Vermont Travel Notes

We got off to an early fall foliage here in Vermont but the colors are still

changing and we have many days left before we're past peak everywhere. I

was looking at the hillside across the street yesterday and was pleased to

see so much bright red and orange has shown up.


As usual, some hillsides are further along than others. Looking closely at the

trees here at the inn, I see some trees that have few leaves left holding on

and other trees that have only just begun changing and are still mostly green.


The tree above is in front our inn and always looks spectacular for a week or

so every year. It doesn't look very good the rest of the year and I hardly pay

attention to it. But when fall rolls around, this tree is one of the first to blossom

with a bright color that makes up for the other weeks of the year.


When the lighting is just right, this maple has a day-glo orange color that is

sometimes so bright, it almost looks fake - as though someone painted it a

color that you would only see on a hot rod, not a tree. It is past its peak now (I

took the photo about a week ago) but plenty of its sylvan neighbors here are

looking very good.


Some people here predicted a quick end to the foliage because of the early

start but they've been proven wrong and I think we have at least a good ten

days left and longer in some areas like the Lake Champlain valley.


Jeff Connor Grunberg Haus

Vermont's Killington resort has a "K55" deal available for a short time that you should
take a look at if you are thinking of skiing there a few times this year. The K55 is a
one day lift ticket that costs "just" $55 which is almost a 35% discount from the weekend
window rate of $85. The offer expires October
15.

The K55 is not good during the usual peak periods of late Dec-Jan, mid Jan
MLK weekend, and Presidents' Day week in late Feb.

You are limited to ten tickets but if you are going to buy that many, you should
take a look at some of the other discount programs Killington offers such as
the Express Card or the On-line Etickets. Of course the best deal is a
season pass. You can see some details and analysis on this Alpine Zone page.

Known as "The Best of the East," Killington is the largest ski area in the
East. It has 200 runs and 33 lifts spread out over seven mountains. But a
contender has mounted a challenge to that claim, Sugarloaf in Maine is
adding more acreage and will be larger in some categories. If you care, see
the "East's New Beast - Sort Of" article on Skinet.com.

Jeff Connor Grunberg Haus