New England – Fall 2010 – Day 5: Franconia

Sadly we got up to an unchanged weather situation. We had breakfast and stayed in the hotel hoping for the rain to ease. Fortunately there was a pool and hot-tub in the hotel and we were the only people taking advantage of them as all the coaches had disappeared before we woke.
It was mid-afternoon before the rain eased and we drove back into Littleton to take some photos having enjoyed the visit the previous night.
The amount of rain that had fallen meant that the river running through the town was high and wild. The photos taken from the Veterans’ Memorial Bridge and the covered bridge were impressive – large tree trunks were being carried downstream and had some of them hit the wooden bridge supports we would have felt the impact.
In some ways though I was more impressed by the memorial bridge, each of the rail supports across the width of the river commemorated with a metal plaque a fallen Littleton serviceman who has paid the supreme sacrifice in all wars.
Fifty men have been killed in action through the years. Last year the New Hampshire House of Representatives and New Hampshire Senate enacted a law naming the bridge on Cottage Street at the Town Building "The Veterans Memorial Bridge" honouring all veterans over the years who have served our country. Flag holders have been installed and these flags will be above the individual plaque. A larger plaque has been installed on the wall of the Town Building naming the "Veterans Memorial Bridge". Each of the organizations in town is being asked to participate in the fundraising of this project by soliciting their members for contributions to the fund and also to having a fund drive. In this way it is felt that every Littleton resident will have the opportunity to contribute to honoring these men.
There will also be a plaque honoring these who died in the service of their country by other causes: flu, pneumonia and typhoid, to name but a few.
The amount of respect shown by these little towns is moving and perhaps a lesson to many English towns and villages who have a neglected war memorial somewhere but no day-to-day concern about it.
I was so taken with Littleton I searched for references on the internet and discovered this article ranking it amongst classic “Main Street” towns.

Littleton, NH : What You'll Find:
An historic Inn. A 100-year old Opera House. Quaint shops, pubs, a sculpture of Pollyanna, and the longest candy counter in the world! Littleton's Main Street is one of the last "classic" Main Streets in New England. Parallel to Main Street, you'll find a working grist mill and the rolling rapids of the Ammonoosuc River.
Why You Should Go:
To dip your toes in the cold waters of the Ammonoosuc, pick up some pancake mix made at the Littleton Grist Mill, explore the walking trails of Littleton and drive along one of the official "scenic byways" of New Hampshire. Hold some old coins in your hand at the Littleton Coin Company, pick up some fresh fruit at the Farmer's Market during the summer, and stop in the Village Bookstore while you are there.
When we walked the classic “Main Street” we enjoyed the Diner again and took the photos that I had promised myself, we admired the huge and impressive post office which seems standard for all but the smallest settlements. We scouted some potential restaurants for that evening but were most intrigued by the wooden house with an old petrol pump on its porch alongside four various armchairs. We had assumed that the pump was purely for show but when I downloaded the picture to a full size screen you can see a notice above the mail slot which says, “Pay Here” so perhaps you can park on this drive and fill up your tank and pay by pushing the payment into the house through the letter box! It takes “self service” just one step further! It also implies a level of trust in ones neighbours which we found challenging, petrol pump, wooden house, serve yourself – tempting for the local arsonist and if they burnt down your house using the petrol you supplied you’d never be able to work out if they put payment through the mail slot!
On our way back to the hotel we explored Franconia – not a big task – the 2006 Census estimate for Franconia was only 1,036 residents, which ranked 184th among New Hampshire's incorporated cities and towns, we drove through the town and only saw one restaurant, the Dutch Treat. We checked out the menu and decided to eat there later that evening. We did notice that there was a singer advertised but since the restaurant was so close to the hotel we decided to risk it.
We arrived at the Dutch Treat and had the worst eating experience of the trip. I can only hope the owners were Dutch otherwise that’s two lies in the same title. The service was slow the food barely average and the worst of the experience was the singer in the bar. He sang many of our favourite songs unfortunately because they were our favourites we knew the words better than he did. His ability to carry a tune was worse than you would tolerate in a karaoke evening and the apathy of his audience was fully deserved. The only thing which impressed us in the whole experience was the “Trivial Pursuit” cards on each table – presumably we were supposed to wile away the hours waiting to be served questioning each other.
The evening was so bad it became funny, we watched new innocents arrive, be seated, and wait to win the lottery prize of a visit from the aging staff, with knowing tolerance. One family group played the establishment at their own game, they ordered then lost interest themselves and left without anyone noticing. Their food never arrived thus giving the restaurant the last laugh.
Despite the poor quality and the rural location the food was not cheap and the very drinkable beer was extortionate but we were able to save on the tip.
Since returning home I have googled the Dutch Treat and the reviews I found on Yahoo travel indicate that we were not the unluckiest people to eat there.