First Vermont Trip

I told Liên that before I go to Hawaii again, I should go to Vermont. Thal and Julie have been living there for four years and I had not visited them. We planned our trip around meeting Kate, Julie’s mom, in the month of October. 

Day 1 – Travel Day and Lake Champlain

Julie picked us up at the airport. Then she took us out on a walk at Lake Champlain. Bella was an enthusiastic walker. Julie made sure Bella was on leash the whole way. She chose the trail less frequented by other dogs.

Thal came home and made us dinner of potato pasta with vegetables. We had a taste of something Thal and Julie call “fig wine,” but at 100 proof, Tom and I insisted it shouldn’t be called wine.

Day 2 – Camel’s Hump State Park

Thal had me choose between this hike and something longer with higher elevation. I said no thanks to the other hike. This was a hard enough hike for me at about 6.5 miles with 2,600-foot elevation gain. Julie and Bella did not join us. When we got to the trail head, Tom and Thal decided to pull my leg. Tom said the mileage given was for one way, so the hike would be double that amount. Thal concurred. I believed them. Later, Thal said I was so focused on the first one mile! You bet I was, trying to figure out if that would be possible and how to make myself last that long. The trail was a steady rise from the start and I was grateful I didn’t have to walk a steeper hill. 

It was very windy at the summit. I was glad for my winter hat, gloves, puffy, and wind jacket. 

On the way out, the steady steep downhill hurt my knee. I hobbled for about two miles. The trail didn’t level out until we had about .2 miles left, and I was thankful for the relief.

I tried to take some more pictures of the fall colors as we were driving home. 

When we saw a beautiful rainbow, Thal stopped for me to take a picture.

Tom made beef stroganoff in a slow cooker. Kate joined us for dinner. 

Day 3 – Horseback Riding & Middlebury

Kate is getting riding lessons from her niece Sara after many years of not being on a horse. She agreed to have Tom and me come with her so we could try some horseback riding. On the way to the horse farm in New Haven, we stopped and shopped at the Dakin Farm country store in Ferrisburgh. We bought some cheese, sausage, maple brittles, and maple syrup to bring home. Tom got some kettle corn to munch on.

Sara gave me a basic lesson on riding. I rode Eddie. We went on a little walk with me on Eddie and Kate on a big horse and Sara and Tom on foot. 

Afterwards we followed Kate to Middlebury where she grew up. We ate at Shiretown Marketplace. I had the best smoked brisket ever. Kate took a picture of us at the Frog Hollow sign near the Otter Creek when we told her we used to live on Frog Hollow Court.

Kate showed us the 48 acres she inherited from her dad, then took us to see another perspective of Lake Champlain.

For dinner, Thal and I made bún bò cà chua and xíu mại hấp. 

Day 4 – Grand Isle State Park

At Tom’s request, Thal took us to Grand Isle State Park for a short hike on the Iron Wood Nature Trail that Tom did with Thal before. Julie and Bella didn’t join us. 

We stopped for lunch at a beautiful spot and saw a blue heron. I hope to take a picture of it flying, but it flew away in the opposite direction.

We stopped at two Asian markets on the way home. In the evening, Thal dropped me off downtown on the way to a swim at the YMCA with Julie and Tom. I was hoping to find a birthday gift for Milli, but most of the stores were already closed. 

When we got home, we had a delicious hot pot meal prepared by Thal.

Day 5 – Cambridge and Marshfield

All four of got up early for a long day ahead. Kate came over to watch Bella. Julie drove the leg to Cambridge. I thought the sky was very pretty at dawn.

We stopped at an HMart store for Thal and Julie to stock up on Asian food items. We met with Karen Wilber and her boyfriend Kevin at Tatte Bakery & Café at Cambridge Crossing. I ordered a lamb meatball shakshuka, a traditional North African dish.

After lunch, we walked a bit along the Charles River before saying goodbye.

Thal drove the leg to Marshfield to meet with Tom’s cousin Karen, her son Chris, and Chris’ two children. From their house, we walked and spent some time at the beach. 

We had dinner at a local seafood restaurant before heading home. 

Day 6 – Hurricane Mountain Wilderness

Julie asked me to pick a hike in the Hurricane Mountain Wilderness. I picked Little and Big Crow Trail of 3.5 miles with an 1,800-foot elevation gain, which “takes you over the summit of two peaks with amazing views of the High Peaks regions along the way.” All four of us went without Bella. We took the ferry to get to New York and drove on beautiful country roads to the trail head. 

When we got to the Crow Clearing Parking area, we went the wrong direction and took the GulfBrook Trail instead. When we got to the Gulf Brook Lean-to, we realized our mistake. With the help of a hiker who was on her way to Hurricane Mtn summit (3,678 ft), we chose to take the trail to Weston Mnt summit (3,186 ft) via Lost Pond. The trail is not officially maintained and we had a hard time finding the trail at the Biesemeyer Lean-to. We were lucky to find some hikers who came from Weston Mtn summit. 

The extra .3 mile and 275-foot climb rewarded us with a beautiful view of the mountain range and Lost Pond in front of us. Our hike turned out to be about 4.8 miles with a 1,000-foot elevation gain, which actually may be easier than my original pick even though it’s 1.3 miles longer.

Bella wanted to eat a toad she found on the trail.

We stopped at a country store at Keene for some food items. We also stopped at a spot to take beautiful pictures of fall colors.

When we got home, Thal and I made cá kho tộ and stir-fried spinach and mushroom for dinner.

Day 7 – Apple Picking

Kate came over for breakfast. Thal made bacon and tofu scramble. Kate decided to work on fixing the toilet. Tom joined in to help her. Kate had to leave for the airport before the task was done. Tom finished the job. Then all four of us went apple picking at Yates Family Orchard which boasts 28 varieties. We picked about 10lbs. of different varieties of apples and took most of that home to Austin. We tried cider donuts and creamees at the orchard. 

At home, we had sundubu jjigae (Korean tofu soup) with condiments of kimchee, carrots, pickled radish, green pepper, squash for dinner. 

Day 8 – Mount Philo State Park

For our last morning in Burlington, Thal took us to Mt Philo State Park in Charlotte for a short hike to the summit overlooking Lake Champlain. Julie had school in the morning and didn’t join us. I thought the trail would be easy since Thal said it has a 500-foot elevation gain. But the trail is short – about 2 miles round trip, so it is as steep as the other longer trails we took (grade 21%). About half of the trail is steps. However, I felt it was a perfect short hike – not too hard and not too easy. 

We stopped at a country store on the way home. I got Milli a bag of candies shaped as pumpkins. They are so cute. 

Thal dropped us off at the airport and gave me a big squeeze. Julie had said if we wanted to see them in the next 2.5 years, we’d have to go to Vermont. I imagine we will.