Deep into Vermont
Posted on Mon 19 September 2022 in Travel Log
tl;dr long post about the ventures last week in Vermont!
After leaving the campground in Derby last week, I continued on VT 105 heading west skirting the Canadian Border. I traveled through Troy and got to the town of Jay where I stopped for grub at the Jay Village Inn, near the base of Jay Peak. I talked with some locals and was offered the opportunity to park the camper at this off grid camp for the night. I drove down about 5 miles of dirt road and eventually arrived at Camp Valhalla. The owner Dave was a life long local of Jay and was happy to share a beer and talk before I turned in. I stayed the next night at the Base Camp RV park right down the road, and worked for the day as the rain came down.
I did not originally plan on staying in Jay, but I had an appointment at Ray's Truck & Auto back in Newport to get the air ride suspension looked at on Wednesday. I noticed that the air bags weren't sitting right on the frame, and came to the conclusion that the overland shop in NH didn't install them correctly. The mechanic Charlie said he had installed them before and was willing to do some modifications to make it right. They straightened the brackets back out and added an extension to make it sound.
before
after
As soon as I got the truck back, I could immediately feel it was riding much better. I got back on the road and continued out VT 105 through Richford, Enosburg Falls, and made it to Lake Carmi State park.
When I got there, I explained to the campground attendant that I'd prefer a site with open skies for solar and satellite, and she had me setup in the "overflow" camping area where there was only one other person staying. It was just about as good as it gets. Beautiful flat field to park in, a fire ring and view of the lake, and walking trails to take the dogs on.
I fell asleep that night to the sounds of Canadian geese flying overhead. In the morning I made some coffee, eggs, and got to work for the day. That afternoon, I found a nature trail that wrapped through the bog and alongside the lake. It was definitely not a well traveled trail, and lots of it were overgrown.
That evening, I started a fire and hung out with the dogs as the sun went down over the lake. The one guy camping down the way from me came over to visit. I found out Carl is a VT local, retired, sails on Champlain, and also a ham (AB1DD). We talked about radios, campers, solar power, and cool Travel Log to visit in VT. The breeze off the lake was strong, and made it very cool sitting outside. When I got up the next morning, it was 46 degrees.
I decided to head out that morning. I stopped to chat with Carl on the way out, and he gave me one of his QSL cards. Spike jumped out of the truck through the window as I was talking to him, and when I tried to get him back in, Quiche jumped out. The dogs did not want to leave.
Friday morning I headed west again on VT 105 making it to High Gate Center, then headed south on VT 7 to Saint Albans. Saint Albans had a lively downtown area and I stopped for lunch at Twiggs. I refilled the propane at Ace, stocked up on dog food at Tractor Supply Co, then settled in at the city park and worked for the rest of the afternoon. Later I made a visit to 14th Star Brewery where I tried a few beers and met some nice people. I stayed at a campground in Fairfax for the night.
Saturday morning I grabbed breakfast at Erica's American Diner, then took the dogs for a walk near a covered bridge in Cambridge. Spike jumped up a large rock and sprained his leg. I decided to reserve a room at a hotel in South Burlington and headed there to rest and have a hot shower.
After checking in at La Quinta, I took the longest, hottest shower I've had in weeks. Having a hot shower two days in a row felt luxurious. That evening I had dinner at Barnyard Wood fired Pizza, then made my way downtown and checked out a few local dive bars. When I got back to the hotel, the dogs were happy to settle in on the beds.
Sunday I decided to get setup at Lone Pine Camp Sites in Colchester, VT with full hookups so I could check out some more stuff in Burlington, and unload the camper. The upcoming week was going to be busy at work so it made sense to stay put and get settled in.