Hiking The Oldest And Famous Long Trail In Vermont

The Long Trail is arguably the most famous hiking trail in Vermont stretching 272 miles with another 166 miles of side trails. Built by the Green Mountain Club between 1910 and 1930, the Long Trail is the oldest hiking trail in the United States and was the inspiration for the Appalachian Trail both of which come together for 100 miles in the southern part of the state. We have a list of nearby favorites some as close as a few miles from Pond Mountain Inn. See our favorite hike just minutes from the inn!

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Green Mountain Railroad Offers Fall Foliage Train Rides In Beautiful Vermont

All Board on the Green Mountain Flyer … Combining leaf peeping with a two hour Vermont train ride from Chester to Ludlow in vintage windows-open passenger cars is a unique way of seeing the fall colors come alive as you wind through the Green Mountains. Afterward, have lunch and visit all the interesting antique shops that Chester offers.

Get all the details for the awesome train ride Here

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Raising Monarch Butterflies at Pond Mountain Inn Vermont

 

Two of our guests, both retired teachers, urged us to create a milkweed habitat for Monarchs. Patti recently sent us a butterfly enclosure so that we could raise Monarchs. Kay sprang into action and collected nine caterpillars, and we’ve released our first today!

Here’s what happens… The Monarch butterfly life cycle has four stages and four generations – the stages are egg, larvae, pupa and adult butterfly; the four generations refer to four generations of butterflies passing through these four stages within a year.

The first three generations live from two to six weeks – the fourth generation eggs are laid in the month of September or October and live more than eight to nine months. This fourth generation butterfly also has a specialty; it migrates to the warmer regions of California or Mexico!

Find out How To Raise Monarch Butterflies At Home

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Perseid Meteor Shower and Pond Mountain Inn Collaborate for a Spectacular Show

Conditions at Pond Mountain Inn should be near perfect with a dark sky free from light pollution; however the extended weather forecast may not cooperate, still though, we may get lucky!

The 2020 Perseid meteor shower will peak on August 11, 12 and 13. On this night, the moon will be 47% full thus creating good conditions for watching the meteor shower. It is expected that between 80–100 meteors per hour will be visible.

The best time to view the Perseids, or most other meteor showers is when the sky is the darkest. Most astronomers suggest that depending on the Moon’s phase, the best time to view meteor showers is right before dawn.

The Perseids can be seen in the Northern Hemisphere. Look between the radiant, which will be in the north-east part of the sky and the zenith (the point in sky directly above you).

Good luck to all that stay up late!

Thanks to Jack Fusco for his wonderful photograph.

Fly to Pond Mountain Inn Vermont on Cape Air Airline

We have discovered Cape Air! Take five minutes and find out more about this fascinating airline that carried over 500,000 passengers last year, making them one of the largest regional airlines in the United States! Flight Time From Rutland to Boston Is One Hour… Vermont Just Keeps Getting Better!

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Star Gazing at Pond Mountain Inn Without a Telescope

The night sky at Pond Mountain Inn is magnificent for star gazing! Intrigued by the clarity and the absence of any artificial light we joined a local Astronomy Club. Our first question, like many others, is “what can I see through a $200 telescope?” The short answer – a lot!

Star Gazing at Pond Mountain Inn Without a Telescope

Let’s begin by mentioning what can be seen without a telescope – quite a bit! The International Space Station (ISS) passed by us twice last week while having dinner outside with friends. And, with an untrained eye, having ISS Detector app on my telephone is the best way to distinguish the space station from roaming satellites. After only a few sightings, the two are easily distinguishable – the space station has a much larger and brighter footprint. Satellites are quite common – we saw three in fifteen minutes the previous Sunday night!

The broad swath of milky light stretching across the night sky is, of course, the Milky Way Galaxy that never disappoints. The Big Dipper sits directly above our home in the summer, which is somehow very comforting. We see shooting stars about 30% of the time – last summer we saw an incredible meteor streaking across the night’s sky that lasted just a split second – absolutely magnificent! Planets are easily visible to the naked eye, especially the notable three – Jupiter, Saturn and Mars, but are virtually featureless. The meteor strikes on the moon are nicely apparent with a pair of department store binoculars.

And, there is so much more to see….

A $200 Telescope Certainly Improves Things – A Lot!

The Moon’s craters come alive with a telescope and it’s easily the most impressive object in the sky given its proximity to earth. There are now eight planets, with the absence of Pluto. Jupiter, Saturn and Mars are the “big three” in the sky revealing nice surface characteristics that we hope to share with you in the future!

Kay and I certainly look forward to learning so much more about the night sky and will share photographs of what we see and experience from Vermont… Stay tuned! And, it may be even better in the winter!

 

 

Volcano of Fire Under The Milky Way • Photo Courtesy of Diego Rizzo

 

Lake St. Catherine Country Club Offers 18 Hole Golf Course and Dinner With A View – Open to the Public

Just 12 minutes up the road from Pond Mountain Inn, is the Lake St. Catherine Country Club in Poultney, VT. It is open to the public, delightfully inexpensive, and offers a wonderful dining alternative with incredible views!

For Golfers the Country Club has an 18 hole golf course that measures 6200 yards. The nine hole golf Course was created in 1925 and the first 4 holes of the 18 hole course (expansion of the 9 hole course in the mid 1990’s) are the original from the nine hole golf course.

Last year, I had had the pleasure of playing nine holes with our guests, which now has become an annual tradition (postponned this year); bogeyed four, parred one… shot a 51 – Pure Luck! My caddy, Scott, our three-time returning guest once caddied for President Gerald Ford!

Get More information – Lake St. Catherine Country Club

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Discover More About The Worlds Largest Marble Museum Located In Vermont

The Vermont Marble Museum, is the world’s largest marble exhibit with over 100 exhibits! A few of the highlights are; The Hall of Presidents,  On-Site Sculptor and Gallery, The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Exhibit and they offer a gift shop. Add this to your Vermont Road Trip! Just under an hour drive from Pond Mountain Inn to Proctor, Vermont

The Museum was chosen for the Yankee Magazine’s Best of Vermont 2018 Editors’ Choice Awards. The museum closes the last week of October for the winter months. The gift shop is open year round.

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Thank You Notable Nuances • Photography by Susan Wilkinson

Emerald Lake State Park Vermont Offers Camping Swimming and Picnicking

This year, three different families have visited Emerald Lake State Park located in North Dorset and just 30 minutes from Pond Mountain Inn is named for its emerald green waters. The kids loved swimming and hiking… This 992 acre park surrounds the 20 acre Emerald Lake, that offers camping, swimming and a place to relax and enjoy a picnic. Some of the more popular activities are amphibian explorations, night hikes, campfire programs and nature crafts and games.

See our Dorset / Manchester • Day Trip Itinerary for more exciting places to visit!

We Love This Little Slice Of Vermont Life – Featured in Yankee Magazine – Poorhouse Pies In Underhill, Vermont

Last year Kay and I along with a guest drove two hours from Pond Mountain Inn to serve ourselves at this tiny pie shed, Poorhouse Pies in Underhill, Vermont! But we wanted more, after all they were featured in Yankee Magazine. We walked fifty feet hoping to meet the owners and to see where the pies were made. In the side door of a tiny yellow farmhouse we entered a correspondingly tiny commercial kitchen that was barely enough space to accommodate the owners. Paula and Jamie told us that on holiday weekends they make about 120 pies and always sell out. The three of us bought 6-7 pies and had a pie tasting a few days later! We loved this little slice of Vermont life!

Sightseeing or just wanting to visit exciting places in our surrounding area, check out our Inspiring Day Trips & Unique Itineraries