Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad & Meredith Sculpture Walk

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A striped header image reading Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad Meredith Sculpture Walk Meredith, New Hampshire

On the same trip where I visited Canterbury Shaker Village and Castle in the Clouds, I rode a train on Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad and saw art on the Meredith Sculpture Walk in Meredith, New Hampshire. Sitting between Lake Waukewan and Meredith Bay, the town of Meredith is a relaxing getaway, less busy than nearby towns border Lake Winnipesaukee and filled with history.

A tan sign with a brown boarder and the heading reading Welcome to Meredith in a script font. Below the heading is a complex map of the town with a key for every business and restaurant. A tall tan sign with a blue and white silhouette of buildings at the top. Underneath is the phrase WELCOME TO MEREDITH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AREA in a serif font. Below is a map showing the location of Meredith compared to major highways and lakes in the area. A whitewashed pole with five thin signs pointing to Chruch Landing, Gazebo, Lake House Grille, Public Walkway, and Boat Rides A round sign with the words Historic Meredith Village Shopping Dining Parking around the edge and the words ’do the loop’ in the middle A purple banner attached to a lamppost with the words Welcome to Historic Mill Falls MARKETPLACE and a silhouette of a mill building with a waterfall. A faded blue-green sign declaring a nearby park a Land & Water Conservation Area by the U.S. Department of the Interior A pair of matching white wooden buildings beside a parking lot. A white church steeple is visible behind the right building. A white metal sign with a red border and red text reading WE ARE TRYING TO CLEAN UP HESKY PARK IF YOU SEE A GOODE ON THE GRASS PLEASE ENCOURAGE IT BACK INTO THE WATER A narrow canal infront of a cluster of yellow and white wooden buildings Planted flowers in front of a canal. A white wooden bridge croses the canal. White wooden mill buildings are behind the canal and bridge. A manmade waterfall beside white fences and in front of a light gray wooden mill building.

Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad, which runs between Meredith and Weirs Beach, and its sister Hobo Railroad, which runs between Tilton and Lincoln, date from 1848, making the railroad among the oldest in the country. The tracks were once part of the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad, a favorite system of historic "railfans". Like many New England railroads, practical used steeply declined after the widespread introduction of interstate highways in the 1950s and all but stopped after mill production ceased in the 1970s. The tracks and trains now serve as tourist attractions and have been operated by the Clark family since the late 1980s. The conductor provides all these facts and many more during the narrative portion of the two-hour out-and-back train trip, with similar information available on the website to accommodate Deaf and hearing impaired passengers.

A blue train train car, a red train car, and a green train car. A green train car with a large stylized green sign reading WINNIPESAUKEE RAILROAD Scenic TRAIN RIDES. A metal roller on a train car door covered in white paint. A line of four colorful railcars in dark red, green, bright red, and blue. A green metal boxcar with some rust. A red sign reading in part LAKESIDE TRAIN RIDES with an image of a shiny train engine

A scenic rail trip is an entertaining and educational family outing, with comfortable seating, friendly staff, and snacks available for purchase while on the ride. The conductor was both personable and knowledgeable, fielding questions from passengers of all ages, including my niche interests in 19th century transportation and engineer licensing. Additionally, the wide aisles and a portable wheelchair lift at the Meredith station makes the trains wheelchair accessible. The only possible improvement to this experience would be reducing the lull in the action the occured between eighty and a hundred minutes into the trip. Providing an “I Spy” sheet with trackside landmarks or piping in railroad themed music would prevent any squirming from sitting too long in a train car.

The front of a red train car with a black room and black safety bars across the front deck. Plush red traincar seats set back to back, each facing a red table. Large windows behind the seats and tables reveal the tree covered banks outside the train. A half-hidden sign reading ’Hobo Railroad Winnipesaukee SCENIC RAILROAD’ with a stylized image of a red train engine crossing a red metal bridge. A line of dark blue traincars standing on the tracks. A red traincar is visible behind the dark blue traincars. A passage between a pair of traincars, with wrought iron guardrails. The side of the cars are red and white, with yellow hand grips. A red sign reading LAKESIDE TRAIN RIDES WINNIPESAUKEE SCENIC RAILROAD NEXT LEFT with an image of a stylized red train engine

Abby Epplett’s Rating System

Experience: 9/10

Accessibility: 10/10



The Meredith Sculpture Walk is a showcase of artwork from artists around the northeastern United States. Sponsored by the Greater Meredith Program (GMP), the walk is in its ninth season, having started with its first call for artists in 2014. Sculptures made of metal, stone, and concrete come in a range in style from realistic depictions of human faces to abstract shapes. My favorite piece was “Red Rider”, a mobile that moved in the wind.

