The Kancamagus Scenic Highway

The Kancamagus Highway crosses the White Mountain National Forest area of central New Hampshire and is one of New England's most scenic roadways.

"The Kanc", as it is popularly called, connects Lincoln NH to the west with Conway NH to the east through of the Kancamagus Pass.

The Highway is thirty-four miles in length and much of that distance is spent on curves, which accounts for a good deal of it's wild popularity among bikers.

The western portion of the pass and the upper part of the eastern side are peppered with tight switch-backs and hair-pin curves, while the lower portion of the east side smooths out into wide sweeping curves as it follows the course of the Swift River out of the mountains.

In high season the Kanc is a busy place, with vacationers crowding the camping areas and jamming into the many swimming holes along the Swift River.

By bike and auto I've traveled the Kanc over a half dozen times and by far the most enjoyable trips were those made during weekdays when traffic was at a minimum.

The first time I drove the Kanc was on my way to Frank's Brit Barn where I first set eyes on my '69 Bonnie. A couple weeks later Bonnie made the trip over the Kanc in the back of Dave's pick-up on the way to her new home.

On one particular trip, during August of 2006, the Highway was nearly deserted, so much so that I actually coasted down a good portion of the east side at 20-25 mph. It's amazing how much more you can see at 25 mph than you can at 60 mph. And much lower chances of going over the side!

The first set of photos here were taken during that August 2006 trip, while the photos beneath the map were taken during September of 2013.