With the Middlebury College library so close, Ilsley is not really the ideal place for students but…read moreit does good with the community. It has great woodwork inside and has a good selection for such a small town.

As long as you have a token from Fort Ticonderoga it's worth it for a quick drive up and enjoying…read morethe views. It's a quick tight drive up and down with a beautiful pavillon with a few tables to eat at. The ticket price of $10 a car is steep so we wouldn't have experienced this if we didn't go to fort Ticonderoga first.

If you're in the area visiting Fort Ticonderoga Mount Defiance is worth the short drive. If not,…read morethis paid view point (included with Fort Ticonderoga ticket) is not something to go out of your way for. The road up is narrow and bumpy. Once you get to the top it is a short steep walk from the dirt parking area to the view point (might be a challenge for those with strollers, wheelchairs or mobility issues). There are no bathrooms here but there is a covered picnic area.

Beautiful quiet grounds that give you a lovely vista to look at as well as a piece of North…read moreAmerican history. Lots of grass to have a picnic or hang around in with a beautiful view of the lake and that gorgeous bridge. Free parking. I didn't check out the fort, just the grounds and the views as a break after a few hours of driving and it's totally worth the small detour.

A beautiful piece of history to see…read more.. Well maintained. Located right on the shore of Lake Champlain and right by the lighthouse. There's a museum inside. The museum cost money, but the site is free. There are bathrooms outside, but they are only open during office hours. The site is still open to see after hours, until dusk. There's a pavilion, tables and grills. There's a parking lot structure. The museum is wheel chair accessible, the site is all grass. You can see the champlain bridge from here and there's also a restaurant right over there bridge.

I stopped by on the way back from Burlington to New York to stretch my legs and I'm so glad I did!…read more When I stopped by they were having an international contest of atlatl, an ancient hunting weapon, a wooden handle to help launch spears. I have never heard of it, but the mechanics of it made sense to me when explained - it works a lot better than throwing spears with bare hands. Apple trees in front of the museum was loaded with nice apples. I was so surprised to see them, because in Central New York we had a terrible apple year this year, producing something like only under 10% of the usual year. Our local orchard that usually have their stands full of apples had none this year, and they were selling vegetables instead. I asked and I was told that it's because Lake Chaplain protected those trees from frost damage at a wrong time of year. Whoa! I am so glad that I feel like I learned quite a bit at the museum about the history of Vermont in this quick visit. For example, I learned that Burlington where my son is at was under water many thousands of years ago. The history of Native Americans (Abenakis), the French, the British and Americans were nicely organized and displayed. I loved looking at the preserved tavern, and explanations about period clothings that were displayed upstairs. Loved photographs and paintings of local birds, also upstairs, in the hallway. I also enjoyed reading bout Olmsted and looking at the carved canoe. I had no idea they burn the wood to hollow out the wood to make those canoes - it makes complete sense but somehow I used to imagine they must have carved the woods out by hands. It was cool to look up at the bridge from below, too! It's definitely a great place to make a stop to stretch your legs during your drive.

What a fantastic not-so-hidden gem with about 9000 years of history, some of which is on display…read more And for $5 admission....what a bargain. This description form their website tells it better than I can: "Chimney Point on Lake Champlain in Vermont is one of the earliest, most intensely settled, and most strategic sites in the Champlain Valley, with human habitation dating back as far as 9,000 years ago. Exhibits and special events present the story of the three early cultures in the Chimney Point area - Native American, French Colonial and early American." The 18 photos I've posted only scratch the surface and begin to tell this marvelous story. Please check the calendar. Hours and dates are limited: (2018) OPEN: May 26, 2018 - October 14, 2018, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Open Wednesday through Sunday and Monday holidays

This bridge is also known as the Great Eddy Covered Bridge, the Big Eddy Covered Bridge or…read moreWaitsfield Covered Bridge, and crosses the Mad River in Waitsfield, VT. Built in 1833, it is one of Vermont's oldest covered bridges and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. It is a "single-span Burr truss structure," and at 105 feet in length, it is Vermont's longest bridge of that kind. Apparently, people of all ages have taken to jumping off the green metal roof of the bridge, as well as out of the windows of the walkways, and off the concrete structure in general. They love doing stunts with their scooter or doing flips. I think they're all nuts, but it seems to be "a thing." I think we'll just admire the bridge from the road and that'll be that.

Waitsfield Village Covered Bridge- aka, The Big Eddy Bridge is a Burr Arch Truss Design. It was…read morebuilt in 1833 to cross the Mad River. A sidewalk was added in the 1940s. Thankfully Waitsfield Covered bridge survived Hurricane Irene but is under repair.

Although I'm New York to the BONE ( New England towns often are without pictures and although…read moretouristy, are falling to the wayside): I will politely add a pic to the Pittsfield Vol. Fire station. In case of emergency.. Place is serene and peaceful. We drove by in the Fall. A few kids were in the general Pitt. pitt-stop store next door, but no sign of a fire truck or ambulance. It's a white shack with three garages. People pull in its driveway all day to stop for directions. They get shouted at, then honked away! It gets a photo, at long last, from a history Yelpie from New York State. Review: 4

My tour of VT post offices continues. This one is expecting me because my last post office Stop…read morecalled ahead and checked to see if they had what I'm looking for. So I came right over and parked easily. It's next to a liquor store, convenient for some I'm sure. This one sells mailing cards too. All sorts, anniversary, birthday etc. I don't see that in many post offices.

Nice small post office that covers a couple towns in the area. The staff are nice although they are…read morecertainly not in a rush and service is a bit on the slow side.