We had scheduled a canoe rental last week but Max’s illness took precedence. I was able to reschedule for today. We picked up the canoe and strapped it to the top of the Jeep. I drove to a put-in section of the Lamoille River just West of Johnson along Hwy 15. I left the canoe there and drove further down the river to Jeffersonville
I then parked the car near a city park and rode the bike back up to the canoe where I locked it to a tree along the river.
We set off for the 7 mile paddle. The rain started almost immediately, but it was never that bad, but looking at the sky around us we seemed to miss some pretty heavy storms that would have been less than ideal.
It took us about 3 hours to get down the river. It was ill advised for my back. No more repetitive twisting or turning of the spine in the future.
We dropped the canoe back at the outfitters and stopped by the Cider Mill for more of the essentials.
On the way back, a cemetery in Johnson.
On the way to the canoe trip, construction workers were out painting new yellow lines on the roads. On the way home, after the rain, we saw this shot. Someone is not having a very good day. Reminds me when I got the house painted last year and they decided to paint right before a storm and I came home from work in a rain storm to see my house acting like a chocolate fountain at a wedding reception.
Rain for the next couple days. Presidential debates on TV. It boggles the mind how someone could support this Trump character. He has no interest in doing anything that doesn’t directly benefit himself to the detriment of millions. Watching it just left us sad that half our country is so ignorant or misguided.
When the weather finally cleared we did a hike at Lake Mansfield
I find myself getting upset every time we pass people without masks. Need to work on my ability to compartmentalize that feeling, or let it pass through me and beyond, rather than lingering for a while.
We stopped back in town for another hike up to Sunset Rock to get the peak color shot of the town
Our backyard has a track mowed around the perimeter. Max likes to run the route and occasionally turn back to make sure we are still there, or if there is something of interest he will completely forget us.
I got the TW200 ready for a long ride. Earlier I had followed the “Puppydog” trail up towards Morrisville and the looped back. This time I would continue on farther north. I was bouncing between paved roads and back roads, but then ended up in the styx. I was off the reservation. I drove down roads and people just stared at me wondering who I was and why I was there. I saw a road closed ahead sign. I looked at my map and there was only one way in to this route and I had to get about 25 miles before it reconnected with civilization and there was no work-around. I figured there cant be many road closures that I couldn’t get this small dirtbike through.
As I continued I saw a few more signs over the next 30 minutes and people increasingly began to stare at me the deeper I got. Then I saw a sign “Bridge Out” Now that might be something the dirtbike couldn’t handle, but I held onto hope that I could find a way offroad. The bridge was physically intact, but I came across this on the far side
Ugh. Really? I could not go back all this way and I certainly could not face all those locals again as they smirked when I rolled by with my tail between my legs. I sat for a few minutes and decided I would try and push my bike through the gap
I had to take my gear off the bike and push the rear fenders in. I think I made it by less than an inch. Incredible
I carried on and enjoyed the ride and the fall weather.
The next day we bit the bullet and paid the $25 to take the toll road up to the top of Mt Mansfield. It is basically a service road for chairlifts for Stowe Resort. We could have hiked up there, but our crew was not up for that challenge yet, maybe with a couple more weeks of training.
From our cottage, looking at Mt Mansfield it looks like a persons face looking directly up to the sky. So we drove up to the Nose and then hiked over to the Chin.
Our days were counting down in Vermont so we took a road trip. We headed over to the capital in Montpelier. Nothing special
After that we stopped by “Rock of Ages” It is a company that operates a rock quarry. We thought we might be able to look down into one, but tours were closed, so after checking out the visitors center we were directed to an old quarry.
We basically wandered around a forest near a trailer park looking for a big whole in the ground
We eventually found one filled in with water.
Our final stop was Quechee Gorge. It was a tourist attraction. It really wasn’t all that impressive but with all the novelty shops you would have thought it was the Grand Canyon.
It is a lesson how incredible some views can be if you spend a couple hours getting off the beaten path. But also there are those that are physically challenged enough not to be able to appreciate more than something right off the freeway, so good to have both. Who knows when I will switch from one camp to the other so Carpe Diem!
In honor of that concept I geared up for a challenging hike. About an hour from Stowe is Camels Hump State Park. It is one of the highest points in the state and something I could see while out and about in Stowe. The “hump” is all exposed rock and stands out against the trees and fall colors. I found a loop hike of about 6 miles.
It was a cold morning and began to snow not soon after leaving the car. It was a fairly vertical ascent up a stream bed. Nearing the top, the snow increased and passed a girl that was crying because her hands were cold. I then came near the summit and could hear the wind whipping. I stopped and put on my gloves, hat and rain coat as the only tools for warmth with me. People were huddled around preparing themselves for whatever came next. I stepped out of the trees into the start of the exposed climb and was hit with a 40mph wind
This was no joke. I was laughing at first because this seemed crazy but as I got closer to the summit it got down right dangerous. Water from previous rains had frozen making the exposed rock an ice skating rink and visibility was about 10 ft. Add in the gale force winds and we had a recipe for disaster.
When I reached the summit it was hard to see where to go as any rock cairns had blown over. I found some painted marks on the rock and followed them. There were 2 guys huddled up behind a rock. Not sure what their plan was but I knew I needed to keep moving. Most people were doing an up and back on the same route so they just got a taste and went back the way they came up, but I had decided to do a loop, meaning I had to get across the summit and down the opposite side. I found the descent and had to sit on my butt and scoot across the rock to avoid slipping on the ice and going over the edge. I finally got down into some trees and took a break. That was intense. I saw a guy coming up and he asked how it was. He had shorts and no winter hat. I told him I would not recommend going up without better winter gear, but he pressed on at least a little farther as I headed down.
It took me another hour to loop back to the car.
That hike was my new limit for my age/health. It was fun but my knees/back were sore by the end.
Only a couple days left at The Swimming Hole. Will miss the morning swim. Does wonders for the day when you can start it with some exercise.
Short and easy loop hike on Stevenson Trail in Little River State Park. I really liked this one with all the golden leaves and cool temps, but brief warm ups when exposed to the sun’s rays
Every ¼ mile there where information signs that told of early residents in the area. Apple orchards, saw mills, and syrup production.
We found a killer shelter near a lake (reservoir). If we every come back this way I will be sure to spend a night here. I think this particular on was called the “Cherry”
Last day in VT. We took max across the street to visit the llamas.
Tomorrow we drive back down through NYC and NJ towards North Carolina, or more specifically Forest City NC. Stowe was an amazing place. Just like Maine, in August, Vermont in September is at its best.
Until Tomorrow,
Darren
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