Vermont Road Trip

Over Memorial Day weekend, my husband, fur baby and I decided to take a spontaneous road trip to Stowe, Vermont.  Both of us have never been there and wanted to explore the history and charm of this quaint ski town nestled in the Green Mountains. 

Town of Stowe

A quintessential New England white church stands in the heart of Stowe as the charming old homes and inns of the village span out into the valley.  The history and soul of the place can be felt as locals and visitors alike stroll the streets.

Chowder and Ice Cream

A fun way to join in on local festivities was lunch on Saturday at the “Chowderpalooza in the Park.” Not the best day to eat chowder as it was scorching hot out; we nonetheless found a little shady spot and sampled the goods.  Once our bellies were full after trying, what seemed like, twenty different chowders, we voted for the best one.  A deliciously smoked salmon chowder from Cork Wine Bar & Market was our pick.  It must have wow’d others as well since it easily took home the trophy.

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After all our samples of hot chowder, a cool off was in order.  The perfect stop was in a historic home that had terrific homemade ice cream.  I’m a girl that if anything has sprinkles on it, there is no question I must have it!  Same applies for ice cream, or in this instance, the cone.  My cookies and cream was worth every calorie and perfect to cool off the summer heat.

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Haunted Covered Bridge

I’ve always loved an old covered bridge, and the Gold Brook bridge has an interesting and creepy past. This bridge is also known as “Emily’s Bridge,” because of the girl who haunts it. This bridge is over 170 years old and is visited by people from all over to experience the paranormal activity that happens at night.  Apparently, a young bride, Emily, killed herself here when her groom didn’t show up at the altar, and ever since, she haunts and makes herself known to whoever stops here.  I don’t know if you believe in spirits, but after taking a picture on the side of the bridge, notice the giant orb in the lower left-hand corner of the second picture…creepy, right?!

 

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Sugarhouse

Vermont is known for its maple syrup.  We found a rustic family-run sugarhouse deep in the woods that had a little store we could peruse.  They offered several products, but I ended up getting some traditional syrup packaged in an adorable glass jar.  An honor system was in place, so you pick out what you want, leave your cash or follow the written instructions for the credit card machine, log your purchase, and go on your way.  Being the only ones there at the time, we hoped we did it right.

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Mount Mansfield

The highest point in Vermont is Mount Mansfield at 4,393 feet.  We drove up a road that climbs to nearly the top and crisscrosses the now grassy ski trails of Stowe Mountain Resort.  On the way up, we stopped to let our dog grab a couple mouthfuls of slushy snow still hanging around.  The views at the top were breathtaking, and the green mountains rolled nearly to the horizon.

The overall experience of this trip was wonderful!  If you love small towns with old charm and enjoy inviting, historic homes around each bend, you would love Stowe.  We enjoyed driving through the mountains, catching glimpses of beautiful lakes and quaint little towns.  This is definitely a place I would like to come back to, and if I do, I’ll be sure to share what other gems we find.

If you love to travel and explore new and exciting places, you will have to read our post A Haunting Destination.