Country privacy in VT's NE Kingdom. 2-story Guest House has rustic close-to-nature charm--LARGE picture window upstairs w. beautiful views of the mountains. All property pathways & walking areas are closed during winter due to snow/ice. Near Kingdom Trails, Craftsbury Open Ctr, Hill Farmstead Brewery, Burke Mtn, Lyndon. 1/2 hr to St Johnsbury, Canadian border/Newport. Do not touch/feed donkeys.
Bathrms upstairs, NO BATHTUB.
The space
We are at 1800' elevation and near pristine swimming/hiking/fishing just down the hill (floating dock area is off-limits during the 4th of July weekend). Rustic yet elegant charming Guest House with Old World touches. The downstairs Great Room has a full kitchen, dining area + 5-gallon hot/cold water dispenser, couch-bed (inner spring mattress) in front of the HDTV w. Blu-ray DVD, streaming Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, WiFi.
Upstairs Great Room has a kitchen nook (great for morning drip coffee, breakfast in bed), King-size Bed, Captain's Bed, beamed ceiling, and a very large picture window that is a s-l-o-o-o-w entertainment center--in cold weather when the room/sun lights up the picture window the warmth brings out the cluster flies The hand vac is there to suck them up . If they become excessive let us know, and we'll take care of them while you are away for the day. Mountain views change with the light, and the stars on clear nights are beautiful--a great time to check out when meteor showers are. So many wonderful places to go to, and things to do when you're here--or you can just soak up nature here, unwind, de-stress & breathe in the fresh mountain air.
The 2 bedrooms (a King-size sleigh bed in one with attached bathroom--no tub), a Full-size Bed in the Children's BR with attached 1/2 bathroom. The bathroom with the shower stall may be too small for some individuals. When we've used the shower occasionally, we love it (husband is 6' tall, was 190 lbs). New Sprite shower head with filter has many settings (e.g., massage, pulse, rain, etc.). Try them all.
Nature Preserve is easily accessible just down the hill, with Bread & Puppet about a mile further on. We are near Kingdom Trails, Burke Mtn, many great eateries, and St. Johnsbury. In the other direction: 18 minutes to Hill Farmstead's world-class Brewery, and 27 minutes to Craftsbury (concerts & Farmer's Market on the commons in Summer) & The Open Center. Newport & Canadian border about 35+ minutes North of here. Many great swimming places in summer nearby (& some boating places, too) plus Farmers' Markets. Hardwick (about 22 minutes south of here) has a great Food Coop & Cafe. Around the block is Positive Pie (very popular), and other eateries, book stores. Across the suspended walking bridge are a flower place & yarns/sewing shop. Near Hardwick a great place to spend time at is Perennial Pleasures--they offer tea etc. on fine china inside, with beautiful varieties of chickens strutting around outside, wonderful garden areas to wander in and come back loaded down with wonderful flowering plants. On the way back you can visit Circus Smirkus, Highland Arts Center (classes, movies, gallery, cafe), then stop in Greensboro and visit Willy's Country Store, go across the road to Miller's Thumb Gallery (beautiful clothing & art items) which has a window in the floor to look down at the rushing stream that runs under the store. Greensboro also has a Farmer's Market. #1 rated Hill Farmstead Brewery is about 10 minutes from there.
In Winter, since we are on Vermont Route 122, the town's road crews keep this road well plowed. In heavy blizzards, let the weather settle some before venturing out onto the roads. Nearby snowmobile trails off Route 122 are usually well maintained (again, wait for blizzards to settle and trails maintenance crews to do their trails work before going out on the snowmobile trails). There are events and skiing (easy to challenging) at Burke Mtn. (about 20 minutes away), miles of groomed trails for cross country skiing at The Open Center, and fat tire biking on miles of groomed trails at Kingdom Trails. Go across the Vermont border into New Hampshire and ski some of the spectacular White Mtns, esp. Tuckerman's Ravine, a glacial cirque sloping eastward on the southeast face of Mt. Washington. Although it draws hikers throughout the year, and skiers throughout the winter, it is best known for the many "spring skiers" who ascend it on foot and ski/board down the steep slope from early April into July. In this period, the temperatures are relatively mild but the natural snowpack — which averages up to 55 feet (17 m) in a typical winter — is still adequate to ski most seasons. Skiing in July--absolutely!
