Weekends with Yankee

Visit Provincetown, Massachusetts, for an off-road ramble through Cape Cod National Seashore and Rhode Island's Narragansett Bay to hear the story of the Rose Island Lighthouse. Finally. board a ferry to the Maine island of North Haven, to discover a coastal farm like no other and the Nebo Lodge, an inn and restaurant that draws guests from around the world.

Venture into the wild off Chatham, Massachusetts, to accompany researchers tracking the growing number of great white sharks along the Atlantic coast. Then head to inland Maine to visit The Lost Kitchen, one of the most sought-after dinner reservations in the country. Finally, it's off to the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, and go flying up and down the mountain biking trails of Burke Mountain.

Attend a Connecticut Tigers minor league baseball game with big-league fervor. Travel up the coast of Maine in search of the ultimate lobster roll at a little shack called McLoons. And hike to Castle in the Clouds, a hidden gem nestled high above New Hampshire's famed Lakes Region. Back in the Test Kitchen, try a fresh take on lobster chowder featuring saffron, tomatoes, and bacon.

Discover the colorful tradition of cranberry harvesting, which the Gilmore family of South Carver, Massachusetts, has been doing for generations. Then head to Portland, Maine, a food lover's paradise. Last but not least, we go off the beaten path in Vermont to explore Greensboro, "the best little food town in New England," and visit a cult brewer and a cheese maker that rank among America's best.

At Boston's Fenway Park, find a tucked-away garden that provides fresh vegetables to food vendors throughout Fenway. On Chebeague Island, in southern Maine, visit a decades-old, family-run inn and harvest oysters from the waters of Casco Bay. And learn why glamping is all the rage with our look at Sandy Pines Resort in Kennebunkport, Maine, where we feast on gourmet s'mores by the campfire.

Hike New Hampshire's White Mountains in the company of the "hut croos," young men and women who pack food and supplies up steep trails to the famed rustic lodges along the Appalachian Trail. Then visit the Grafton Village Cheese Company, and try the loaves at Elmore Mountain Bread in Wolcott, Vermont. Finally, Yankee senior food editor Amy Traverso whips up some Vermont cheese gougères.

Stop in at Cape Cod's Chatham Bars Inn for the ultimate farm-to-table dinner, featuring local seafood and vegetables just picked from the hotel's own farm. Take a surfing lesson in Rhode Island's Narragansett Bay and learns why there's such surprisingly good wave action in New England. And forage mushrooms with chef Evan Mallett, co-owner of the Black Trumpet in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Explore how New England's past continues to shape its present.  Visit Scott Farm Orchard in Dummerston, Vermont, where they grow more than 100 apple varieties, some of which date back to the 1600s, and then see Coppal House Farm, where much of the equipment is still powered by draft horses. And hop aboard the two-masted schooner J&E Riggin built in 1927 that still sails along the Maine coast.

Visit Hanover, New Hampshire, "the best college town" in New England. Then stroll through The Elms, one of the most breathtaking of Newport's Gilded Age mansions. Finally, head to Martha's Vineyard for some of the most succulent sea scallops in the world. And Yankee senior food editor Amy Traverso shows us how to pull off a terrific, easy-to-make baked scallop dish with garlic and vermouth.

Visit Shelburne Farms on the shores of Lake Champlain, where farmers and artisans raise Brown Swiss cows and make delicious cheeses from their milk. Chef Brendan Pelley prepares delicious lake trout over a campfire at Lake Winnipesaukee. Then Richard Wiese casts for trout with James Prosek, a fisherman, artist, and author who celebrates the beauty of this revered fish in his work.

Cruise Lake Winnipesaukee aboard the Sophie C, the oldest floating post office in the United States. Go deep-sea fishing with lobsterman and photographer Joel Woods. And experience a genuine Maine clambake outside Acadia National Park with three of Portland, Maine's hottest chefs. And Amy Traverso brings the clambake home as she creates a stovetop version of this New England classic.

Celebrate autumn in all its glory. Hike to Holt's Ledge in Hanover, New Hampshire, and get a fall color tutorial from photographer Jim Salge. Visit goat farmer and cheese maker Allison Hooper of Vermont Creamery. Tour New Hampshire's Kancamagus Highway and discover the out-of-the-way vistas on one of America's most scenic highways. And, make a beet salad with fried goat cheese in the test kitchen.

In historic Lexington, Massachusetts, where the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired, cook up a New England artisan dinner with chef Stacy Cogswell at the Inn at Hastings Park. Snuggle in a horse-drawn sleigh at Nestlenook Farm in Jackson, New Hampshire, and discover some great New England food gifts that can be made quickly and easily in the kitchen.