Fall 2006

[Aspen]

You know the saying, "What you don't know, won't hurt you" Well, quite a few of us may not KNOW what a peak season in Vermont is really like from experience but from this forum and reading material, some of us do know we missed out on what we wanted to see which obviously...hurts you! Quite a few of us are already making plans to return to Vermont next October. Recently, we were there the week of October 2-8. We were very fortunate to see Vermont in many beautiful autumn hues. However, really wanted to see Vermont painted that famous flaming RED which Killington had the last day of our trip before rains came that evening! If it had not been for the forecast of a week's rain ahead, would have stayed another week. From locals' experience, taking into consideration this year was unusual, what is usually the best time frame to visit Vermont for foliage peaks in October if you were an outsider visiting? The foliage maps were not helpful this time around.

[dfpvt]

Planning a trip around Columbus Day, October 12, usually is a good bet. It's about 3 weeks after the autumn equinox and most of Vermont has had at least one hard frost by then, so the shorter days and cold weather that causes foliage color have been in play awhile.

[ixl]

Yep, Columbus Day is usually the best for most of Vermont.

If you are more interested in higher elevations, go the weekend before. In a normal year places like Smuggler's Notch, the top of Burke Mountain, the upper elevations of Route 9 and such will be bare or close to it by Columbus Day. --c

[sharan]

I am also trying to plan for next year. We didn't get to go this year and now I think maybe that was a good thing, although I wanted to so bad! We have been two years in the past, 2002 and 2004. I don't think we saw peak foliage either time but what I saw was good enough for me. We will probably include the White Mountains in our plans for next year. Can someone tell me whether NH would peak before or after Vermont. I would like to visit there first but that might not be a good idea. I wish they had a forum like this one. I am planning all of our drives around you guys and your great advice!

[dfpvt]

The states share the same latitude, weather and, for the most part, the forests are similar, so you can expect them to be very close in terms of foliage color at any given time.

There are regional differences due to geography, but as a practical matter the region is so small, you can travel around the states at will to get to the best foliage.

[pwt54]

The first week of October is best for northeast Vermont. Columbus Day week can cover a large area of Vermont from the Northeast Kingdom down to route US 4. It is also the hardest time to find a room if you haven't reserved one.

[Aspen]

Thanks folks for all the input..will start a new file folder with plans, ideas and your valuable suggestions for our Vermont Fall Foliage 2006 visit.
One thing we hope to do differently next visit is plan and spread out lodgings so we have more flexibility of traveling. From our experience and others' comments on this forum related to making early reservations, some of us got stuck with two night lodging minimums if not more. Driving around we saw alot of places with vacant signs for lodging. Anyone have any successful tips with getting around without being stuck lodging in one place?
Saw alot of travelers opening and closing laptops. In what ways are people using laptops for traveling? We had printouts, my travel log, favorite Vermont guide books and maps so was wondering what we were missing?

[ixl]

Anyone have any successful tips with getting around without being stuck lodging in one place?

Sleep in your car. Works for me. Save money too.

Might not be everyone's cut of tea though.

c

[Aspen]

ixl, can imagine the money you might save sleeping in your car but unfortunately that is not an option for some of us.

[ixl]

Actually, that's the secondary reason why I do it. The first is in fact flexibility -- I can go where I want and not have to worry about reservations.

The other nice thing is that as a photographer, if I want to catch a sunrise, I can set my alarm and be behind the wheel and back on the road in 10 minutes.

That latter point of course only applies to years where the bloody sun actually shines once in a while.

What you can do is simply "wing it" with no reservations. As long as you avoid the Columbus Day weekend itself, you should be fine. Or get places in centralized locations. For example, from the Montpelier area it is less than 90 minutes to most of the top 2/3 of Vermont.

c

[pwt54]

You could also "rough it". Bring a good tent and camping equipment and one of those ceramic heaters and rent a campsite with electricity. The other tip is to go where the foliage ain't. For Columbus Week, the foliage is best about the Killington area and north. If you can't find a room up there, try the Bennington or Brattleboro areas.

[dfpvt]

You can go online and find many b&b and small inn reservation services that list availability, or you can go directly to specific inns sites to see if they have space. The state tourism dept. has a site that lists most lodging. www.vermontvacations.com

There's wireless web access in most towns of any size and it's not too hard to go online from your car. I've seen people sitting in parking lots in Manchester going online using wifi from some of the retail stores.

IXL's right about not needing reservations most of the time, except Columbus Day weekend. BUT, don't use this year as a benchmark. Lodging is tight on any weekend from September 15 to October 15, and part of Vermont's charm is the small inns. It's a shame to get stuck in the dregs of lodging because you don't have a reservation.

If you pick three bases, one each in the north, central, and southern part of the state, you'll be able to hit all the geographic areas.

[admin]

I'd also like to suggest that you try this site for lodging look up. We have a pretty complete list at:

www.scenesofvermont.com/list-of-inns.html

Each one is hot linked so you can click away to your heart's content on over 600 inns!

Also try these links:
www.inns-vermont.com
www.woodstock-village.com
www.stowe-village.com
www.quechee-village.com
www.scenesofvermont.com/vermont-areas-and-towns/manchester.html

[Aspen]

Want to extend a big thank you to every one of you who responded. You have wonderful suggestions, advise and have shared valuable information for not only our interest but others who check in on this forum. Winging it, reserving a place during the popular Columbus Day weekend and even roughing it are suggestions for us to take into consideration when planning next trip.
And..ixl (Charles)in the future, looking forward to discovering more lovely scenes similar to those of your Southern Vermont slide show on Foliage-Vermont.com "Your pictures speak a thousand words!"

[ixl]

Thanks for the kind words, 24Vermont.

I actually have a whole pile of shots not just from this fall but last fall that I have yet to process. If Tim wants maybe we can make a couple of more slideshows... --c