Near our Cabin: Quaint Vermont Villages
Also See: Woodstock & Killington
Stockbridge, Vermont
View of Stockbridge from the road to our cabin.
The tiny village of Stockbridge (population 674) is about two miles from the cabin. It's fairly quiet with a small town green surrounded by a church, a couple of restored homes and a cemetery.
Rochester, Vermont
Great restaurants and a little shopping is just eight miles from our cabin in Rochester, Vermont. There you will find a charming town green surrounding by historic homes. The quaint downtown area is home to several good restaurants, book store, hardware store, a gallery and more. An exquisite place for dinner is the Huntington House Inn . Their fine dining rooms offer elegance in décor and food, with service by a professional, helpful wait staff. Art from around the world, white linens, flowers and candle light set the mood for a romantic and memorable evening. Diners may sit on their porch and listen to a concert in the Park bandstand during the warm months. Also at Huntington House is Doc's Tavern to enjoy a cocktail at the friendly bar, along with pasta, panini and pizza to American comfort food. Another top choice for dinner or an evening drink is The Porch, also located in the middle of the Rochester. Just up the street from The Porch is our favorite spot for lunch and delicious pastries, Kristina's Kitchen inside of Seasoned Books. They use lots of local and organic ingredients. Dine in the midst of an eclectic selection of new, used, collectible and publisher overstock books. They focus on titles that promote sustainable living, renewable power, and wilderness adventures. Also get some of their famous Vermont Soap.	Say hello to Sandy and Larry at Seasoned Books.
Brandon, Vermont
Our top picks of Brandon (photos above): Café Provence, Liza Myers Gallery and Watershed Tavern (with great views of the waterfall)
Brandon is about a 25-mile scenic drive through the Green Mountains National Forest. (Take Highway 73 from near Rochester.) Chartered in 1761, Brandon offers great restaurants, antique shops, historic buildings, museums, and many art galleries. Brandon is a study in early American architecture and Vermont history. The town's layout is unique -- it has two village greens, with the Neshobe River flowing between them. During the boom years of the 1800s, many fine homes were built, and most of them are still in use today. In particular, Park Street, a broad, straight avenue with beautiful homes set back from the road, is a study in early American architecture. Today you may walk Brandon's historic downtown with its entire core of 243 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. There is a self-guided Walking Tour available that highlights the architecture of this entire district in detailed description. Pick up a copy of The Brandon Historical Village Walking Tour at the Brandon Information Center (junction Routes 7 and 73E) which is open daily. You may also read the text of the Walking Tour online. Briggs Carriage Bookstore is a 6,000-square-foot parcel of Literary Paradise where customers can browse the shelves, relax in comfy chairs, or chat with the witty, wise, and friendly staff. The second floor features the Ball and Chain Café, which serves fair trade coffee and espresso beverages, teas, fruit smoothies, Italian sodas, fresh lemonade, and homemade baked goods. With chess and game nights, a weekly knitting circle, free wireless Ethernet, frequent musical and literary events, and a darned swell ambience, it's a world of books in a small Vermont town.  Great trails for Mountain biking and hiking are in the Green Mountain National Forest. Ride through Pittsford's covered bridges - a combination of gravel and paved roads pass over three covered bridges. Middlebury College, founded in 1800, is an independent, residential, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont is just a few miles down the road. Kirby's Happy Hoofers has Mohair on the hoof. They are a very small farm devoted to producing mohair and raising registered Angora Goats and a few Shetland and Icelandic Sheep. See Angora Goats of all ages as well what is produced from our fiber. Mittens lined with mohair or socks occasionally available for sale. Maple View Farm Alpacas specializes in alpacas. Come learn about these gentle, intelligent creatures then browse the farm store, which features garments, accessories, yarns and toys made from luxurious alpaca fiber. Farm visits are by chance or by appointment. New England Maple Museum -- The story of maple sugaring in the world’s largest maple museum. Antiques, paintings, slide show, folk art exhibits, maple syrup samples. A simulated boiling prcess, “sap to syrup” is presented all year. Vermont Marble Museum -- Worlds Largest Marble Museum - Movie, Hall of Presidents, Artist in Residence, Marble Office, Bathroom, Chapel, Kitchen, “Earth Alive” Geology display room, Calcium Carbonate in everyday life, Sample Room, Plaster and “Pointing” display, Marble Market, Custom Marble Work, Extensive gift shop, Quarry Trail, Historic Photographs, Relics, 100 displays and much more.
