year feature for March!