Or you can just curl up in from of the large picture window with the energy-efficient pellet stove behind you, and watch the entertaining antics of our farm critters, the changing light on the mountains, and beautiful periods when the ice has coated the trees. The energy-efficient wood stove downstairs is wonderful when you are downstairs. Let Stef show you how to light it, or I can come in every morning (& evening) to fire it up for you (let me know).
Guest access
WiFi, Streaming HDTV + Blu-ray DVD player downstairs (Amazon Prime Video + many channels, Roku, etc.), washer/dryer in farmhouse (give us the washing/drying--no charge), linens included, microwave, 2 DRIP coffee makers (no Keurig), bean grinder, plus lots of basic supplies & spices, teas/coffees, 2 water coolers with hot & cold water, waffle maker, food processor, blender, hot air popcorn maker, more. There are lots of basics for making your breakfast: eggs, butter, coffees & teas, pancake/waffle mix, flour & everything necessary to make your own pancakes or waffles from scratch, plus local Vermont Maple Syrup.
Animals & farmland/pasture areas are fenced in and not accessible to Guests--dogs must be on leash when outside as the farm animals regard dogs as predators. Children must be supervised by adults outside, and are NOT allowed to feed or pet the livestock--hands/fingers must not be put over or through the fencing. ACCESS TO THE FARMLAND/PASTURE IS NOT ALLOWED. There are times of the year when walking paths on the property are closed for safety reasons, due to weather conditions which can make the pathways hazardous to walk on (e.g., snow, ice, rain, downed trees). Video surveillance is focused on parking area/garage, and animals/farm area outside--no surveillance inside Guest House.
The Guest House Organic Learning Garden is an educational resource--help is always appreciated & Stephanie loves teaching/introducing guests to herbs (crush & smell them), veggies, garlic, etc. During the growing season, Guests can help themselves to the bounty in this safely fenced-in veggie garden. During the cold seasons some of the items are under low tunnel covers/protection and are not accessible.
Other things to note
PETS: No large dogs. No farm stays or access to the fenced-off farm.
The Guest House is off a paved road--plowed regularly during snow/blizzard periods. Nearby Sanctuary/Nature Preserve is just down the road and has great swimming, hiking trails (well marked), a scenic outlook, and a second pond higher up.
We have protected farm animals here with boundary fencing -- to protect our animals and our guests. We ask that dogs always be on a leash when outside on the property and that guests do not cross over the fences into the farm. Do not walk the dogs close to the fencing where the farm animals are. All dogs/pets require pre-approval -- we reserve the right to not accept or approve a pet. No dogs are allowed in the upstairs rooms.
The West Pasture organic farm (different area from the safely fenced-in Guest House organic learning garden) is also protected property (no one allowed out in the farm), and we ask that people absolutely respect the boundaries.
Holbrook State Park is just down the hill, and is a wonderful place for hiking, swimming, fishing, exploring. Well-marked trails, and a worthwhile scenic outlook (O'Learys Leap). About 18-22 minutes away is Kingdom Trails/Burke Mtn resort . Craftsbury, in the opposite direction, is about 25 minutes from here, Greensboro is about a half hour, Montreal's under 3 hrs, Boston is 3.5 hrs, New York City and the Cape are about 4.5-5 hrs in good driving conditions. Lots of things to do and places to go in all seasons.
FARMERS' MARKETS: Newport (Sat & Wed), Waitsfield (Sat), Craftsbury (Sat), Danville (Wed), St. Johnsbury (Sat), Montpelier (Sat), Putney (Sun), Middlebury (Sat)
Registration Details
MRT-10110543
