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Hi,
I'm making a road trip from NYC to Niagara this weekend, spending a couple of days in Niagara and then another road trip from Niagara to DC. I don't have much time to get too far away from road and explore the places. I will probably spend 10-12 hours driving each way. Would like to get the best route possible where i can stop mid way to enjoy fall folliage and nice small towns. Would you have any recommendation for me ?
Thank you
-Maddy
Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!
As long as you realize that you have time enough for a leisurely drive, and not much else, you can do very well on this itinerary. Because of your time constraints, a fair portion f your driving will have to be on Interstates but certainly not all of it. So let's start with the New York City to Niagara Falls leg. This will be the shorter of your two long legs, time-wise, so you might have time for a short walk through a park or small town or two. Start by heading west out of NYC on I-80 to the Scranton PA area and use I-380 to I-81 through/around the city to US-6 west through northern Pennsylvania. Continue to Tonowanda and pick up US-220 north to Waverly NY and NY-17/I-86 west past Bath and onto I-380 northwest. Leave that at Exit 6 onto NY-36 north/west through mount Morris and past the northern entrance to Letchworth State Park to US-20A west to the Buffalo area where US-219/I-90/I-190 will take you north to Niagara Falls. Note that you will need to have your passport in order if you want to cross to the (more scenic) Canadian side of the Falls.
When you are ready to head to Washington, Return the way you came down through Buffalo but now stay on US-219 all the way down through the Allegheny /range of northern Pennsylvania to a few miles past Ridgeway where you'll take PA-153 as a shortcut to I-80 east to Clearfield and US-322 east. At Philipsburg, take PA-53 through town to PA-350 south to US-222/I-99 south/west to Bedford and I-70 which you'll take east into Maryland, finally taking the I-270 cutoff into Washington. This will be a nearly full day's drive, but it will be scenic with a few nice small towns scattered along its length. But if you find yourself at Hancock MD and in danger of hitting DC at rush hour, then I'd suggest a visit to Fort Frederick State Park outside big Pool and a stroll along the Potomac at the nearby unit of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park to kill some time before heading into the city.
AZBuck