Alton

This narrow beach along Lake Winnipesaukee's southern shore sits below the road level and is easily missed by passing drivers. Local reviewers call it a 'little hidden gem' where you can sit on clean, well-kept sand and watch motorboats coming and going at the nearby marina. Dedicated to a Norwich barbershop quartet chapter, it offers a quieter alternative to the busier town beaches.

This 1.7-mile loop trail through a former working farm leads to spectacular southern Lake Winnipesaukee views from Pine Mountain's blueberry barrens. Come during the right season and the lookout will be bursting with wild blueberries you can pick while taking in the panoramic vistas. The trail passes old pastures, cellar holes, and stone walls from the 18th-century settlement.

This 135-acre preserve offers two well-marked loop trails that cross babbling brooks via small bridges and wind through shaded hemlock forests past 200-year-old stone walls. The Blue Trail follows Hurd Brook, which is stocked with brook trout, while rock caves and remnants of early settler boundaries dot the landscape. A shovel is left at the bridge for winter hikers to clear snow.

This historic bandstand sits in a waterfront park where trains once terminated and passengers boarded steamboats for lake journeys. The spot regained its historic 'Railroad Square' name in 1990 to commemorate the centennial of the Lake Shore Railroad. Summer concerts still fill the air where transportation history was made, with the Alton Bay Community Center and swim dock completing the nostalgic lakeside scene.