The Last Day of the Bike Ride - Middlebury to Brandon Vermont

The sky was cloudy this morning and it was a bit cooler this morning but we were thankful that there was no rain. Breakfast was delicious once again at our final morning at the Swift House Inn. We got our things packed and our bags downstairs and ready for the transfer to the next Inn. We started riding about 9:30 am thankful that we were wearing another layer today. The directions and maps provided for us have been so clear and easy to understand, we are very thankful to Seth, the organizer of our trip. We headed south out of Middlebury. After a few miles we came upon this beautiful house.

 The sign informed us that Shard Villa is not only a National Historical site, but is a level III Residential Care Home. It looked like a lovely place to be.

Some of the inclines were challenging, but we made it up the hills one pedal at a time. About half way to Brandon, we came to Lake Dunmore, a lovely lake surrounded by hills.

 There were many homes, cabins and camps surrounding the lake. Today the traffic was light, but we imagine that during the summer the area is most likely VERY busy!

 Of course we had to have a photo stop at Kampersville with the giant squirrel!

 The lake was very pretty and was surrounded by woods. We rode east around the top of the lake, then turned south to ride along the east side of the lake.

 At some times today it was very windy, other times very calm.

 Branbury State Park was on the shore of the lake, the buildings in the distance above

and below are a part of the State Park. We did not stop, we just rode on to Brandon.

We arrived in Brandon about 12:30 after riding about 28 miles. Thankfully, our van was still at the Gazebo Inn. We loaded the bikes and headed on to The Inn On Park Street, our home for tonight.

 Another beautiful Inn, we were greeted by the owner, Judy and shown to our lovely room.

 A very inviting and relaxing porch.

After getting settled, Judy gave us some suggestions for activities for the afternoon. She said the foliage colors are more vivid in the Green Mountains, so we took a drive for an hour or two and were not disappointed! It really felt good to be back in the seat of the van again and we REALLY appreciated NOT having to pedal up the mountain pass!

The colors were amazing, unfortunately, the photos just don't show how beautiful it really is.

 There were about 20 wild turkeys in this meadow.

 We stopped in Rochester at a pretty park where they had several locals

selling fruits, vegetables, baked goods and crafts. 

Next we stopped at The Rochester Cafe' and Country store where they had an old fashioned soda fountain. Judy told us it was a very popular place to stop. The Maine Black Bear ice cream cone I had was delicious! A vanilla ice cream with black raspberry swirl with chocolate buttons filled with black raspberry. WOW! It was YUMMY! So good that I ate it before thinking about taking a picture of it!

We really enjoyed the drive, the colors and beauty of the mountains.

Back at the Inn we spent some time reorganizing our "stuff" as we prepare for the next leg of our trip. Biking clothes, shoes, etc. could all be put in the van and replaced in our luggage by our "regular" clothes. The evening was enjoyable as we ate a delicious dinner in the Inn with other guests from Australia. Now it's time to relax!

Our time on the bikes in Vermont has ended. What a wonderful opportunity to see a small part of this beautiful state in a very unique way. My legs are tired but it was well worth it. Coming from an area in Texas where the only and biggest hill is the railroad overpass, I was kind of worried that the hills of Vermont would be more than I could handle (maybe even "eat my lunch!")

Sometimes I rely too much on my own strength to only dare to dream things that I KNOW I can do rather than rely on God to equip me with what I need to accomplish His plans. Doubts, fears, feelings of inadequacy and many other things keep me from seeing with God's vision.

How many opportunities have I missed by not being willing to see with God's vision?

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.

Philippians 1:9-10 NIV

Lord, help me each day to be willing and able to be the person you want me to be,

do what you want me to do and LISTEN for your guidance and direction.

Amen

A Beautiful Day in Middlebury Vermont

Since we are spending 2 nights at the Swift House Inn in Middlebury, we used the day to explore this interesting town and found several things to do. We headed downtown once again.

 We walked further west today to Middlebury College. It is a private liberal arts college with about 2500 students, it's a very pretty campus.

The Chapel was a gorgeous marble building, the door was open and

we found a young lady inside practicing piano, a blessing for us!

 Above the entrance to the chapel, the words said:

"THE STRENGTH OF THE HILLS IS HIS ALSO"

Yes, I believe that is true.

Another pretty church on the edge of the campus.

 We came across a bicycle museum, it was very interesting. Some of the bikes made us VERY thankful that we live in this day and time. Some of the bikes would have been challenging to ride!

 As we walked back over the bridge downtown, we looked across the water to the spot we saw the artists yesterday. Do you see the big yellow spot? That's the giant yellow chair we sat in yesterday!

After we ate lunch, we headed out on our bikes to the north side of town where we visited a Wooden Toy company. They had some windows from the gift shop looking into the factory but we couldn't see much going on.

From there we biked on to the Lincoln Peak Vineyard and tasted a few of their wines.