Birdman Dale Rogers Haverill, MA A statue of a man with his arms held out in t-pose with three orange birds on his arms. Hello Lady, Colton Workman, Gilford, NH A bronze statue of a woman wearing a blue dress. Highways from Vermont, Bruce Hathaway, Richmond, VT A mirrored pair of metal sculptures like a broken lattice Ice Flower Dandelion; Gints Grinbers; Dedham, MA A ten-foot-tall metal statue of a dandelion Detroitus; Dave Channon; Shandaken, NY A whitewashed metal statue made of car parts depicting a person throwing a pubcat like a discus A pair of black metal plaques with golden trim. The top plaque has the relief of the man looking to one side. A wooden bench with a metal statue of the cartoon character Archie. Giant Steps; Joe Carpineto; Somerville, MA A red ladder-like metal sculpture with circles in primary colors Worlds Whirling Apart; Douglass Gray; Plymouth, MA A metal sculpture with multiple circles and spheres Peaceable Francis Josie Campbell Dellenbaugh Glastonbury, CT A brown, metal statue of a bearded man wearing a medieval monk habit siting cross-legged on the ground with his hands on his knees, his eyes closed in prayer. A small fox lies curled up in his lap. Warrior; Dave Channon; Shandaken, NY A sculpture made of brown scrap metal depicting a warrior holding a shield with a sword raised above his man. Slide Mountain; Joe Chirchirillo; North Bennington, Vermont An abstract metal sculpture with a thick gray trunk and long tendrils looping down from the top Birdcage; Mielle Riggie; Chester, New Hampshire A brown metal sculpture shaped like a mid-19th century dress. The skirt protects a metal bird sitting on a metal perch Swan Lake; Madeleine Lord; Dudley, Massachusetts A silver metal sculpture of a ballet dancer ballanced on one toe with a swan neck and head. Crouching Hermes; Binney Meigs; Sheffield, Massachusetts A stone sculpture of a young boy sitting on a rock butting his leg with his cheek rested against his knee Salutation; Scott Keeley; Charlestown, Rhode Island An abstract black metal statue with a vague face and outstretched arms Queen Anne's Lace; Gints Grinbergs; Dedham, Massachusetts A twenty foot tall metal statue of a Queen Anne's Lace flower Droid's Free Time; Colton Workman; Gilford, New Hampshire An abstract sculpture of a humanoid robot stacking rocks The Family Four; Douglass Gray; Plymouth, Massachusetts A light brown abstract sculpture with four thin vertical strips of metal

I took a self-guided tour using the slightly outdated print map from the previous season, which is available at kiosks along the route. If you don’t want to travel alone, guided tours begin in front of Innisfree Bookshop at the Mill Falls Marketplace at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesdays from mid July through early September. The route is along sidewalks with several street crossings, including one very busy, multilane road. While visitors can see the sculptures at any time of year, I can’t imagine the walk being much fun on cold, dark, and rainy days. Additionally, the walk could be too long or too hilly for some visitors.

The Unseen Animal; Richard Gerber A pair of red metal animal-like sculptures with big abstract heads and long necks Orbit; Walter Horak; Little Compton, Rhode Island A round woven piece of metal with a metal thread through the middle. Black Sailboat; David H. Little & Steven Hayden; Meredith, New Hampshire The metal silhouette of a black sailboat Architectural Construction #1; Stephen Porter; Searsmont, Maine A thin metal obelisk Moonstruck; David Adilman; Andover, Massachusetts A concrete statue in the shape of a crescent moon emerging from a cloud with a metal statue of a child sitting on the moon. The Feather; Kirk Seese; Lutherville, Maryland A yellow and black metal statue in the shape of a large feather Inverted Spiral; Keven Duffy; Arlington, Massachusetts A thick concrete spiral on its side supported by a wooden pedestal Red Rider; Drew Klotz; Weston, Connecticut A statue with a gray metal central post and gray metal arms tipped with red, curved arms at a right angle Our Ghosts Find a Field of Flowers; Steven Hayden; Meredith, New Hampshire An abstract sculpture with three blue, humanlike figures about flower-like objects with thin metal stems and chunks of wood Poured; Michael Alfano; Hopkinton, Massachusetts A sculpture of a metal bucket dumping yellow paint to form a sliver of a face Twisted Melody; Alexander Mendez; Decatur, Indiana A wicker statue shaped like an electric guitar Bundle; Kevin Duffy; Arlington, Massachusetts A stone sculpture shaped like a bundle of tied up cloth Black and Red; David Skora; New Hartford, Connecticut An abstract sculpture of black and red metal Missing Peron; Mark Wholey; Warren, Rhode Island A red slab of metal with a yellow lined cutout in the shape of a person A white and green little lighthouse A metal statue of a face with long curly hair emerging from a wall A sculpture green metal outline of a stick figure riding a bike A giant red Adirondack chair with matching red steps A greenish medal rope shooter for rescuing drowning people A blue wooden footbridge A large white, four story hotel with a wide deck, two long balconeys, and a cupala viewed across the water. A statue of a Civil War soldier in front of a large, red brick church

Abby Epplett’s Rating System

Experience: 8/10

Accessibility: 6/10



Location: Meredith, NH, USA

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