Want to hear more from the Vermont band that plays our theme music?  Check out the Mad Mountain Scramblers site to get more info and see where you can here them live!

If you’ve been thinking about visiting Vermont to see a sugar house you still have time!  Our winter is still hanging on with snow in the fields and cold weather all through the month of March.  This bad news for us is good news for you as it extends the sugaring season.  If you can visit between April 25-27, you should check out the Vermont Maple Festival in Saint Albans, Vermont (A few exits north of Burlington on the interstate).   Of course, any time is a good time for maple syrup!

Is there something you would like to see on My Secret Vermont or to hear on my podcast?  Post a comment or send me an e-mail – I’d like to hear from you!

It’s time for Vermont’s fifth season. You might be thinking I’m wrong, that there are only four seasons but Vermont has one more – Mud Season.  This is the time of year that our back roads, which are dirt, get really muddy.  The shoulders of our back roads have been filled with piles of snow all winter long The frost from the cold winter is deep underneath the roadway and now it is beginning to melt.  The melting snow and the melting frost makes the roads buckle and get muddy.  Towns can try to keep their roads in good shape by dumping loads of new gravel in critical places but sometimes we just have to give up and close some roads. Now you don’t have to worry about Mud Season unless you travel off the beaten path.  If you are visiting Vermont at this time of year and need to travel on our back roads it would be a good idea to check at a local general store to see if you can get to your destination without jeep!

Today was the last day of skiing at my local ski area – Bolton Valley.  It really was a great day of skiing with temps in the high 40′s.  Lots of people were out to take advantage of the last day.  Some were in shorts, t-shirts, and even in costumes.   Don’t worry if you still want to ski as the big ski areas will stay open through the rest of this month.  It’s not too early to think about ski passes for next year.  A family of four can ski at Bolton Valley for around $1200 next year.

My last podcast is about one of my favorite restaurants in Central Vermont- the Wayside.  The Wayside is the real deal.  It is the kind of restaurant where both farmers and business folks come for a good meal.  Set up like a large diner with a definite country home feel, the Wayside has a lunch counter and a large selection of booths to sit at.  All of the dinner selections cost between $6 and $8 and many come with a choice of soup or juice and side dishes.  Comfort food like meatloaf, chicken pot pie, and roast pork fill the menu along side some peculiar Vermont specialties like pickled tripe and salt pork with milk gravy.  You will want to stick around for dessert at the Wayside so you can sample their home made pies like maple cream and my favorite, the peanut butter ice cream pie.  If you are in the Barre/Montpelier area, you should visit the Wayside on Rt. 302.  Listen to my podcast to hear more about this secret Vermont place.

Considering that I was skiing a few weeks ago, it was a nice treat to be walking in Waterfront Park in Burlington with 80 degree temperatures.  This beautiful little park is at the bottom of College Street right at the lake front. With restaurants, the Echo Lake Aquarium, and the Burlington Boat House, this is a great place to start exploring Lake Champlain.  My wife and daughter joined me for brunch at the Skinny Pancake, a creperie with a wide assortment of sweet and savory crepes. We then took a walk along the waterfront.  This was a nice way to celebrate a real spring day in Vermont (even though I still have a big pile of dirty snow blocking my basement doors at home).

With Earth Week upon us, and the price of gas going through the roof, you might be thinking of an earth friendly way to take a vacation this year.   One way to do this is to try ecotourism in Vermont.   I recently heard a report on Vermont Public Radio about the Chester Inn Association’s efforts to go green.   A number of inns in Chester have made the switch to be certified as green hotels by the state of Vermont.   By staying at a green inn, you will make less of an impact on the environment.   One really nice benefit of staying in one of the Chester Innkeepers Association’s inns is that they have pooled their efforts together to provide a shuttle for their guests.   Once you arrive at an inn, you can leave your car parked and take the environmentally friendly shuttle to the scenic sights around Chester.   If you want to go entirely car free, you can take the Amtrak train to the town of Bellows Falls and the association’s shuttle will pick up at the train station.   So save some gas and save their environment by taking a green vacation to the Green Mountain State.

It is getting greener every day this spring.  I love winter, but after ten months of it, I really look forward to spring.  All of a sudden I’ve noticed the grass beginning to grown in the farmers fields.  With a little April rain, the fields are bursting with green.  Here I’ve taken a picture of some heifers who are glad to be out grazing after being in a barn all winter!  This is on my drive to work, by the way.  How great is that!

Spring is in full swing in Vermont.  I think any time is a great time to visit Vermont but there are a few things you should think about before planing some outdoor activities at this time of year.  If you are planning on taking a hike, you should know that most hiking trails are closed until Memorial Day. Lots of snow in the mountains means trails stay wet.  Hiking on wet trails leads to more erosion.  The Green Mountain Club does have some recommendations for hikers on their web site.

Wet trails is one reason for staying out of the woods, another reason is black fly season.  If you don’t live in the North East, you might not know about these little buggers who really have annoying bite.  Black fly season last from Mother’s Day until Father’s Day.  To avoid black flies you should avoid the woods.  Wearing a hat and long sleeved shirts helps too.  I know this advice might not entice you to visit in May or early June, but you really shouldn’t worry.  Just plan your activities and you will be fine.

A few weeks ago I visited a unique blacksmith that I visited in Marshfield, VT.   His name is Steven Bronstein and his business is Black Thorn Forge.  Steven’s shop is on VT route 2, between the towns of Plainfield and Marshfield.  When I put bugs in the title of this post, I was referring to one of the many beautiful and unique pieces of metal work that Steven creates.  I have one of his life-like dragon flies hanging next to my wood stove.  The day I visited Steven he was working on turtles.  To see more of Steven’s pieces, visit his web site.  You can hear Steven talk about his craft by listening to my podcast.