Inside Vermont's Heart

Day 2 exploring Vermont, rural and urban

Image Courtesy of: Canva Pro—Stowe, Vermont

A little history

When I was a kid in our house—for the most part, it was loudly silent. I don’t know if it was because I came from a family of readers or my parents just liked a quiet house. On rare occasions (usually when my mother was getting ready to host a party) she played records in the afternoons—while she cooked or cleaned. Some of her favorites were movie soundtracks—West Side Story, My Fair Lady, and The Sound of Music.

The Sound of Music was a 1965 movie that was based around the story of an Austrian singing group, the von Trapp family. The family fled the rolling hills of Austria when Hitler annexed the country in 1938.

“On March 11–13, 1938, Nazi Germany annexed the neighboring country of Austria (Österreich). This event is known as the “connection” or “joining.” By annexing Austria, the Nazis violated the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain.” — Holocaust Encyclopedia

“We learned the shocking truth that "home" isn't necessarily a certain spot on earth. It must be a place where you can "feel" at home, which means "free" to us.” —Maria Augusta Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers

In 1942 the von Trapp family found home in Stowe, Vermont. I’ve always had a thing for the von Trapp family—one of the reasons we chose to vacation in Vermont. “The hills were alive with the sound of music…” reminded me of my (own) trip to Austria long ago… if the von Trapp family found the rolling hills home, I wanted to experience the same for myself.

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Destination: (the heart and soul) of Vermont

A few weeks ago I shared a little bit about our first day in Vermont.

Vermont RT 100, and Beyond for the Day

With just 48 hours of this leg of our trip left to immerse ourselves in the heart of an unexplored destination, we hit the ground running. We left our Morristown AirBnB early morning, grabbed a thermos of coffee, and headed out toward Stowe.

Moss Glen Falls (Stowe area)

I mention this as a scenic hike to see our first waterfalls. It was a 1.5 mile trail out-and-back, some steep terraine with tree roots and rocks, but totally manageable. It had a long plank way going in, no hiking boots needed for this trip - just a good pair of sneakers.

Moss Glen has an amazing beaver habitat—I didn’t actually see any of these industrious creatures at work, but the damage was evident, everywhere.

Author’s image

The 125-foot Moss Glen Falls captivated with their beauty, making it an ideal spot for a warmup walk to share our coffee on our way to Smuggler’s Notch.

Smuggler’s Notch - Bingham Falls

We headed south on RT 100, passing through Stowe, and then took RT 108 towards Smuggler’s Notch State Park. The trail hike there was a bit tougher than we expected, but we managed to check out one of the many recommended spots, including Bingham Falls. After that, we made our way toward Burlington to enjoy some cityscape

Smuggler’s Notch was a twisty, narrow mountain pass that was scary as shit driving up. I didn’t know which was worse, the narrow, barely marked road, or the tourists randomly stopped in the middle of the road, oblivious to what was going on behind them.

Luckily Carl, my husband, drives for a living so I was able to take in the gigantic granite boulders, high cliffs—we saw guys scaling these giants from a distance, worth the drive alone—and magnificent forest scape until we hit the trail head.

Bingham Falls, Smugglers Notch State Park

It’s a short half mile hike over roots and rocks takes you downhill over moderately difficult terrain to a beautiful and hidden pool. A cascading waterfall meets the pool and small ripples run through a fast moving stream. Swimming is allowed in the pool, and it's a great place to enjoy nature without a huge hike. It was crowded and we decided to venture on. It wasn’t the place where we wanted to experience our first swim in a Vermont swimming hole.

The hike and the falls were everything I dreamed quintessential Vermont would be like, it surpassed expectations, making it worth the extra stop.

Image Courtesy of: Canva Pro—Bingham Falls, Vermont

After leaving the falls we drove over the crest of RT 108, with the highest peak in Vermont to our left (Mt. Mansfield) and down to the flatland. We found RT 104 and drove through Cambridge and Fairfax Falls; and hit the Maple Street Covered Bridge, on the way to I-89 S to Burlington.

Image Courtesy of: Srbergeron—Wikipedia (Maple Street Covered Bridge

Burlington

What I loved about this city? It has the vibe of a college town dipped in sophistication. There aren’t many cities in the US that have chosen to make their downtown people friendly, and had success in doing so. Burlington stands out for its breweries, waterfront park, chocolatiers, and farm-to-table eateries.

We parked in public parking near The Church Street Market Place.

The Vermont Vacationeer featured nine chocolate stores, proposing an enjoyable journey through Burlington via a chocolate trail. We chose three shops for sampling, and searched for my favorite: chocolate creams. Carl was less specific, expressing a desire for any type of milk chocolate.

On the hunt for chocolate creams

Lake Champlain Chocolates

Not impressed. I was supposed to be according to the guide books. They didn’t have chocolate creams. They did offer beautifully decorated truffles, the texture and richness were good, but the flavor(s) didn’t burst in my mouth. I tried the Cherry Cordial (vodka soaked cherries in dark chocolate) and the Dipped Ginger (candied ginger dipped in dark chocolate). Prices were ridiculous, but quality counts. It felt like it might be a tourist trap, but maybe not… I’m not a chocolate connoisseur. 30 dark chocolate truffles boxed, were $100.

