CanonShot Loc: Lancaster County, PA

Will be in the Stowe, VT area for several days in early October. Wishing to turn my camera/eyes loose within a 50 mile radius.

Please offer specific "don't miss" locations. A lot of detail takes the discovery moments away for other three friends so just name specific places without regard to amount of time needed. Thanks.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Bristol Falls in Bristol Vermont.

CanonShot Loc: Lancaster County, PA

Thank you, Billnikon, much appreciated.

bleirer

Shelburne farms. https://shelburnefarms.org/

Might be more than 50 miles though.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

Stowe is literally "in the middle of nowhere" - there is very little civilization anywhere nearby. I believe my cousin lives somewhere near there - but I haven't had any contact with her for years. My understanding is that they live a traditional rustic lifestyle.

My wife and I went to the Coolidge Homestead around thirty years ago. While carefully watching the signs, including a left turn on a four lane road, we didn't notice the stop sign in amongst weeds on the far right side of the road ... but the "town constable" was right there; I'm guessing the town lives on traffic fines instead of property taxes, but in any case I haven't spent any money in Vermont since then. Even that town, Plymouth, is more than fifty miles from Stowe.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

The Stowe area is a major outdoor tourist destination. Most definitely not in the middle of nowhere and there is plenty of civilization all around it. From route 89 North you get off at route 100 and for the next 22 miles through Waterbury (home of Ben and Jerry's ice cream) all the way through Stowe and into Smugglers Notch there are many dozens of hotels, resorts, restaurants, shops, etc all nestled in the Green Mountains of VT, including Mt Mansfield, the tallest mountain in Vt. The Coolidge Homestead is in a very rural area in Vermont which is far south of Stowe.

The area around Stowe is a Mecca in the winter for skiing, snowboarding and other winter sports, and in the summer for hiking, biking and ziplining, kayaking, etc. Going from Stowe through Smugglers Notch (which is a driving experience in itself) you are about a 45 minute drive to Burlington, the largest city in Vermont, located right on the edge of spectacular Lake Champlain. You can live a traditional rustic life up there if you wish, but the area has all the same trappings of modern life you will find anywhere including wineries, fine dining, nice shops, great cell phone and internet access, hotels and resorts at every price range from ultra luxurious to inexpensive, and some concerts and live performances. UPS and Amazon delivery trucks are a fairly common sight. It is an area with a focus on outdoor activities.

Burlington, less than an hour away, a sophisticated and cosmopolitan small city, is the home of a huge University of Vermont campus as well as other colleges. Although its population is only around 42 thousand, the Burlington metro area increases that to 215,000! Vermont's sleepy little capital, Montpelier, is only 22 miles from Stowe. Montreal Canada is less than 2 hours away and is great for day trips. Smuggler's Notch Resort, on the other side of the Notch, just 20 minutes north of Stowe has been our summer and winter destination for the last 25 years. To see and do everything within a 50 mile radius of Stowe would take many years of vacations. And one will never get tired of the spectacular views.

CanonShot Loc: Lancaster County, PA

Thank you for adding to this discussion, rehess.

CanonShot Loc: Lancaster County, PA

Appreciate the "door step" Vermont info you have provided, mwsilvers. Will surely take a hard copy along.

CanonShot Loc: Lancaster County, PA

Thanks, bleirer. Will definitely throw this option in the pot. Nice website you offered here.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

There is the wonderful Shelburne Museum, just south of Burlington on RT 7, which is different from Shelburne Farms. The Shelburne Museum is very large with two or three dozen 19th century and other museum buildings each housing very interesting and different collections.

Located there is the Ticonderoga, a large 19th century paddle steamer, an incredible display of miniature 19th and early 20th century circus wagons and performers, and lots of great old circus posters, an old steam locomotive and cars located in a recreated 19th century train station, dozens of other displays including a number of incredible 19th century automatons. Too many other things to post here. All on a beautiful piece of land near Lake Champlain. The museum, which is only a few miles from Burlington, is around 40 miles from Stowe.

https://shelburnemuseum.org

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

From Stowe you can also drive your car up a dirt toll road to the top of Mt. Mansfield. From there, it a relatively short and easy hike to the summit which is not much higher than the parking area. It took around an hour or so hiking each way if I recall. I last did it more than 15 ago when I was in my mid fifties and not in terribly fit condition.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

If you're not afraid of heights and want to see vistas, there is also the Gondola ride in Stowe as well as several zip line adventures on both sides of the Notch.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

There are also several places you can rent bikes if you have not brought your own. There's also horseback riding although I do not know where those stables are located.

As you can tell, I know this general area very well. If you have any specific questions, feel free to PM me.

timbuktutraveler

I would go to Smuggler's Notch, and the area arong Craftsbury Common

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

Find a fairly flat stretch of the Appalachian Trail and walk! It will be stunning. Get a Vermont Atlas map - it will show all the small roads - explore! It is a beautiful spot.