Vermont

September 2014

 
 

We timed our short trip to northern Vermont to be after Labor Day and before the fall leaf season. This proved a good choice, as we were still able to swim in Lake Champlain and enjoy cycling through the islands and countryside. We stayed at the North Hero House (very nice) for two nights, then moved to the Dairy Center Motel (not recommended) on the mainland in Enosburg, but left there early in the morning to drive to Burlington.


One of the Champlain Islands, Isle La Motte, has a Shrine to St. Anne, on the site of the French fort built in 1666. Today there are stations of the cross and a small chapel. Another bit of history: Teddy Roosevelt was on the island to give a speech when he learned that William McKinley had been shot. Another interesting site on the little island is the Chazy Fossil Reef, 480 million years old and fascinating from a geologic and aesthetic viewpoint. Cycling from North Hero through Alburg peninsula to Isle La Motte and back was an easy, 33 mile route along very lightly-traveled roads.


Next we drove to Enosburg and rode along the Missisquoi Valley Trail, which is nearly flat for about 25 miles. We rode a total of 40 miles, nearly to the border with Canada, then turning back through Richford, VT to the trail, to Sheldon, and then back to Enosburg. With not much to see in the Enosburg area, we retired early and woke at 4 AM to drive to Burlington where we had Montreal-style bagels at Myer's, then cycled along the Burlington Bike Trail along the lake.


Ending our cycling adventures, we drove south through Middlebury for lunch at the Otter Creek Bakery and on to Williamstown for a visit to the newly renovated and expanded Clark Art Institute. This used to be one of our favorite little museums, but the architects have ruined it. The additions are interesting and good for temporary exhibits (this summer, Abstract Impressionism from the National Gallery and ancient Chinese bronzes from Shanghai), but the connection to the old is not intuitive. The interior of old little museum has been opened up, yet the flow is poorly engineered. Prominently displayed in several places were the names for the donors. The New York Times gave the architecture and displays general good reviews, but the Boston Globe panned it. We go with the Globe. We then drove home in order to miss the rain.