Bridgewater, Vermont Chartered on July 10, 1761, Bridgewater, Vermont is known for its Bridgewater Mill. The Bridgewater Woolen Mill was originally built in 1825. The Mill has been converted into a wonderful space for shops and artist studios, including Charles Shackleton Furniture & Miranda Thomas Pottery Workshops and Retail Store and Northern Ski Works. During the 1800’s many sheep roamed the hills of Vermont. In 1840, in Bridgewater alone there were 9,309 sheep. Many of these sheep helped produce some of the finest woolens in the world at this very spot. The 1900’s were a busy time for the mill. Uniforms and blankets were being woven here and sent to the United States soldiers during World War I and World War II. In 1908 an electric generator was added to replace the water wheel. In 1925 the woolen mill changed its name to Vermont Native Industries. Many mill workers were housed in the boarding houses near the mill. The Southgate House, across the street, was a boarding house for the mill. It now houses the town Clerk’s Office and the Library. The local Fire Station was built next to the mill because many firemen worked at the mill. On June 30, 1973 the mill was closed due to high floodwater (6’8”) on the Ottauquechee River that destroyed the Dye Room. On July 6, 1976 the Bridgewater Mill was reviewed by the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation and by the National Park Service in Washington D.C., and under the provisions of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 was entered in the National Register of Historic Places. By inclusion in the National Register, the Bridgewater Mill became part of our historical and cultural heritage, and is additionally recognized as a living part of their community life and development. Bridgewater is about 25 miles from our cabin, near Woodstock. From the cabin, take Highway 100 south through Killington to Highway 4 (east toward Woodstock). For a great day trip, continue to Woodstock and return via Highway 12 through Barnard.
Ride through this covered bridge, adjacent to Highway 4 between Bridgewater and Woodstock.	Looking toward the Mill in Bridgewater
Middlebury, Vermont In 1761, Middlebury was chartered with most people settling in the town after the Revolutionary War. Some say the town was named because it is located midpoint between the towns of New Haven in the north and Salisbury to the south, which were chartered the very same day, and some say because it was located halfway between the Canadian and Massachusetts borders.   Passing through the heart of the historic village is the Otter Creek, the longest river in Vermont. You can see its powerful waterfall from the Battell Bridge and through the windows of the Frog Hollow Vermont State Craft Center, located in a building that once was a mill. In an old mill building converted into a stylish space and set dramatically against the rushing Otter Creek Falls.   Middlebury is home to Middlebury College, a liberal arts college of international recognition. The college was founded in 1800 by a group of Middlebury citizens to train young men for the ministry and other learned professions.  Middlebury is a beautiful quintessential New England village, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, with its white steepled church overlooking Main Street and its vibrant citizenry. To demonstrate our industrial heritage, a historic marker is found on Main Street commemorating John Deere and his invention "the plow that broke the plains." This marker is located in Cannon Park near the blacksmith shop where Deere apprenticed in from 1821-1825. John Deere left Vermont and moved to Illinois where he built the world’s first steel moldboard plow. Nearby is the Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History where one could learn much more about the history of the area. Middlebury is about 33 miles from our cabin via the very scenic Highway 125. Middlebury is only 16 miles north of Brandon. So you can drive back through Brandon and back to our cabin via scenic Highway 73.
Rutland, Vermont Just 23 miles away from our cabin, Rutland is the second largest city in Vermont and features a thriving historic downtown and a variety of businesses and services including the second largest mall in Vermont, the Diamond Run Mall. Rutland's downtown boomed with the marble industry after 1850. Today, downtown Rutland is home to great shopping in hundreds of stores, almost 30 restaurants, movies, and the wonderfully restored Paramount Theatre! By 1880 the city's population had tripled. Marble was used extensively in the construction or embellishment of many architecturally significant buidings. In fact, marble quarrying, begun c.1845, still flourishes nearby. Downtown Rutland boasts a unique architectural heritage with 108 of their Downtown buildings are listed in the National Register. In the 1870's Merchants Row was one of the most impressive streets of commerce in New England, certainly the finest in Vermont. Rutland has an architectural legacy second to none. Its historic structures, which encompass block after city block, date from the late 18th century. Since 1976 a great deal of restoration has been accomplished. Significant buildings include the Rutland Savings Bank, the Opera House, the Gryphon Buidling, and many other buildings in and around Downtown. Many fine Victorian homes of the era still stand behind the Main Street Park between Route 7 and Downtown. Many buildings along Merchants Row and Center Street are noted on the National Register of Historic Places. When visiting Downtown Rutland take advantage of the Walking Tour of Historic Downtown Rutland - a collaboration of the Rutland Area Cultural Alliance and the University of Vermont Historic Preservation Program.
Hanover, New Hampshire & Dartmouth College Hanover is located on the western side of New Hampshire in the scenic Upper Connecticut River Valley, about 40 miles from our cabin. The river forms the border between Vermont and New Hampshire. It is home to Dartmouth College. Visitors come to Dartmouth for any number of reasons: to tour the campus and learn about the College, its admissions policies, educational offerings, and recreational opportunities; to gain knowledge about local, regional, and national history; tour the Hood Museum of Art's exhibitions; or attend a performance at the Hopkins Center of Art or an intercollegiate sporting event, among many possibilities.