Vermont fall trip

Old Mar 16th, 2021, 07:24 PM
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jan 2019
Posts: 11
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Vermont fall trip

My husband and I are planning a trip to Vermont in early October 2021- we plan to fly into Burlington and rent a car for a one week road trip - looking for suggestions on What not to miss while there. We love nature, beautiful scenery, walks, quaint little towns... any suggestions would be great as we have never been there! Thanks!
css1115 is offline  
Old Mar 16th, 2021, 09:52 PM
  #2  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 97,142
Received 12 Likes on 11 Posts
Lucky you! Sorry I'm no help in planning a road trip but used to live in Vermont (Brattleboro). Beautiful state. You will LOVE it.
suze is offline  
Old Mar 16th, 2021, 11:27 PM
  #3  
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 22,947
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
In southern Vermont: Newfane, Townshend, Grafton (try their cheese), Chester.

https://flic.kr/p/2hJuddk
https://flic.kr/p/7frw9n
Woodstock is farther north but still south (and east near New Hampshire) from Burlington:

https://flic.kr/p/2hJufQE
Michael is offline  
Old Mar 17th, 2021, 03:11 AM
  #4  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 30,951
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
A Vermonter will probably show up to add her tips.
If you could time your week to have a full weekend I would go to one of the big farmers markets that has everything including crafts and prepared food. I like the one in Norwich which is just north of Woodstock on the NH border. Brattleboro in the south is also nice but I just don't get therre much. I've heard the one in Burlington is good. Should you go to Woodstock/Norwich area and you like to bake, King Arthur Flour is a great visit and place to shop. Decent little cafe too but you might want to plan lunch at Simon Pierce in Quechee. We've enjoyed staying at the Norwich Inn where you can eat or walk across the street to a nice restaurant. Nice not to get in the car again to go out for supper.
You might want to check out Jeff "Foliage's" blog Fall Foliage of New England - New England fall foliage (jeff-foliage.com)
One of the quirky little places we have visited is the Warren VT country store Warren, VT Country Store, Deli & Craft Beer | The Warren Store - The Warren Store You can order sandwiches to eat on their deck which overlooks a little river that feeds into a larger one out back, sort of a mini gorge.
I hate to say it but you should probably avoid all the very popular places because the traffic will be terrible. We live in NH and see stop and go on the interstate while secondary routes don't have any traffic. Of course, in VT, there are a lot of secondary routes.
Burlington is a beautiful city on a beautiful lake. Can't remember the name but there's a deli/ice cream place with a deck that looks out to the lake. Get there early. It's very popular. You could take the ferry across the lake to visit Ausable Chasm or simply do the ferry trip for the heck of it. I'm not a fan of Woodstock because it is so full of tourists. If you stay in the Norwich area you can also go across the river to NH and visit St. Gauden's. Nice house and garden tour.
dfrostnh is offline  
Old Mar 17th, 2021, 06:47 AM
  #5  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 3,717
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
It's hard to find an area of Vermont that's not scenic. Burlington is a very picturesque little city right on Lake Champlain with a fabulous bike trail that goes out into the lake. Once out of the city, the landscape quickly gets very rural. Popular and picturesque little towns would include Stowe, Waitsfield, Middlebury, Woodstock and Chester. There are dozens more. Places to visit might include Shelburne Farms, Shelburne Museum, Calvin Coolidge Historic village, Billings Farm Museum and scores of apple orchards, brew pubs, wineries, etc. Don't be afraid to explore the little back roads that wind through the mountains - that's where you'll find the most breathtaking photo ops.
zootsi is offline  
Old Mar 17th, 2021, 08:10 AM
  #6  
J62
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Posts: 11,923
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
We live in upstate NY & actually don't get over VT that often, so my advice is more about WHEN & HOW to visit, not WHAT or WHERE.

Our experiences:
Go earlier in the season rather than later. Don't try to hit what experts call "peak" The last weekend in Sept at the north end (= Lake Placid in NY, Burlington etc in VT) typically has fantastic brilliant early color mixed in with green background. Maybe a week or so later as you progress south through the state.

Visit congested spots (farmers markets, cute towns, etc) earlier in the day, and schedule a walk / hike / drive in the afternoon. We're not crowd people, so for us crowds on sidewalks, waiting at restaurants, looking for parking, etc all detract from a commune with nature experience.

Avoid weekends. Hard to do if you want to hit things (eg farmers markets) that may only be open on weekends.... There are millions of people within a few hrs drive and they all seem to show up on weekends, all in a hurry, all vying for that same parking spot.... Weekdays won't be dead quiet, but the difference is noticeable.

Don't try to check off "another view, another view, another view". We like "slow travel" so a picnic at a random roadside pulloff if 10X better than looking for that next glimpse.

Get off the roads.... Even a 1/2 mi or 1mi walk through the woods gives you a whole different perspective of nature. You might not see those "aha vistas" but you just might come across pockets of brilliant color bathed in sunlight peeking through the canopy, or piles of leaves to kick through, or wildlife that you won't get on a drive by tour.

Do longer hikes early in the day (I know that may be contradictory to the advice above). We find an exhilirating 4hr total hike, with picnic at a lookout recharges our batteries.

J62 is online now  
Old Apr 6th, 2021, 05:05 PM
  #7  
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Posts: 5,564
Received 12 Likes on 7 Posts
Which part of the Norwich Inn did you book? We are going to spend the night on our way from Maine to NY. I want to visit King Arthur and then the Simon Pierce store as a stop the next day.
We love Middlebury, Bristol, and Vergennes.
Macross is offline  
Old Apr 7th, 2021, 12:25 AM
  #8  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 30,951
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I've stayed in both sections. I think I prefer the house since I'm an early riser for breakfast. A group of us stayed so we also enjoyed hanging out on the porch as well as the tables outdoors. We took a baking class and enjoyed eating our goodies together. If possible to be in Norwich for Saturday morning the frmwrs market is wonderful and just down the road from King Arthur. Several prepared food vendors so you can do breakfast, snack or lunch.
dfrostnh is offline  
Old Apr 7th, 2021, 04:27 AM
  #9  
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Posts: 5,564
Received 12 Likes on 7 Posts
Thank you dfrostnh. I remember you all doing that.
Macross is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Original Poster
Forum
Replies
Last Post
aussie_10
United States
40
Jul 19th, 2015 06:36 PM
jrjcolllins
United States
26
Feb 24th, 2011 11:24 AM
arbutusbeach
United States
4
Jul 4th, 2007 03:38 AM
mariya
United States
4
Jul 13th, 2003 11:30 AM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are On


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -