Tag Archives: Vermont

Bolton Valley Resort

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In honor of the dumping Vermont just received… and I wish I could fly home this second to enjoy it all!

I lived in Vermont my entire life (well, all up until I decided to move when I was 23 – crazy). Anyway, one would think that growing up in Vermont and having access to all that powdery goodness I would’ve started snowboarding or skiing at a young age, but I didn’t – that was my brother 🙂 I was the one that could be found snowmobiling any night of the week with my dad and his friends. Then college came and my senior year I decided to give snowboarding a go.

I went to Champlain College, they had a deal with Bolton Valley. The first time I went, I borrowed a board from one of my friends, bought some cheap boots from a second hand sports store and crossed my fingers. We skipped right over the bunny hill and went right to the top of the mountain. Two hours later, I made it back down to the base. Yea, that’s right, two hours. I was on my butt for most of the trip down, went flying over the side of the bank, went flying head first, probably cursed a little, laughed a little too. The worst part was having my friends sit and wait for me but they are so awesome they just kept encouraging me the entire way. At the end of the day, I was addicted and ready to go back for more.

Snowboarding isn’t easy. Personally, I think skiing would be a lot harder, I guess it’s just all up for preference and I would rather have both my feet strapped into one board. I ended up getting seasons passes, going up with my friends every weekend, going by myself every second that I could get, even calling in on the days where the powder just came down. There is NOTHING like a good powder / blizzard day.

Overtime, my “skills” improved from “lack of” to being able to link my turns. Looking back, we had some wicked times at Bolton. They provide night riding which is something that not a lot of resorts offer. They are super close to Burlington, making the perfect day getting up early to hit the mountain and then hitting up Church Street later that night. It’s where we decided to try hitting some jumps and rails, trying to ride in the woods (and getting stuck in waist deep powder) and sticking to the left side of the mountain. (This was the side of the mountain where no one seemed to go (for some weird reason but we were so thankful), where it was always ungroomed trails. There is nothing like carving the first trail in untouched snow.

Bolton is a great small resort. Good food, good atmosphere and if you are from the area you will typically run into someone that you know and the lift ticket prices are decent. There are lessons for all skill levels and ages (don’t worry the five year olds will make sure to show you up!).

251 Club – Vermont

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Well it’s around the time of year where we are all starting to get cabin fever and ready to get out of the house and enjoy some warmer weather no matter where you are. I’ve also been talking quite a bit about Texas so lets move to a different location. We’re headed to Vermont and the 251 Club!

What is the 251 club? Vermont has 246 “organized” towns as well as five “unorganized” towns in the state (even though there are technically more, believe me I found more…) according to Dr. Arthur W. Peach, the former Director of the Vermont Historical Society. The point of the 251 Club is to travel to each town in the state and have your picture taken next to a landmark in the town (library, post office, city limits sign in some cases) to prove that you have been there (no photoshop allowed). For those of you who know me – its not at all surprising that I would attempt this feat.

I somehow came across the 251 Club in 2007 and then suckered a couple of friends to join me (this is also a very typical thing of me to do). Thank you for being such good sports. We had a good time and there’s lot to see along the way. The great thing about Vermont is that each town is different, it’s small and it’s unique.

For starters you will see a lot of things along the way that you wouldn’t guess you would see…
This was the gate to someone’s driveway on the very top of a mountain around Waltham, I could’ve sat at the top of this mountain and looked at the view for hours (if it wasn’t for the mud on the road).
This was on a back country road (no kidding)…I’d like to see what this sign says now…

You will come across historical markers… John Deere started in Middlebury – did ya know?…
You’ll find yourself stopping along the side of the road praying not to get hit by a car laughing so hard at how out of place you must look…
or in the middle of town doing silly poses. (Live a little!)…
And you will end up in front of the State Capital in Montpelier (it is beautiful)….
You WILL find yourself literally in the middle of nowhere, on a back country road, dead end roads, mountain tops, standing on guardrails because you are to short to get into the picture with the sign, etc..
(I could add a ton of pictures here, but I think you get my point).
You’ll have the opportunity to experience some of Vermont’s greatest treasures, stopping at sugarhouses to taste some fresh Vermont Made Syrup, checking out one of many Vermont breweries and always enjoying the scenery along the way. Vermont holds so much history – there is something for everyone. There’s no place like it.

This is a great thing to do on weekends, days off, by yourself or with your family and friends any time of the year and its cheap. I mean all you have to do is pay for gas and make sure to stop at some Country Stores on your way (there’s always something tasty in there)! Someday I’ll be back to finish my trip! Just make sure you get started on yours! And don’t forget your camera!

For More Info: http://www.vt251.com/