This Week at TravelGolf.com: Oct. 10, 2007

Fall golf comes alive in New England

When I moved to Europe nearly three years ago, I was surprised at how little I missed about the United States. I did not pine away for American conveniences or pop and consumer culture. I didn't even really miss specific people or places - that is until my first fall rolled around.

You see, I grew up in New England and fall is New England's time to really shine. The season is an all-out assault on your senses: Trees explode in a canvass of crimson and scarlet and gold. The air, still warm, develops a crisp little bite and is sweetened with the smell of wood smoke and dry leaves. Towns spruce their greens and central squares and congregational churches up. There are harvest festivals, and locals rummage through yard sales and farmers markets. There is a sense of community, and people seize on the chance to get outside one more time and talk to one another before winter drives them indoors for four months.

New Englanders will tell you that Fall has a different feeling to it (though we struggle to explain just what that means). And my new home lacked that feeling. I missed it.

So this year, my third fall overseas, I decided to return and spend October traveling around New England playing golf. If you've got a car and some free days, you should too. Many of the best golf courses in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont are rugged mountain tracks that boast expansive views of the colorful fall in front of seemingly every shot. Want something more coastal and farther south? Golf courses along Boston's South Shore or around Newport, Rhode Island fuse rusticity with a maritime flavor.

Traditionally, Columbus Day marked the peak of the fall season. But an unseasonably warm September means the season's changes have been slower in coming this year. That's good news for golf travelers: Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire are just hitting their peak right now, and Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut will continue to unfold during the next two weeks.

No matter where you decide to stay and play, be sure to take some extra time to simply wander the back roads. Stop in a small town or two. Once you leave you might miss it too.

As always, TravelGolf.com welcomes your comments.

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