"'Ver' means 'Green' and 'Mont' means 'Mountain'", announced the narrator on the Lake Champlain cruise. Hence, Vermont literally means 'Green Mountain". It seemed redundant since the 3 days we spent in Vermont, all we saw were green mountains. And lakes, and trees, and woods and the green trees and the green mountains reflected in the blue lakes. Vermont may be a ski destination for people who can ski. I am as graceful at skiing as I would be at Sumo wrestling. I visited Vermont in spring and for me Vermont is a 'nature's beauty' destination.
Landing at the Burlington International airport at dusk on friday evening, I realized it is the smallest international airport I have been to. The car rental at the airport was manned (womanned?) by a lady who gave us the keys and we basically walked to our car and drove out. About 10 minutes drive into the Burlington downtown and you will be heading down the road that dives down and disappears into the magnificent Lake Champlain. We were hungry and so Lake Champlain had to wait. But the brief glimpse of it was reason enough for us to know that we would be driving down that road the very next day. For Indian food lovers, here's my restaurant tip. Dine at the Shalimar Indian restaurant in Burlington downtown. Its simple but delicious food cooked and served with a lot of heart by the Punjabi aunty who mans(womans?) the restaurant.
The next day, we drove down to Lake St in Burlington downtown. Hidden away near a pier there is free parking available. Ask and thou shalt find it. We left the car and strolled along the lake marveling at the clear blue water, the distant waves of mountains and the green smattering of islands. We boarded the Ethan Allen cruise which takes you on 1.5 hour journey of the lake. Every point along this cruise is scenic. There are piers with houses and yachts, islands, tiny cliffs and parks surrounding the lake.
Overwhelmed by the sights, we returned to our Airbnb abode at Mountainside Resort near Stowe mountains. We cooked a wonderful dinner and went to bed content with the day.
The next day we decided to explore some of the scenic drives that we read about here: http://www.gostowe.com/thingstodo/sports/scenic-drives
We started with Lake Eden and followed Vermont route 100 driving through Jay peak, Enosburg, Jeffersonville, Smuggler's Notch and back to Stowe village. The roads were lined with green trees and green meadows all along. Every few minutes there would be a mountain or a lake or a small village that would make us stop the car and admire the abundant beauty of it all. We returned home in the evening and enjoyed a little snack while watching Finding Neverland. We were in a magical place not too different from Neverland though. (We also watched The Last King of Scotland which is an awesome movie by the way).
The last day of our stay arrived. Our flight wasn't until 8:00pm which was a good because we wanted to see more of Vermont. So, we set off to Montpelier where resides the state house.
A quick visit to the state house and from there we drove to Lake Elmore State Park. We spent few more wonderful hours hiking through the state park. By the time we were done hiking, it was almost 4:00pm. We headed back to the resort, packed our bags and headed off for the airport. Another wonderful meal at Shalimar, then to the airport where we returned the rental car, went through a quick check in and security check and we were at the gate by 7:00pm.
Content and still in awe of the breathtaking views that we feasted on for three days, we returned back to our homes sated and happy.
Landing at the Burlington International airport at dusk on friday evening, I realized it is the smallest international airport I have been to. The car rental at the airport was manned (womanned?) by a lady who gave us the keys and we basically walked to our car and drove out. About 10 minutes drive into the Burlington downtown and you will be heading down the road that dives down and disappears into the magnificent Lake Champlain. We were hungry and so Lake Champlain had to wait. But the brief glimpse of it was reason enough for us to know that we would be driving down that road the very next day. For Indian food lovers, here's my restaurant tip. Dine at the Shalimar Indian restaurant in Burlington downtown. Its simple but delicious food cooked and served with a lot of heart by the Punjabi aunty who mans(womans?) the restaurant.
The next day, we drove down to Lake St in Burlington downtown. Hidden away near a pier there is free parking available. Ask and thou shalt find it. We left the car and strolled along the lake marveling at the clear blue water, the distant waves of mountains and the green smattering of islands. We boarded the Ethan Allen cruise which takes you on 1.5 hour journey of the lake. Every point along this cruise is scenic. There are piers with houses and yachts, islands, tiny cliffs and parks surrounding the lake.
 |
| A pier at the Burlington waterfront |
 |
| A lighthouse on Lake Champlain |
 |
| A breathtaking view from the cruise |
Overwhelmed by the sights, we returned to our Airbnb abode at Mountainside Resort near Stowe mountains. We cooked a wonderful dinner and went to bed content with the day.
The next day we decided to explore some of the scenic drives that we read about here: http://www.gostowe.com/thingstodo/sports/scenic-drives
We started with Lake Eden and followed Vermont route 100 driving through Jay peak, Enosburg, Jeffersonville, Smuggler's Notch and back to Stowe village. The roads were lined with green trees and green meadows all along. Every few minutes there would be a mountain or a lake or a small village that would make us stop the car and admire the abundant beauty of it all. We returned home in the evening and enjoyed a little snack while watching Finding Neverland. We were in a magical place not too different from Neverland though. (We also watched The Last King of Scotland which is an awesome movie by the way).
 |
| A road near Smuggler's notch |
 |
| One of the many lakes we came upon while driving. |
The last day of our stay arrived. Our flight wasn't until 8:00pm which was a good because we wanted to see more of Vermont. So, we set off to Montpelier where resides the state house.
 |
| State house in Montpelier |
A quick visit to the state house and from there we drove to Lake Elmore State Park. We spent few more wonderful hours hiking through the state park. By the time we were done hiking, it was almost 4:00pm. We headed back to the resort, packed our bags and headed off for the airport. Another wonderful meal at Shalimar, then to the airport where we returned the rental car, went through a quick check in and security check and we were at the gate by 7:00pm.
Content and still in awe of the breathtaking views that we feasted on for three days, we returned back to our homes sated and happy.
In Vermont, life takes no tolls.
ReplyDeleteThanks anonymous. If anonymous was french, it would be pronounced 'anonymoo' :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome as always!
ReplyDeleteThanks
ReplyDeletenice ! your blog actually inspired me to go take picture on sunday :) are
ReplyDeleteyou on instagram ?
Thanks :) I rarely visit Instagram, but if you have posted the picture you took, I would like to see that. Do share a link if possible.
ReplyDelete