Vermont Biking Adventure

DAY 1

We meet as a group at 10:00 AM in Middlebury, Vermont, an hour south of Burlington - we can pick you up in Burlington if you fly to Burlington airport. Middlebury is one of the hippest small cities in Vermont, with only 8,000 residents but home to Middlebury College, which gives it a great cultural scene. If you are renting a bike, we'll introduce you to your steed and fit it properly. We'll then do an introductory loop ride northeast to the town of Bristol, a small village located in the valley snuggled up against the Green Mountains. With an old fashioned main street full of shops and restaurants, Bristol makes a great stop en route. Back in Middlebury, we'll check into our hotel, a renovated inn dating back to 1827, and eat at Morgan's Tavern.

Distance: 12 or 25 Miles

DAY 2

We'll start the ride today passing through the traditional farmland famous for this area of Vermont. You'll see corn fields, dairy farms, maple syrup cottages, and many more agricultural businesses. We'll then head south under the western edge of the Green Mountains, making our way to Lake Dunmore in Branbury State Park. If you wish, you can stop to enjoy a hike in the park or nearby Moosalamoo National Recreation Area. As we near the end of the route a favorite stop is Foley Brothers Brewing, just outside our destination of Brandon. Brandon is a cute small town of 4,000 inhabitants and you'll have time to walk Park Street (the cutest street in Vermont according to a New York Times writer), stop into the Center Street Bar for a drink, or grab a bottle of wine at Gourmet Provence for after dinner. Dinner tonight is at the Brandon Street Inn, our home this first night.

Distances: 25, 29, or 39 Miles

DAY 3

After breakfast, we are off on our bikes, past active dairy farms and apple orchards, with glimpses of fall foliage colors on the trees in the foreground and the green of the Adirondack Mountains of New York in the back. You will have multiple route options today with some of them passing through Orwell, a small village with a country store that looks classic on the outside but offers a modern take on lunches on the inside. For longer routes, you can cross over Lake Champlain on a seven-minute ferry ride to visit Fort Ticonderoga in New York. Our ultimate aim is the small town of Shoreham and the Shoreham Inn, where we'll eat dinner in its Euro-style pub.

Distances: 16, 33, or 46 Miles with an optional 25 mile loop extension

DAY 4

After a delicious breakfast at our inn, we again jump on our bicycles. There are a few hills to get over in the morning - you can use the shuttle van if you wish - and then we'll be on rolling farmland for much of the day. Most of our routes are way off the beaten path, meaning you'll be more likely to have a conversation with a farmer (or her cow) than you are to come across a coffee shop. However, one stop on some routes is the lovely town of Vergennes, which makes for an excellent lunch stop. As you approach Middlebury, you can stop into the famous Morgan Horse Farm. Or visit one of the seven wineries, breweries, cideries, or distilleries on the Middlebury Tasting Trail. We will celebrate our final dinner of the tour in a nearby restaurant famous for its locally sourced cuisine.

Distances: 18, 27, 36, 49, or 63 Miles 

DAY 5

On this, our final morning, we put away our bikes and take a walk around the town of Middlebury to see the historic Marble District and the falls of the river that runs through town. We'll return to the hotel for a shower and to check out. You can catch our shuttle back to the airport or jump in your car to continue your journey. (Note on some tours we will actually stay in the cute small town of Vergennes the final night and cycle from Vergennes to Middlebury on the final morning.)