NU Chocolat

Expensive ($52 for a box of 19 truffles), beautifully decorated, but again, not what I was looking for; still on the hunt for delicious creams. We both sampled milk chocolate truffles—Whistle Pig Rye Whisky and Tart Raspberry—delicious, Carl loved these the best. The flavor did burst in my mouth. I would return to sample more, but at that point I was getting sick of chocolate (I like chocolate but I’m more of a chips and dip fan, by far)—and we still hadn’t found the creams. The (boxed) Vermont Specialty Whisky Collection of 12 cost $34.

Snowflake Chocolates

Pay dirt!! I found exactly what I was looking for—individually flavored creams—in both dark and milk chocolate. I chose lemon, strawberry, vanilla, maple, orange, mint, cranberry, and raspberry. The chocolate was rich and velvety, and the flavors all burst in my mouth. 32 assorted and boxed for $33.99.

Image Courtesy: Snowflake Chocolates, Burlington, Vermont

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Breweries, looking for the perfect IPA

An Ode to Foam"Foam. It’s always been an unconscious calling like drifting into a cumulus. It’s not one ingredient that gives stability; it’s many interwoven to create a structure of strength pouring out visual excitement. As I sit for a time, I enjoy that moment. All that remains is the lacing that adorns the empty glass and the making of a great memory."—Todd Haire (Foam Brewers)

Foam Brewers

I don’t drink beer, but Carl is all about craft-brews. He’s an IPA (India Pale Ale) guy, not so much a fruit lover, though.

We searched the draft beer menu—ingredients such as passion fruit, clementines, medjool dates, and honeysuckle dominated the menu. It wasn’t busy, they served limited food—charcuterie and cheeses, only. We took a pass and moved on to another from our list to try.

Zero Gravity

It was a little more lively, the crowd was mixed. It offered a coffee and waffle menu until noon, then a full sized menu until closing. Again, the draft was fruity. Nothing stood out, plenty of choices but they (all) started to blend together. From $13 for a Detroit-style Coney dog to an order of $17 vegan “Cauliflower” Wings—the food menu didn’t appeal to us at all, so we moved on.

The Vermont Pub & Brewery

We discovered our hot spot. This should definitely be part of the itinerary for a beer crawl. Located close to the lakefront, we chose to sit outdoors; the opportunity for people-watching was fantastic. The place had a wide variety of beers, that included Burly Irish Ale and Silk Ale, which were Carl's top picks.

The selection on the menu was impressive. I opted for a spinach and goat cheese salad, while Carl went for the Fish & Chips. We decided to split an entrée of Toad in the Hole—Vermont maple sausage, Cabot cheddar and onion, rolled into a flaky pastry and baked (to perfection) with chutney and fries. Carl tried Pint Black Watch, and Pint Cashmere, delicious and both worthy of more than one each. Total cost for the meal was $87, worth every penny—the beer was excellent and the food to die for.

Image Courtesy of : Canva Pro—Church Street Market Place, Burlington, VT

Lake Champlain (the waterfront)

There is a lot to do on the lake, but it wasn’t planned for this trip. If we come back I plan on seeing Burlington by boat and doing a bike tour that goes across an old railway out into the water.

The walk down to the lake from the marketplace turned out to be way steeper than we expected. I made it to the shore to check out the temp, which was perfect for a plunge, and by that time I was sweating my ass off.

I asked my husband to take a picture of the waterfront. Not exactly what I had in mind.

Image: Author’s husband’s capture of Lake Champlain, not much to see here.

It wasn't really a great spot for us to jump into the water for a swim, plus we were pretty stuffed and tipsy, so we decided to head back to our Morristown AirBnB to relax for the rest of the evening.

We had one more day left to explore the Northeast Kingdom before heading to Maine.

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Final notes:

There is so much to explore and see in Vermont. Here are a few ideas I came up with to see Vermont for a theme-based vacation.

• Exploring the waterfalls could be an excellent concept for a summer getaway in Vermont. With over 200 waterfalls, many featuring swimming holes, it’s a refreshing way to experience summer and capture the state's natural beauty.

• Vermont's craft beer scene is thriving, boasting the highest number of breweries and brewpubs per capita in the country. And it is earning recognition for excellence and creativity. Across the state, Vermont's craft beers are a common sight on menus. There are 95 specialty breweries throughout Vermont as of this writing.

• Vermont is home to more than 100 covered bridges, offering another themed adventure idea to dive into the state's history and bucolic countryside.

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Author’s Image: Backyard of our AirBnB, our swimming pond off in the distance

We loved Vermont and her beauty. The people are friendly, the state is kept immaculately clean, and its gentle introductions a wonderful place to begin exploring the Northeast part of the US.

See you next week!