Cumulative Official Town Count | Unofficial Town Count |
52 | 25 |
As spring weather tries to emerge this early April day despite a whopper of a snowstorm, I thought I'd go back to early October 2021 since I'm REALLY far behind in posting my forays and because I much prefer fall to spring. So, this edition of my 251 journey brings you to more of southern Vermont on a gorgeous fall day with some lovely leaf-peeping. Welcome to: Peru, Londonderry, Landgrove, Andover, Chester, and Rockingham (including Bellows Falls & Saxtons River). Oh, and there are 3 more covered bridges!
PERU
Peru, VT is a very pretty little town (population was 531 at the 2020 census) with essentially one street. It attracts tourists year-round and has a fantastic general store, JJ Hapgood Store, to meet all of their refined needs (and is well worth a stop). The town has well-maintained homes and buildings, as well as Hapgood Pond for recreational activities and camping in the summer and fall. It also has a great town fair every fall, complete with lots of food, ice cream, and crafts. Interestingly, Peru was originally known as Bromley, but changed its name to Peru in 1803/1804 by the land grantees as a way of attracting land buyers by associating it with the country Peru, which was considered to be a place of great wealth back then. Bromley Mountain is located in Peru and is awesome (I learned to ski there so I MAY be biased); in winter there is snow skiing and in summer there is an Adventure Park with an alpine slide, mini golf, zip lines, a ropes course, etc.
LONDONDERRY
Londonderry, VT feels like a "real" town (population 1,919 in 2020) with a grocery store, diner, gas station and other amenities. While the town itself may not be as quaint as some of its neighbors, it is located just down the road from Peru and has equally beautiful scenery. It is home to Taylor Farm, where you can visit the animals and pick up maple popcorn, fresh cheese and eggs, along with local crafts, soaps, and some produce. If skiing is your thing Magic Mountain, and Viking Nordic Center are both in town. Magic is a real (downhill) skier's mountain -- not big on glitz, but it gets the job done, has a very loyal clientele, and is upgrading with each season; and in the summer you can play disc golf there. The Nordic Center is beautiful and offers rentals should you not have your own cross-country ski equipment. On Saturdays from Memorial Day through Columbus Day, Londonderry is home to a great farmer's market, the West River Farmer's Market, which has yummy local foods and crafts (try the Woodcock Farm cheeses from nearby Weston -- their "kind of blue" is a favorite of mine). In lovely pastoral South Londonderry (not an official town), there is a restaurant which, if you love farm-to-table dining, you MUST try, called SoLo Farm & Table. The hours and availability are limited, but the food (Chef's Table prix fixe only these days) is exceptional. Plan ahead and you'll be rewarded! Nothing to report on for West Londonderry which isn't an official town but has the feel of (a run-down) one.
LANDGROVE
Landgrove, VT is a very well-kept itty bitty town with spectacular scenery (pop. 155 in 2020). Its only business is a very lovely inn, The Landgrove Inn, which has been around for generations and offers artist retreats as well as guest lodging. It is bigger than the tennis club and town offices combined! And speaking of the tennis club, it seems to have one court and the smallest clubhouse I have ever seen. A drive through the town is well worth your time. It has tree-lined roads with fields offering views of the Green Mountains all around. It's good for the soul. (Or stay at the Inn and let me know how it is!)
ANDOVER
Andover, VT (chartered in 1761), nestled between quaint and picturesque towns, has a different feel. The small town of 568 people (in 2020) feels down-scale and, frankly, a bit scary. The homes visible on the road were not well-kept and the people encountered were far less friendly than anyplace else I have yet to experience in the state (maybe I just had bad luck that day). I understand that there are some amazing homes and views in Andover, which doesn't surprise me given its location, but unless you are visiting someone there, I cannot offer any reason to visit. That said, there is a quaint historical schoolhouse in the Simonville part of town which was pretty cute (and until I was writing this, I didn't even realize it was part of Andover)....
CHESTER
Chester, VT is a quaint town of roughly 3,000 people (in 2020). One sign called it "the Vermont you were looking for," and it kind of is. I guess I didn't think I could capture the town in pictures, but it's got the ubiquitous church, and is pretty well known for its arts and antiquing galleries and shops. It's location is central to Okemo, Stratton, and Killington ski areas and it attracts tourists pretty much year round. If you are planning a visit to Vermont and Chester is en route to whatever your destination is (if not Chester, itself), plan to take a little time to enjoy a coffee, tea, bite, shop, or stroll there.
ROCKINGHAM (INCLUDES SAXTON'S RIVER & BELLOWS FALLS)
Rockingham, VT is a fairly sizeable town of almost 5,000 located along the Connecticut River. While it does not have a town center itself, it includes the villages of Bellows Falls and Saxtons River -- both of which have village centers but are not listed as official towns for the purposes of the VT 251 list. Rockingham itself does have a historical meeting house, one of the two locations of the famed Vermont Country Store, and three covered bridges.
Bellows Falls is a decent-sized (population just under 2,750 in 2020) nice town (er, village officially) in Vermont, located on the Connecticut River and was visited in late spring. It must have been the original town of Rockingham site because the Town Hall in Bellows Falls (which doubles as the Bellows Falls Opera House) says "Rockingham Town Hall". The town was a mill town and home to the heritage Green Mountain Railroad. (Amtrak stops there today, so it's still, officially, a railroad town I guess). Aside from a walkable downtown with coffee shops, restaurants, bookstores, and retail stores, you can find prehistoric petroglyphs in the rocks at the base of The Great Falls. Nobody can say how old they are, but some think up to 3,000 years, and they are thought to be of Abenaki (Native American) origin. There is a nice Farmer's Market in town (just near the Amtrak Station, in fact) on Fridays from April through September -- I got a kick-ass hot sauce from a vendor there last year! You could easily and happily spend a day here.
Saxtons River has a cute Main Street with a great general store and historical society. The population was 479 in 2020 and, like Bellows Falls, is an unofficial town for the purposes of the VT 251 exploration. The river (Saxtons River) is the original source of water used by Saxtons Distillery (headquartered in Brattleboro) who make Sapling Maple Bourbon (which has turned quite a few non-bourbon drinkers into bourbon drinkers)! Plus, there's a covered bridge, Hall's Bridge.
I am hoping to drop at least one new VT 251 post each week until I am caught up (I'm only about 100 behind now). Sign up below for weekly emails so you don't miss them!
Comentários