On the way back to town, we stopped at the Woodchuck Hard Cider company.

They had a nice self guided factory tour with lots of information.

After the tour, we sampled some of their flavors.

It was fun!

Then we had some photo opps.

Today we biked just 7 or 8 miles, walked a few, but saw so many things in this busy town.

"I will give thanks to the Lord because of his righteousness;
I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High."

Psalm 7:17 (NIV)

We thank God for a wonderful day!

A Beautiful Day in Middlebury Vermont

Since we are spending 2 nights at the Swift House Inn in Middlebury, we used the day to explore this interesting town and found several things to do. We headed downtown once again.

 We walked further west today to Middlebury College. It is a private liberal arts college with about 2500 students, it's a very pretty campus.

The Chapel was a gorgeous marble building, the door was open and

we found a young lady inside practicing piano, a blessing for us!

 Above the entrance to the chapel, the words said:

"THE STRENGTH OF THE HILLS IS HIS ALSO"

Yes, I believe that is true.

Another pretty church on the edge of the campus.

 We came across a bicycle museum, it was very interesting. Some of the bikes made us VERY thankful that we live in this day and time. Some of the bikes would have been challenging to ride!

 As we walked back over the bridge downtown, we looked across the water to the spot we saw the artists yesterday. Do you see the big yellow spot? That's the giant yellow chair we sat in yesterday!

After we ate lunch, we headed out on our bikes to the north side of town where we visited a Wooden Toy company. They had some windows from the gift shop looking into the factory but we couldn't see much going on.

From there we biked on to the Lincoln Peak Vineyard and tasted a few of their wines.

On the way back to town, we stopped at the Woodchuck Hard Cider company.

They had a nice self guided factory tour with lots of information.

After the tour, we sampled some of their flavors.

It was fun!

Then we had some photo opps.

Today we biked just 7 or 8 miles, walked a few, but saw so many things in this busy town.

"I will give thanks to the Lord because of his righteousness;
I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High."

Psalm 7:17 (NIV)

We thank God for a wonderful day!

Shoreham to Middlebury Vermont

We woke to another beautiful day at the Shoreham Inn. One of the nice things about this bike trip is the relaxed schedule we have. Breakfast is served 7:30-9:30 am and we can start biking whenever we like. By 10 am it was almost 60 degrees and we were packed and ready to head north toward Middlebury. The challenge each morning is deciding what to wear, and how many layers to put on. I chose the "don't hit me" bright yellow long sleeve shirt.

 We were met with some challenging hills right away but the view is worth the work.

 There were many farms along the way and beautiful hills and valleys.

The Green Mountains are in the distance.

 We saw pretty churches and other buildings, many built in the 1700's or early 1800's.

 Another apple orchard where they were busy picking the fruit.

 Some of the trees are so pretty, the colors are beautiful.

We took a break in a park

 the view as we ate a snack was amazing.

 I stopped a lot to take pictures today, maybe it was because I wanted a break!

Russ laughed at me for taking this picture at the dairy with all the cows...

like I'd never seen cows before!

 Our stop just before reaching Middlebury was at the University of Vermont

Morgan Horse Farm. We took a tour and loved hearing about the history of the Morgan horse.

 We saw some 6-8 month old babies

Jupiter had a rubdown, then was ready for some petting

 Next they vacuumed him, he LOVED it!

 Then it was time for some exercise.

 It was an interesting and beautiful place to visit.

Our next stop was Danforth Pewter company

 We watched how they made Jefferson mugs.

 We arrived in Middlebury and headed to the Swift House Inn, our home for the next two nights.

 The Inn is really beautiful

 The rockers on the porch were a perfect place to relax.

We walked a few blocks to the quaint downtown area. The Methodist church was on the way.

 A park surrounded a waterfall in the river.

Long ago many businesses had water powered machines surrounding the falls.

 Several artists were on the hill painting and drawing the landscape.

 

  Russ decided to rest awhile in the BIG chair.

 Our view as we both sat in the big chair.

Dinner was back at the Swift House Inn, we enjoyed a delicious seafood chowder, Russ had a ravioli dish and I had crab cakes as our entree's. The ambiance was quiet and relaxed.

We rode 19 miles today. Even though we faced some steep and LONG uphill climbs, (one lasted for a mile) it felt a little easier today. In the past two days I walked up some of the steepest climbs but today I remained on my bike. Sometimes pedaling in the lowest gear VERY slowly, but I stayed on the bike. Russ always told me that you get a little stronger every day and I think I experienced that today. I knew the mile long hill was coming and I kept wondering if we had reached it yet, the anticipation was much worse than the actual hill. Sometimes anticipation of challenges can paralyze us with fear, worry, discouragement or a multitude of hang-ups we have.

Joshua 1:9 says:

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, do not be discouraged for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

How true, God IS with us wherever we go whether we pay attention to Him or not. Let's choose to pay attention and be thankful and receive His strength, guidance, protection and love.