Last week, Mark and I managed to squeeze in a five day van trip to Vermont by way of New Hampshire. Originally, the plan was to visit just Vermont. But we heard that a couple of former members of Town Meeting band were playing with their new band, Medium Bear, at The Range in Mason, New Hampshire, on Saturday evening. It sounded like the perfect way to kick off our trip. Medium Bear was actually opening for another band, so we knew they’d be on fairly early. We headed north about midday, stopping first for a walk around Andres Institute of Art Sculpture Park in Brookline, New Hampshire. What a treasure!
Founded in 1998 on Big Bear Mountain in Brookline, the Institute installs large sculptures all over the mountain. They host symposiums for visiting artists and are constantly adding to their collection. We hiked the steep paths for over an hour and saw only a fraction of the art. Along the way, we met Master Sculptor John Weidman at the Studio/workshop. He gave us a brief history and a fascinating overview of the Institute.
After that we headed to The Range. As the name suggests, it’s driving range, but it’s also a concert and event venue. Good food and a great spot to enjoy a show.
We left The Range before dark to check in at our Boondockers site in Jaffery, where we’d spend the night. We passed a beautiful little stone church right around the corner from the private driveway we’d be parking in for the night and decided we’d walk there in the morning for mass. But it was pouring the next day, and one of us forgot to pack a rain jacket, so we drove there instead.
After mass, we drove to Brattleboro, Vermont, arriving just as the rain was beginning to let up. We ate lunch in Brattleboro, browsed in a few stores, including a breathtakingly expensive art gallery, and bought a unique, handmade rocking chair. We couldn’t fit the chair into the van, so the store owner graciously volunteered to deliver it to our home himself.
From Brattleboro, we made our way to Wilmington, Vermont. Being from Wilmington, Mass., we’ve made it our side-mission to visit all the other Wilmingtons in the country. You can read in previous posts about some of the others we’ve already visited. Along the way we found Molly Stark State Park and stopped for a hike.
We drove for another hour after that, passing Hogback Mountain Country Store, which we’ve visited before and a brewery across the street from it that we hadn’t seen before. We only stopped long enough for a few pics.
We arrived in Proctorsville, Vermont, at a friend’s house, just before dinnertime. I’ve been watching them build their own home in stages via Facebook and Instagram posts and was looking forward to seeing it in person. We got a tour of the gardens and their former tiny house, as well as the new house, before sharing a meal and settling in for the night parked in their driveway. Thanks, Tricia and Jay!
The next morning, our plan was to visit two places in Weston and then find a place to hike. The Vermont Country Store was our first stop. Cute country store full of throw-back toys, candy, sundries, and anything else you can think of. I bought myself a sunhat and a souvenir canvas bag. Then, we walked along a short trail behind the property where I found a warbler I’d never seen before: a chestnut-sided warbler. I could hear a red-eyed vireo in the trees as well, but it remained elusive, much to my disappointment.
Our second stop in Weston was the Weston Priory. Of course, our timing is often a bit off, and the monks of the Priory were on retreat. The place was beautiful, but completely empty of people.
From Weston, we drove northwest toward Lake Bomoseen. We had reservations at the Lake Bomoseen KOA (Kampgrounds of America). Along the way, we saw signs for the Clarendon Gorge Appalachian Trailhead. We had to stop, of course.
The Lake Bomoseen KOA was a bit rustic, but it was nice to hook up the van to water and sewer, take showers and do some laundry. The laundry was a challenge, though. None of the dryers would work and we had to leave the wet laundry overnight until the staff opened up the front office in the morning. A visit to our campsite from what looked like an adolescent bear, plus a sighting of a brown creeper (bird), took our minds off our trouble for a while.
In the morning, the KOA staff helped us get our laundry dried and we were back on the road before 10 AM. We headed for Shelburne Farms, just south of Burlington, Vermont. It was a gorgeous sunny day. We walked a four-mile loop around the farm and finished up at their store, buying some tasty aged cheddar and blue cheese.
After Shelburne Farms, we checked in at our Harvest Hosts spot, Sam Mazza’s Farm Market in Colchester. Then we drove to Burlington for dinner at The Farmhouse Tap & Grill. There’s always something interesting on their menu! We stopped in at Foam Brewers after dinner, getting back to our van with about three minutes to spare on the meter. We only stopped at Burlington Beer Company to take a few pics. So many breweries, so little time!
It was just us and the goats at Sam Mazza’s overnight. In the morning we did a little shopping in the market before checking out the trail around Colchester Pond nearby. It turned out to be a great place for birds. Mark completed the loop around the pond while I did a lot of slow walking and searching for birds. Perfect for each of us!
We left the pond before lunch and drove mostly east toward Stowe, arriving at The Alchemist Brewery in time for lunch. Our final destination before heading due south toward home was Hill Farmstead in Greensboro Bend.
We left Hill Farmstead around 3:30 PM and managed to get home before dark—always a plus when we have time to unpack the van before the end of the day. Another trip in the books and already looking forward to the next one…
Chapter 3 