Tonelli's Travels

Well, staying home didn’t last long! While I always intended to travel for most of the fall, the urge to escape the city hit me harder than expected. Perhaps it was the sense of urgency to explore all the places on my dream list. Perhaps it was the self-imposed pressure to figure out “what’s next” for me as an educator. Perhaps it was the cooling temperatures and the thought of winter that would keep me at home for months. Perhaps it was the need to be closer to nature. Or most likely, it was a combination of all those factors. I love my apartment home and the convenience of its location, however eight plus weeks away has taught me it might not be meeting my needs any more. Somewhere a little less urban and a lot more green might be calling my name. Perhaps. We will see. Lots of time to make a decision. For now, more reflecting and adventuring.

With new data suggesting COVID cases were on the rise, I decided to alter my plans and stay in the greater New England area. It felt like the safest, most socially responsible decision. I still had plenty of options and with fall foliage popping, it wasn’t too hard of a decision. However, it did mean I’d only have a few weeks of travel left as most camping facilities shut down in New England by the end of October. So, time to get going!

My first trip out was a weekend getaway with a dear friend, Alexa. We talked seriously about the risk factor of traveling together, mask expectations, and comfort level for activities. We agreed our day to day precautions and privileges meant our exposure level to the virus was low and were comfortable taking the risk to travel in the van together. So we went for it.

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Burlington, Vermont was our chosen destination for the long weekend. We drove up in the dark, after Alexa finished work, stopped for Chipotle along the way (oh, how I missed this easy dinner option!), and arrived at our campsite under the starry skies. Lone Pine Campground is situated in Colchester, VT on a quiet street just a few miles from the highway. We had a spot on the upper loop, away from the main activity of the campground, that backed up to the woods. Perfection. We quickly set up and settled in for the night, making sure to turn on the heat so Alexa would be warm in the bed in the pop-up. In the morning, she reported it was nice and toasty.

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With the sun shining and the temperature agreeable, we drove over to Niquette Bay State Park for a short hike. Situated on the land of the Wabanaki Confederacy, the park covers wooded forests that lead up to the shore of Lake Champlain, where the native peoples would have hunted and fished. The Wabanaki Confederacy was formed in the 1680s as a strategic alliance between several Algonquian- speaking tribal nations looking to maintain their rights to their lands against the influx on white immigrants. Their collective force helped them to create treaties and demand justice well into the 1800s. In honor of the recent Indigenous People’s Day, you can learn more here about the tribes today.

We appreciated the spectacular views this sacred land offered as we hiked along the forested path. The sun was warm on this mid October day and soon we were shedding layers. Above us, yellows and oranges rustled in the trees with the wind and cast a glow on all around us as the sun rays poked through. Every so often we got a peak of the rolling hills around us, sprinkled with flaming fall colors amongst the green evergreens.

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As we approached the lakefront, we climbed down to the dog beach to rest and admire the views. The wind was strong, causing small waves at the rocky shore and whitecaps out in the middle of the lake. The rough waters did not deter the two dogs wrestling with a stick. When the stick was tossed into the restless water, the senior Black Lab would run and belly flop after it without hesitation. It would proudly swim back to shore, only to have the puppy friend steal away the toy! A wrestling match ensued afterwards. This hilarious pattern continued over and over, even as we departed some time later. Goodness, to have that kind of energy!

We finished our loop while admiring the old growth trees, trying to understand how their common names derived from their Latin ones, and stopped back at the van for lunch. A lovely grass picnic area awaited us, so we pulled out our camping chairs and table and parked ourselves in a sun filled spot. Life doesn’t get much better than that.

We arrived back at the campground just as clouds rolled in and rain started to pepper the ground. Warm and dry inside, we people watched from the van for a while and later pulled out cards to play Crazy 8s and sample some ciders we picked up at the Beverage Warehouse. A night of laughter and reminiscing ensued, filling our hearts and souls. Sleep came easy that night.

The next day we woke up to clear skies and sun, although a bit brisk. The hardy New Englanders that we are, Alexa and I headed out for another excursion. This time, we opted for bikes!

The greater Burlington area has a extensive bike path with views that don’t disappoint. We began at the Airport Park in Colchester and headed towards the Causeway Trail. The bike route takes you under a tunnel of trees out to Lake Champlain. The trail continues across the lake via the causeway, all the way to the bike ferry. While you can take the bike ferry across the gap for $5, we opted to turn around and explore the other direction. Riding through the middle of the lake is a memorable experience, water on both sides and stunning scenery. The wind was against us on the way out, but gave us a nice assist on the return trip. Thanks Mother Nature!

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Back at the van, we packed out bags with lunch and headed through the small neighborhood to connect to the rest of the bike trail. Several miles down the path we were rewarded with more open views of the lake and changing trees. We rode until North Beach, where we settled for lunch. With a picnic blanket in the backpack, we had a lovely spot to stop and rest while me munched on cold cuts, olives, clementines, and carrots. The sun warmed our hands and faces and our legs and bums get a much needed rest from the bike. 😅

Eventually we made our way back to the van and then campground, where we chased the sun in our chairs for awhile as we colored and knitted. When the cold was too much, we retired inside for dinner and then started a dancing fire outside. We stayed until we burned all the wood, and then rushed inside to escape the chilly night air. Another win for van life – it comes with heat!

Monday we enjoyed a leisurely drive home, traveling through the open lands of various tribes that make up the Wabanaki Confederacy, which means People of The Light. I could see why, as the sun shone down on the rolling hills making the land sparkle.

We stopped briefly at The Vermont Teddy Bear Factory and perused the store (no tours due to the pandemic), picked up a special order for my dad at Stone Corral Brewery, and headed to King Arthur Flagship Store. If you’ve never been there, I highly recommend a visit! They have a beautiful store full of baking supplies (and lots of gluten free mixes!), a cafe and bakery, and lovely outdoor seating area. They do a top notch job with COVID precautions, giving you a pager to alert you when it’s your turn in the store and clearly marking out six feet spacing in the bakery area. Everyone wore masks and employees were enforcing proper mask positioning with customers. We felt very comfortable and will definitely be back, especially when they are able to host cooking classes safely in the future!

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While we waited to shop, we enjoyed our baked goodies and hot chocolate outside and marveled at the beautiful wood building. If for nothing else, you have to come see this location and architecture.

After our shopping spree (maybe 5 or 6 mixes later?), we drove home while it was still light out so we could enjoy the foliage along Route 89. I dropped Alexa off and headed to my apartment to organize and sanitize for my next guest! Stay tuned for the next post about Maine!