31 Aug
Future Summer Camp Prospects? VINS, Quechee, Vermont
On our last morning in Vermont, we decided to let the campers stretch their legs before the long car ride home and headed to VINS, the Vermont Institute of Natural Science, which was right up the road from our campground. The center is perfectly designed to blend in with its natural surroundings, and the parking lot, buildings, and educational areas don’t distract from the beauty of the landscape. * The boys watched the songbirds being fed, and particularly enjoyed a visit to the bird hospital. The signs warned them to be quiet in the... Read More
25 Aug
Camper Wesley: Rookie Stats Have Been Calculated!
At a mere four months old, our little camper has racked up some serious traveling stats. Outdoor enthusiasts, let’s play a game…Can you beat Wesley’s numbers? Total states visited: 6 Total National Parks Visited: 3 Total Hikes Completed (or slept through…six of one, etc.): 5 Total Summits Crested: 2 Total Nights Spent Camping: 27 Total Campgrounds: 7 Percentage of life spent in an RV: 20% (okay, 19.5..we rounded up) Hairs pulled out of his brothers’ head: countless * Of course, the year is not over yet. His... Read More
22 Aug
The Art of Hand Holding: Quechee Gorge, Vermont
Our visit to the Quechee Gorge was one of my favorite moments of our whole Vermont trip. The mile hike down to the bottom of the Gorge was perfect for kids and full of quiet, easy beauty for the adults. * * * Down at the bottom, heaven presented itself in the form of water and rocks. Water and rocks…a magical pairing for our boys right up there with peanut butter and jelly. This is when it got a little tricky. Jeremy and I always push the limits a bit when we travel with the kids. We want them to be wowed. We want them to have a blast.... Read More
19 Aug
We Looked At The Swim And We Jumped Right In: West Dummerston
We went to Vermont in search of family friendly hiking and swimming, and we found them both. On our last morning at the Brattleboro North KOA I walked into the cozy camp store and asked Beverly to recommend a good swim. She pulled out a list culled from swimming holes.org/vt and highlighted two of them. Then she grabbed a photocopied map and highlighted the exact route to both locations. If you ever find yourself in the Brattleboro area on a warm summer day and you want to go for a swim, go see Beverly. She will get you there. I promise.... Read More
17 Aug
Sometimes the Universe Echoes: A Scavenger Hunt on Mount Putney
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about our first scavenger hunt hike in the Shenandoah National Park. We have done so many hikes in so many different states since the boys were born and have never once before been handed a trail scavenger hunt. Not in Acadia National Park. Not in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Never. So you can imagine my surprise when we stepped out of the truck in Vermont to hike up to the Mount Putney Summit, and there was a kindly older woman approaching us with a stack of papers and some tiny pencils. This volunteer from the... Read More
13 Aug
