Shortly after leaving Richmond, Route 2 opens up into a stretch of road that takes you through Bolton, VT. A few houses, the town office, and the Bolton store are about all that makes up the town (that I could see), so I stopped into the store to grab a snack and see if I could chat a bit with the clerk.Walking into a fairly normal country store, the attendant and two locals were shooting the breeze, so I didn't make much of an effort to strike up a conversation. Instead, I bought a few things and headed outside to look around at the town office before deciding to explore one of the side roads, heading up into the mountains, to the north.
Thankfully, my little Subaru was up for the climb... my trip took me up a very steep hill leading up to the Bolton Valley Resort, which is one of the better known ski resorts in the area.
Now, I've never been much of a skier. I think I may have only been on downhill skis two or three times, in my life; preferring cross country, when given the opportunity. So, I really wasn't sure what to expect, heading up to the resort in the middle of May. As you might imagine, it was empty on top of the mountain, although there were some signs of life up at the main lodge.Feeling a bit exposed, though, I decided to keep my visit short, and head down the steep and winding road, back to Route 2. I have to say that, as harrowing as that drive was, the view from the pass was amazing; with the mountains disappearing into the clouds above. Unfortunately, there were no places to stop and take pictures, so I wasn't able to catch a shot of this sight, while keeping both of my hands (white knuckled) on the wheel.
I breathed a sigh of relief at reaching the bottom, but wasn't through exploring Bolton. While the town has some beautiful land, I kept thinking that there had to be more of a 'town center', hidden off of the beaten path. So, I made another detour, taking a much flatter, but equally winding road, which took me into the Little River State Park; a nice little drive alongside a mountain river (perhaps the Little River?), on a packed dirt road.As I left the state park, I thought a bit about my time in Bolton. For such a large town, land-wise, I expected there to be more of a 'town' supporting the resort. But, even though this wasn't apparent to me during my visit, the town has some truly amazing views, nestled between Bolton Mountain on one side, and Camel's Hump, to the other. I think it might be worth a trip up that mountain in the winter, one of these years.
Links:
- Bolton, Vermont -- "The Land of Boulders and Bears"
- For more information about Bolton, visit Virtual Vermont
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