Groton Forest Retreat

Entire guesthouse in Groton, Vermont

  1. 6 guests
  2. 3 bedrooms
  3. 4 beds
  4. 1 bath
Hosted by Alan John
  1. 11 years hosting

Listing highlights

In Groton State Forest, near Lake Groton

Surrounded by Groton State Forest, with Lake Groton about a 10-min walk away

Private fire pit and outdoor gathering area

A fire pit with firewood provided, a picnic table, and outdoor chairs in a cleared forest clearing

A place guests keep coming back to

Guests return year after year and describe this as one of their favorite stays
Comfortable, secluded, sparkling clean 2nd story loft IN Groton State Forest, and offering privacy, peace, and quiet. Forest trails outside your door; star-gaze with little to no light pollution! Hike, byo bike, swim, byo kayak, explore; foliage in Fall.

To ensure the safety of all guests, A&K are fully COVID-19 vaccinated and ask all guests ask guests to conform to current State of VT guidance.

The space
The rental is a nearly 900 square foot loft above our 3-car garage and for privacy 150 feet distant from our home on our 11 acre woodlot. Pristine (filtered) spring water from the faucets! Whitewashed pine floors; views into the treetops; wifi (band width for internet now Starlink Wi-fi with a minimum of 150 mbps.) great room (living, dining, and kitchen areas); three bedrooms; and large bathroom. A pellet stove and Rinnai heater provide warmth.
A TV streaming a full spectrum of programing along with a DVD player and a few DVD's. (HDMI cable also provided.)
Cell towers are scarce but if your cell phones use wi-fi you're in business for cell phone usage.

The kitchen includes small gas range with oven, small under counter refrigerator, and full sized refrigerator freezer in the mudroom, microwave, toaster, coffee maker, hot pot, pots and pans, cooking utensils, dishware, flatware, and Weber Kettle grill (outside; charcoal provided). We provide oil and vinegar, salt and pepper, tea, coffee beans (upon request). sugar, and Stevia; and are most often able to help with random spices, etc. (BYO milk/fresh cream.)
We have recently added a delightful private In-the-woods outdoor shower spacious enough for a toddler family, with full privacy and hot and cold spring fed (and filtered) water. (The shower's a show stealer!)

A cleared, natural area (read: no lawn) behind the loft includes a fire pit. Fire (firewood provided), picnic table, outdoor chairs, and trailheads. A great spot for star-gazing before you light the campfire.

Next to our house is a 20x20 post and beam screen house (with wifi), which you are welcome to share with us. It's a bit of paradise on the bank of a year round brook. Laze in the chaise and fall asleep to brook and bird songs, read, or have a meal at the picnic table. (The screenhouse competes with the outdoor shower for top billing.)

We provide: towels, bedding (sheets, comforters), shampoo/conditioner, body wash, hair dryer, hand soap, dish soap, paper products, and a few first aid products. Drawers and cabinets for cleaning supplies have child-proof locks.

Guest access
Check-in time is 3 pm but earlier arrival requests can at times be accommodated depending on the loft's readiness. Check out is 11:00 a.m. Self check-in (though we are on-site) and late arrivals are fine.

Other things to note
To ensure the safety of all guests, A&K are fully COVID-19 vaccinated and ask guests to conform to current State of VT guidance.

We do not charge for children 10 and under, so when requesting to book a reservation, count only those guests older than 10 years. In your request, please let us know a bit about everyone who will be staying, including children.

Where you’ll sleep

1 of 2 pages

What this place offers

Shared beach access
Kitchen
Fast wifi – 145 Mbps
Dedicated workspace
Free driveway parking on premises – 3 spaces

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Rated 4.97 out of 5 from 269 reviews.

Guest favorite
This home is a guest favorite based on ratings, reviews, and reliability

Overall rating

  1. 5 stars, 97% of reviews
  2. 4 stars, 3% of reviews
  3. 3 stars, 0% of reviews
  4. 2 stars, 0% of reviews
  5. 1 stars, 0% of reviews

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars for cleanliness

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars for accuracy

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars for check-in

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars for communication

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars for location

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars for value

Guest reviews mention

Where you’ll be

Groton, Vermont, United States
This listing's location is verified and the exact location will be provided after booking.

Neighborhood highlights

Mid-May through June is black fly season in the north country. Some people are not bothered by them, but others are. We provide some bug sprays with DEET or not, but you may want to bring your preferred brand.

Please note: We are in a remote location, though adjacent to a paved state road. Plan on traveling at least 1/2 hour to towns that multiple outlets for groceries, shopping, restaurants, theater, nightlife. This is a rural area and our property is surrounded by the Groton State Forest.

We have trails marked with ribbons from your door through the woods on our property and directly connecting to a developed trail in the State Forest. There is very easy access to other hiking trails in the Groton State Forest; a miles-long converted railroad bed now serves as a safe and quite beautiful recreation trail and is just a few hundred feet away; nearby Boulder Beach at Groton Pond offers day use (fee) - swimming and picnic areas (there is a car-top boat launch and canoes, kayaks and pedal boats are available to rent) beginning Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend; and unparalleled "leaf peeping" from roughly mid-September to mid-October. The route to Lincoln NH (1 hour) includes Route 112 into the White Mountains and offers spectacular foliage viewing.

The town of Groton (5-7 minutes away) offers a post office; library (limited hours) with wifi; a gas station/convenience store with a breakfast/lunch counter, pizza to order, and basic groceries; a barbeque restaurant that seasonally offers ice cream.

45 minutes to a myriad of craft breweries and to Montpelier (the State capitol), which offers a wide range of excellent restaurants; 50 minutes to Ben & Jerry's ice cream factory, and shopping at Stowe, VT; 1-1/4 hours from Burlington; and a short hour from Franconia, NH. Cross-country skiing is within walking distance, but please note that the nearest downhill skiing option is Burke Mt., approximately 1 1/4 hour away.

Meet your host

Host
269 reviews
4.97 out of 5 average rating
11 years of hosting
Born in the 40s
Where I went to school: Christian Brothers Academy Lemoyne Coll
Originally New Englanders, Kirsten and I now live in Vermont after nearly 20 years in the California desert. We are both self employed -, semi-retired ; Alan as a family counselor, and Kirsten a research geologist/writer. We are readers, birdwatchers, pet owners, and enjoy snowshoeing , cross country skiing in winter. The perennial and vegetable gardens are an ongoing joy and education for Kirsten. Alan spends time in his rowboat on a nearby lake. We have used airbnb ourselves on several occasions: US, Costa Rica, and Europe.

Host details

Response rate: 89%
Responds within a few hours
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Things to know