Advertisement
Published: September 22nd 2012
Edit Blog Post
Vermont
Some camera magic with the fall colors Another very short entry, but probably one of the prettiest entries we have made to date. LEAF-PEEPING ALONG ROUTE 100. Route 100 runs through the heart of Vermont. In the fall (around middle of October) the trees of New England gets ready for the winter and what follows is a color-spectacle like no other. Deep green turns to yellow, orange or a deep red. All around you it is just a color spectacle. Take your time. Drive slowly - very slowly. Don't be rushed. Take the occasional honk from the other motorists with a grain of salt.
Living in Connecticut we just took the fast route up to NEWPORT. During the fall this part of the country gets pretty expensive with accommodation since there are not that many options in most places and it seems like the whole world is descending on this part of the world. So just be warned. Try and book way in advance since the B&B's, hotels and inn's really jack-up their prices for this time of year. On our way to Newport we were really lucky to find a spot with very, very rustic cabins right on a lake for very cheap. The views the
Vermont
Fall colors! following morning was absolutely spectacular. We made a quick cup of coffee, put on some warm clothing and just sat on a bench right next to the lake admiring the color festival and enjoying the absolute quietness of the morning. Next up was Newport where we were to start our "descent" along ROUTE 100 down back to the southern corner of New England. Newport was a quiet little town right on a pretty big lake. We drove around a little bit and checked out some of the little farmers markets with pumpkins and lots of very good baked goodies. And so we started our drive among farmlands, pretty lakes, forests, hills and amazing colors. Even route 100 is considered a main route so don't be afraid to GO OFF-ROAD FOR LEAVES. This is most of the time the best option. Take a couple dirt roads. Take a couple turns where you don't have a clue where you might end up next. That is part of the fun. This is where you find the paths covered with overhanging trees shedding their colors and that picture-perfect New England moment with just you, the unpaved road and magical colors all around you.
Vermont
Somewhere close to Stowe on a hike There are no big cities here. More just bigger towns. MANCHESTER VILLAGE is one of the bigger towns in the state. While we were there they had the SOUTHERN VERMONT ARTS & CRAFTS FAIR. Quite a big spectacle with hundreds of vendors showing their goods. There were some really nice things (snacks, pottery, paintings, metalwork, infused vodka's, etc.). Definitely worth a visit when you are there. The rest of the town seems pretty New Englandish except for the outlet malls. We had a good local brunch/lunch and continued on our journey. The FOLIAGE was everywhere. Some places are more magical than others. Sometimes you find that magical spot with a quiet lake or just a little dirt road with perfect colors - other times it is pretty bleak since the leaves are already gone in some spots. We were lucky enough to find a last minute spot at the INN AT WATER'S EDGE close to Ludlow. It was well worth the price. The dinner was nothing special, but the owners made us feel like we have known them for years - joking around at dinner, interested in our story, etc. Afterwards we joined the rest of the guests for a
Vermont
More beautiful fall colors on our hike! couple drinks at the bar which was also a really unique experience. Everyone is telling their story and everyone is sharing their travelling experiences. This is one of the reasons to stay in B&B's or Inn's instead of a hotel. Wish we would do this more, but we are starting too. Breakfast was wonderful with a full breakfast and freshly baked pastries. And soon we were on our way again for some more foliage in the NORTHEAST KINGDOM.
One of the highlights was definitely SMUGGLER'S NOTCH SCENIC DRIVE. It is a drive from Jeffersonville to Stowe that goes across a mountain. The scenes were so beautiful with the colors, but also with waterfalls everywhere. We stopped close to the top and decided to go for "a little hike". We decided to do only about 30 minutes on this path that was winding up the mountain. It was extremely slippery (I was doing this with flip-flops). The scenery was amazing though so we decided to keep going. After about an hour we were probably two thirds up the mountain already so we decided to keep going since everyone coming down said that we should keep going since it is well
Vermont
B&w just for good measure worth it. We kept going and kept going. The leaves disappeared and soon it was just us, the pines and some dead trees. Our reward was a beautiful quiet lake with barely anyone around surrounded by beautiful pine trees. We stuck around for a little bit and then made our way back down again. What an awesome experience it was.
Close to Arlington there is the SKYLINE DRIVE TO THE TOP OF MT. EQUINOX. We somehow missed it the first time. We found it the second time and started our steady rise on this drive. Very sharp turns and at one point you literally are driving on the "back" of the mountain - on both sides it is straight down. After winding and winding and winding we finally ended up at the top with spectacular views of the surrounding areas and mountains. The colors is not as recognizable from that far up, but you can definitely make out the changing colors in the distance. This was our final stop before the long drive home. Words do not do the beauty justice. This is one of those things that you have to see to believe.
One last Vermont memory.
Vermont
At the top of our hike with beautiful pines surrounding the lake On one of our previous drives to Canada we came down through Vermont and... We found/saw the BEN & JERRY'S FACTORY. We had to stop. We are not Ben & Jerry's fanatics, but we sure appreciate the ice cream as we both have a love for sweet things. The tour was pretty ordinary, but the ice cream was good as always. Definitely a must for kids since it is mostly geared towards kids.
That was Vermont for you. For the books we managed to cross off 6 things including Manchester Village, the Northeast Kingdom, Route 100, and Leave-Peeping Along Route 100. So 149 down and 5,176 to go
Til next time from a very fall kind-a place
Advertisement
Tot: 0.281s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 25; qc: 108; dbt: 0.1361s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 2;
; mem: 1.5mb