Soul Song House Brookfield

... After switching drivers near the town of Rockingham, I veered off the interstate and headed through the mountains along Highway 12. The congestion along this one-way road began to increase as we neared the town of Woodstock. Viewed by many as being the quintessential New England town, Woodstock is filled with typical Americana icons such as a covered bridge, a central green surrounded by restored homes, and a town crier. Today being Columbus Day, many people flocked to Woodstock to ...

Since the trip from New Hampshire to Vermont was only going to be a couple of hours, we took the long way, seeing some great vista's and getting lost only a couple of times. The town of Stowe is like Sisters on steriods, or if you've ever been to Jackson Hole (it's like that). We had 2 days to explore the area so the first day we went south, and saw the von Trapp Family Lodge, yes the Sound of Music family apparently relocated in ...

... kinda hoping to see a moose or a bear.

Outside of Woodstock I stopped a charming General Store and bought a giant chocolate chip cookie and a Christmas gift. I wanted cheese, but they didn't sell it by slice.

When Charlie and I got to Woodstock, we had to stop. It is so pretty and the Bed & Breakfast places look so inviting. I imagined my friends Don & Sarah coming to a New England village like this, strolling ...

Getting together with a dear friend is so special. Kate showed me around town, wined and dined me and hiked my legs off (and Charlie's) in the wooded park up the hill from Main Street.

Montpelier is a dog friendly town and Charlie got to lick up fallen crumbs as we ate lunch at the Skinny Pancake - a crepe place with wonderful crepes. Kate took ...

I'm at home, hanging with friends and the parentals. I'm working out the final details of my upcoming adventure and downloading an ambitious number of telenovellas in a last-ditch effort to learn a bit of Spanish before flying to Guadalajara. Will I succeed? Stay tuned!

We left Bethel mid morning for a four hour car ride to Vermont, five hours later we arrived in Killington, Vermont at the Hawks Inn and Resort where my Aunt Diane works as head of recreation. We arrived just as Aunt Diane was clocking out of work. She gave us a quick tour of the resort which featured a heated outdoor pool, heated indoor pool, horseback riding, and a lake which had a trampoline in the middle. The lake was gorgeous and the guest can take out boats and kayaks. After our tour of ...

... wagged tails with abandon.

I feel like I should have some profound and deep thoughts to share as I wrap this up - add to that the fact that I turn 60 tomorrow - it certainly was a trip of a lifetime - our country has so many places to go, to be in awe of, there is so much that you have to SEE to experience because pictures can't capture it - the national parks are wonderful but the places in between may be just as scenic and much less frequented - those are ...

... cupcakes (my favorite!). We listened to a great book on tape on the way up - that made the trip superfast. At Gram Anne's, we made homemade pizzas, watched the mother fox and three baby foxes who live in her yard, looked out for the mother and baby bear, went to the Montshire Science Museum, a super fun museum with lots of cool exhibits, and also had a party at Auntie Brinna's house on Saturday night. I got to see ...

We left David after a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs, and headed south, the day was wet and the RV and truck are now quite dirty. We arrived at Manchester Vermont late afternoon and visited a few stores at the local outlet mall prior to finding our Campsite. We are currently camped right next to the Battenkill River, a famous trout ...

... to get rid of us. So we decide to have a bite to eat in the "restaurant" and settle in for our three hour tour. Turns out restaurant is a might strong word in Albany and it can mean any hole in the ground selling hot food cold and just plain gross. I thought it safer to skip the food and take pictures instead. Well Peter Pan showed up to save the day. Yes we rode on a bus called Peter Pan and to tell you the truth it was the best bus of ALL the ones ...