Going alone for the ride

Looking for adventure with the kids

(MARK WILSON/GLOBE STAFF)

Kids love what we learn to hate. Like trains. They don't notice the way the Red Line barely crawls into Harvard Square or how that suspicious odor is emerging from the passed-out dude sitting two seats over. No, in a child's eyes, trains represent change. Or maybe no car seat.

I keep this in mind every time I head up to New Hampshire. Lila and I are typically on one of those getaways when Mommy has to correct so many student papers she needs us cast out. We leave her with the dog at the house in the woods and head to our favorite railroad, in North Conway. The scenic railroad runs all year. We usually hit the pumpkin express.

This year, upon arriving, I realized this is probably our last pumpkin ride. The kids surrounding us are generally in the 3-to-4 range and wearing costumes. Lila's 6 1/2 and in street clothes. But she still loves the ride.

The train takes us about 30 minutes out, a slow, sluggish trip, to a "pumpkin patch." It's actually a scrubby grass lot that has been filled with the most anemic pumpkins this side of head-shrinking country. In the past, Lila made a beeline for the pumpkins. This year she grabbed one casually and headed with me into the cider mill. That was the real prize: hot, greasy, cider doughnuts and hot chocolate. We bought a bag of six. The oil soaked through the paper. But it was cold and those doughnuts seemed to melt. We realized they were so good we needed a second bag of six to bring back to mom.

When we get back to Conway, there's always plenty left to do. Zeb's General Store has toys and books and candy sticks. There's a nice Italian cafe where we argue over how much of her veggies she has to eat before she can get dessert. And then we're ready to head home. But not before sneaking one more greasy doughnut out of the bag.

Conway Scenic Railroad, North Conway, N.H. www.conwayscenic.com. Tickets $8 to $66, ranging from 55-minute trip to 5-hour excursion.