Stowe, VT--First Post

In between the art shows down state, I used a free airline ticket to go to Stowe, Vermont to visit my son, Kevin, and his wife, Jericho. During my corporate careers and various hiking trips, I have been to 40 states. Now it is 41: it was my first trip to Vermont.



From what Kevin says, there are only 800,000 people or so who live in the state. In some ways, it reminds me of the Upper Peninsula, except that there is a lot more elevation change. The highest point in the U.P. is near Baraga: it is only 1,900 feet or so. The highest point in Vermont is near 5,000 feet in elevation.

In the 4 days I was there, I went on 5 hikes. The most rigorous was on a glorious Tuesday afternoon. It was sunny and in the upper 50s -- perfect for hiking. Although the hike was only 3 miles long, a good part of that required that we scramble over boulders or climb up log slide like steepness. This hike was in the C.C. Putnam State Forest, and took you up to the Stowe Pinnacle. It is a rock outcropping overlooking the valley in which Stowe is located. The first photo was taken at the top, which gave us a great view looking over the valley. There is then a shot of the 4 of us, including Quincy. The two ice photos show how the ground sometimes squeezes the water out to form intricate crystals. They were 1-4 inches long and truly nature's art.






One of the other hikes was in the Smugglers Notch State Park. We walked back to see Bingham Falls.