My Visit to Vermont

Allow me to introduce you to my amazing friend Maya Lantgios. Our friendship took off in high school and we have been good friends ever since. Maya is a graduate student at Chatham University. She’s majoring in environmental sustainability with a chemistry minor. Her future goals include law school, with the University of Vermont Law being a top choice. She had scheduled a visit with the Law School and asked me to join her and her sister Iza on their journey. This would be the first time visiting Vermont for all of us, so we had no idea what to expect. While planning the structure of our trip, we decided that we would stay the entire week and explore the surroundings. There is a lack of hotels within Vermont. Your best option for a stay, would be some sort of inn. Luckily for us Derek, a teammate of mine from my rugby club was interning at at the Quechee Country Club Resort. Him and his four roommates were able to house us for the week.

It was an early start to our Monday morning. I finished packing my bags, loaded up my bike, and set off to pick up the girls. After they repeated the same process we coursed ourselves to a local eatery. Our love for coffee is mutual. While we waited for our beans to be processed into a cold-brew, the three of us stood in excitement. We knew that adventure was waiting for us. “Iced Vanilla Latte?” the barista called out. I exchanged a thank you, and we routed ourselves to Vermont.

The ten hour drive didn’t feel as long as it should of. We crossed a few state lines but once we set our tires into the borders of Vermont there was a significant change. The scenery was spectacular. You could see mountains for miles and if you looked hard enough, the trees all swayed in a synchronized formation, as if a music conductor directed their every movement. There was something different about the drive through Vermont. It might of been that we were usually the only ones on the road while driving through the state. About 15 minutes outside our destination, we drove through a town named Woodstock. It had a very colonial look with restored buildings dating back to our country’s founders. As we took note of this landmark, we pressed on through Quechee. It was a long windy road which elevated all the way to the top of a mountain. This was a road that was probably inaccessible during the winter. We made one final turn by a sign that read “Snowshoe Village” and Derek was already waiting for us with excitement. His bright personality was welcoming to Iza and Maya, who were only strangers to him for a matter of minutes.

Derek helped settle us in and gave us a room to which we stored all our belongings. Iza assisted me in taking off our bikes as we looked around at the other houses nearby. They were all pretty big, which probably came with a fancy price tag. We caught up with with his roommates and introduced ourselves. Both Casey, and Holly were watching The Bachelor, or was it The Bachelorette? My focus was on remembering everybody’s names. There was Tiffany who was also a Slippery Rock graduate and Hollyann who was only spoken about but was absent at this moment.

Maya was prepping for her visit and wanted to get rest for her busy day ahead. Fast forwarding into the night Holly, Casey, Derek, and myself decided to go to the nearest pub. This ended up being in New Hampshire. That might sound far, but the border was only a 15 minute ride. It was three dollar craft beers, so we loaded up our tabs and got to know each other more. Casey and Holly were very open people, they were nice and shared my excitement for the outdoors.

It was around 1:30AM when I passed out back at our stay. I awoke around six hours later when Maya gave me a nudge. We were off to South Royalton where the Law School’s campus of only a couple blocks resides. While Maya spent the first half of the day at school, Iza and I took the locals advice and explored the Quechee Gorge. The Quechee Gorge was the biggest of its kind in the state. It boasts a high velocity of foot traffic because of its proximity to other tourist destinations. Iza walked over to the bridge that overlooked the gorge as I followed. I leaned on the railing and dropped a twig as I watched it drop 165 feet below. We pursued the trail up river where it lead us to a dam. The property used to be owned by Mr. Dewey. He ran a very successful wool mill company that supplied blankets to our military and uniforms to the Red Sox as well as the Yankees. Now it’s a state park that also hosts hiking trails as well.

The sun was around it’s highest point signaling us to fetch Maya from her visit. Upon our arrival, she had folders in one hand, and cold brewed coffee in the other. It smelled delicious, so I decided that I too needed my fix. It was almost two o’clock when we set off to Burlington. I was really excited to see Lake Champlain but before we made it there, we stopped at Ben & Jerry’s factory, because who doesn’t want free ice cream. The tour only lasted around 30 minutes but it was well worth the stop. I never knew how environmentally responsible this company was. It boosted my respect for them.

Lake Champlain glistened from the sun ahead as we made our way down the main street to its waters. Everywhere you look, people were out walking into local restaurants and bars. Every girl was sporting their best sundress wearing a smile that not even their sunglasses could hide. The people of Burlington were extremely friendly. They actually do stop and say hi if you make eye contact. I found it odd that most businesses were closed by 6:00PM but I found it refreshing that chain stores cease to exist. No fast food burger joints, big name grocery stores, just local and completely organic produce. We stopped into a City Market which had Whole Foods quality produce at cheaper rates. As a thank-you to my hosts I wanted to cook dinner for them. While I gathered my ingredients for a Red Wine Pasta covered in homemade Alfredo sauce, I also picked up a local six pack. I was shocked that my total was less than 25 dollars. Things were cheap, and now I am tempted to move to Burlington. We retired to our place back in Quechee exhausted from our activities knowing that the next day we would devote the time to some sort of hike. You can read about that adventure here.

It was our last full day, and we vowed to ourselves to check out that cool colonial town known as Woodstock. After a filling breakfast at one of the small shops, Maya, and Iza wanted to see the local bookstore. It was then, that I decided I would start collecting cookbooks on my travels because of my hobby for cooking. After we all purchased a book of the same genre we walked down to the Vermont Flannel Company. I’m pretty sure it was Ron Swanson that greeted us, except this guy used a lot more words and knew everything there was to know about flannels. Maya stated how we were outsiders to Vermont and he pointed out how the drive through this state might seem a little more scenic because it is illegal to have billboards on the side of interstates. The state just finds them aesthetically unappealing. It finally made sense. The secret to Vermont’s magical landscapes were not shaded by ugly advertisements. If only more states could follow in pursuit.

My wallet was lighter, and my feet were heavier as the three of us stumbled back into our rooms. Derek arrived back from work and enthusiastically asked if we wanted to go cliff jumping. It took some convincing, but I grabbed the girls and we were now at the edge of a 30 feet leap into deep waters. I will admit to being a little nervous, but my five minutes of contemplating was nothing compared to Iza’s 20 minute wait. It did seem a lot higher from the top, but we all jumped. Derek, Maya, and myself pulled out our inner daredevils as we jumped from the other side of the river which stood at 45 feet tall. It was odd, but I had an easier time lunging off this cliff than the smaller one.

Vermont was filled with unexpected stories and thrilling adventures. Every day was filled with an exciting activity leaving us drained. We would drag ourselves back to home-base every night just waiting for what the next day would have in store. I was really fortunate to have Derek house us, and Maya for asking me to come in the first place. Vermont is a place that will be visited more than once in the coming years. With the amazing landscapes and wonderful people my future adventures have got some high standards to live up to.

#Vermont #Burlington #hiking #waterfalls #adventuresofvudi