The 7 best fall foliage drives in New England and Canada

From Nova Scotia to Maine, get your fall foliage on with these ultimate scenic road trips.

The Cabot Trail, Nova Scotia

Cape Breton Island in northeastern Nova Scotia has received a lot of international attention this year as the Canadian island for Americans who want to escape Donald Trump. But regardless of political hoopla, in mid-October the island’s serene, 185-mile Cabot trail doles out awesome autumn scenery, winding along rocky coastline and through Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Expect plenty of postcard-perfect small towns, ice cream shops, and fishing villages dotting the trail, as well as the world’s only opportunity to snorkel with pilot whales (which takes place until mid-October, depending on sea conditions).

The Laurentian Mountains, QuebecCome late September, it’s time to choose your own autumn adventure through southern Quebec’s Laurentian Mountains. Explore the panoramic passages of Parc National du Mont-Tremblant, awash in reds, oranges and yellows thanks to an abundance of sugar maples, red maples, yellow birch, and American beech trees. Add a little culture and city to your trip and head, just 90 minutes south, to Montreal on colorful Route 115.

Acadia National Park, Maine

Acadia National Park is Maine’s apex of natural brilliance, and this is never truer than throughout October when the boulder-strewn coastline, dense deciduous forest, and iconic Cadillac Mountain glow in autumn colors. Expect a bit of traffic along the 27-mile Park Loop Road—the secret’s long been out that the park’s main route is lined with picture-perfect observation points. For more intimate experiences with Acadia, detour on to unpaved roads; or better yet, park the car for a bit and cycle, hike or venture on horseback on the myriad, carless “carriage roads” that zigzag through the heart of the park.

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