Going to Vermont for Fall foilage/hiking this year. Can't possibly see it all. What key spots should not be missed (not too far from Burlington airport) and any great "rustic" resorts or lodges to stay in? Thanks!

It's FOLIAGE not foilage.
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Hi Pamala,
There's not a whole lot to do, if you're not into malls, near the airport. You'll want to find transportation into the city a few miles away, or surrounding areas.
If the weather's reasonably warm, the ferry to Port Kent is a fun and relaxing way to see the foliage, and very reasonable, $6 or so without a car.
Another, possibly warmer alternative {and you'd prob. see more foliage} is the scenic train that leaves from the Burlington waterfront.
The Shelburne Museum, if its still open, is excellent if you're into Americana.
The Church St. Marketplace, downtown Burlington, is a lot of fun to stroll through. It's closed off to traffic, and has many shops, ethnic restaurants and pubs and street entertainment on warm days.
Can't help with hikes as I tend to hike closer to where I live, 1 1/2 hours away, or lodging. I do know that there is great hiking though in this area that I'm always MEANING to try - hopefully a Burlington native can direct you to some ....
Have a great trip!

"Jack", don't be a drip.

A big factor is whether or not you have a car. If you rent a car, your hiking and exploring choices are limitless - the Green Mountains are laced with great hiking trails. I would recommend picking up 'Fifty Hikes in the Green Mountains' or some similar book. As for places to stay, again with a car your choices are endless - there are many beautiful b&bs and farm b&bs in Vermont. We stayed at Harvey's Mountain View farm in Rochester Vt. many years ago - it was the perfect Vermont farm, on a dirt road high in the mountains, very isolated and rural. There are many other places like this. Burlington is a very nice small city, but there is some strip mall sprawl surrounding it, and you'll need to find some way to get out into the real Vermont to enjoy the countryside.

My first piece of advice is to secure your lodging reservations ASAP. Weekends during foliage season can get booked up a year in advance. I know the Bennington area is pretty much booked solid for Columbus Day Weekend.
Will you have a car?? Check out the Stowe area (www.gostowe.com or www.stowe.com) or the Waitsfield Warren area (www.sugarbush.com). PLENTY of hiking opportunities in these areas. Definately buy a book like the one mentioned in a previous post. Also keep in mind that foliage moves north to south generally, so if you're coming late Sept/early Oct stick to the northern half of the state. Toward the 2nd week of Oct, stay Southern (peak foliage around Bennington is generally around Columbus Day weekend). www.newengland.com and www.scenesofvermont.com are good resources for foliage info.
Have fun!

Second whitest state in the union with 96.9% of the population Ben & Jerry's vanilla flavored. If you know what I mean.

Fran

Not everyone in the state. Just the families who have lived there for 200 years, sell themselves as liberals, supposively concerned about equality and justice and yet have done nothing over those 200 years to promote racial diversity in the state.

Also, the young liberal intelligensia who thinks globilization is the new evil, McDonald's is the epitome of corporate evil and of course, the easy one, those that hate our president. A lot of that type in your state. These are of course mostly white people living in their ( 96.9% ) white environment. There is a lot of smug arrogance in these people and not many people are going to feel sorry for you when you get hammered over this issue of diversity.

Fran, don't waste your inkjet.
This obviously bored, hostile troll has been posting under various aliases for awhile now. For laughs, dredge up his diatribes on Ben and Jerry's ice cream -in which he professes shock that the ice cream factory tour he took the time to seek out promoted - what a shock -premium ice cream!
Back to the subject - Pamala, I second the idea of getting your hands on "Fifty hikes in Vermont". There are 12 excellent hikes listed in the Northern Vermont area - and yes, you will need a car to access them Have a great trip!

Thanks George for bringing up Ben & Jerry's, an organization that tries to hide the fact that what they sell is basically just an artery clogging chunk of fat, by embracing all these do gooder issues. Save the Environment, no rGBH, and investigating forced child labor in Africa. Of course denying that they have any significant amount of Dioxin in their ice cream was somewhat embarrassing for these pillars of virtue. I wonder when they will address the issue of obesity in the United States, which their product contributes to, or the fact that more people die of cardiovascular disease in the United States than any other disorder. It's just not politically correct to fight for humans especially when you can appear to be so noble by fighting against rBGH, child labor and saving the environment. This hypocrisy in this corporation reflects the same hypocrisy you see in the people of Vermont. They like people to know that they were the first state to come out against slavery. They like to talk about all the social issues they support and low and behold, you go up there and there are few if any minorities anywhere. Now that is a shock. Where are you minorities? Why wouldn't minorities move into a state that has such noble and liberal and tolerant people. They have had 200 years to move into Vermont and what has happened. In the US 1 in 8 citizens is an African American. In Vermont 1 in 200 is African American. Go figure.

George

I live in NYC and have also found you Vermonters to be a bunch of arrogant yuppie pukes. Stay in the mountains and we'll do fine.

Hmmm Vermont sounds nice!!! 96.9% white! I bet there is low crime, low poverty and few ghetto areas. Conincidence? Plus they like gay people ( they tend to CLEAN up the neighborhood) and have Ben and Jerrys. I know where I am going on my next vacation out of this third world country where I live (Miami FL).

Pamela, Burlington is a small,scenic, rather vibrant university city, with an interesting mix of people and cultural events. You're not going to find any rustic resorts or lodges near the airport, or in the city proper, for that manner. In terms of lodging, you will find many chain hotels - perfectly adaquate, just not the atmosphere you're looking for. You'll have to get out of the city a bit if you're looking for a country experience.

Yea, real interesting mix if you like putting vanilla with vanilla and then making a malt. Ha!

BTW, you get vanilla.

Pamela

The foilage is lovely in the fall. I especially like the red foilage, however the foilage just north of Burlington is gorgeous. Yuo'll never see foilage like this anywhere. Fall foilage in Vermont, it doesn't get anu better than that.

Also, check out the fall foilage report on the Weather Channel.

HeeHee

First, I would like to thank all of you who responded to my inital question with viable advice. You have been very helpful. As it happens, I AM African-American and have always wanted to vist Vermont and view the incredible fall "foliage" - Thank you Jack! However, after viewing some of your posts on the lack of diversity in this State, I am beginning to question my desire to visit! It saddens me that in the year 2002 we are still even having these types of discussions. It saddens me that as an intelligent, well-traveled, female (who happens to be AFM) that I cannot freely visit all of the beautiful places in this world without worrying about the effect the color of my skin may have. Since the subject was brought up, I would like to hear from the actual "Vermonters" who actually live in that State and gather their honest views.

Pamela, please come to Vermont. You will be welcomed, and your stay will be peaceful and one of great natural beauty.

So- "Pamela" is a troll!
Damn, you're good!

ttt

Yes, Pamela is a troll. Maybe there are less "people of color" in VT because they don't care to live there. Should we force people to move to a cold Northern State?