99 degrees is highly unusual for Vermont but this is our lot yesterday and today. We drive south on scenes two-lane route 116 to the small town of Bristol where we had lunch at minifactory, a cool contemporary space: excellent food, very slow service. It took 45 minutes to get our food. I had a very basic entree- delicious flaky griddle buttermilk biscuit with homemade cream cheese and homemade rhubarb cherry jam. The restaurant’s odd name comes from its honey-based Jam-making minifactory. Noah and dirck had more complicated sandwiches but still… the place wasn’t that packed.

There were a few shops to wander in (vermont honeylights) and a pretty village green – less pristine than real and functional. We drove through nearby Middlebury college. In Bristol we also drove around the Tillerman, a 1797 farmhouse that is now an inn, restaurant and concert performance space. Looks great. It was closed on a Monday.

Our search for a place to swim in the river proved frustrating. I wasn’t willing to risk the huge slippery boulders leading to the enticing falls and flats. We watched teenage kids do crazy high drives from big rocks (and later learned a kid was killed in this area a day earlier.) We also got a $15 ticket for parking along the rural road, behind many other parked cars that also got tickets. Finally we ended up where we should Have begun- the perfect river entry spot in Waitsfield– shallow entry, sand not rocks or slippery boulders!

Dinner was inventive Mediterranean food at James Beard-nominated Honey Road. Very good. Reasonably priced.

On our last day we braved Shelburne Farms, a historic farm south of Burlington with surprisingly grand buildings that barely resembled barns – lots of heavy brick, wood, and copper. After a half hour of heat, we got back on the bus for the drive across fields with hay being harvested to the parking area. Next time I’d like to get to the Shelburne museum and house with an inn and gardens. The photos I took are crazy, like something out of a Gothic movie.

Although we were warned on Monday that our flight home on Tuesday was imperiled by possible thunderstorms in Chicago and advised to rebook, we found no great option so took our chances. The plane left on time but was stuck on the runway for maybe 20 minutes due to a thunderstorm…in Burlington. Then we were off, and arrived in Chicago on time. Noah also made it back to DC (a day late, after his flight was cancelled for no obvious reason.)

Autumn First turned out to be the perfect spot to meet my sister and her husband for an early lunch before they drove north to Montreal (only 2 hours away.) I gather it may be cheaper to fly and drive from Burlington than to fly to Montreal; I also gather crossing the border in this age of hostility toward Im/migrants isn’t a hassle..at least for people not of color.

A bakery, cafe, and coffee shop with a casual, warm, independent, alternative and earthy vibe Autumn First offered vegetable-forward breakfast and lunch ( avocado toast, mushroom toast with ricotta and a fried egg..a little too sweet flavored), grain bowls either protein options, blts and turkey sandwiches. And blueberry muffins,, koughin-ammans, baguettes. Excellent maple lemonade too. And located downtown but not on the pedestrian corridor.

In downtown Burlington, which is beset by road construction, we found some excellent vermont maker shops around the Church Street Market place: common deer for maple syrup to posters and jewelry; frog hollow for pottery, watercolors, glasswork by Vermont artists, Belleville bakery for excellent croissants, and soft cookies (peanut butter, ginger without the snap).

We met Burlington friends at Henry’s diner, celebrating its 100th bday and I can see why. Cool old train car atmospheric, classic breakfast fare, good quick service.

We picked up fresh out of the wood-fired oven, Montreal style bagels at Myer‘s. Good chewy consistency but surprisingly flavorless. Maybe a little salt in the batter would help?

I don’t think I’ve ever flown into vermont before today. We always arrived after long car rides from Michigan (when I was a kid. My mother loved this state). Two years ago we drove to Burlington from Ithaca (after driving from Chicago to Ithaca).

The Vermont airport was pleasantly small and we had our quickest rental car procurement ever. Five people behind the Avis counter. no line.

We drove our goofy white Kia soul (a box on wheels) to zero Gravity, a brewpub downtown to meet my cousin and his friend for a late lunch. Excellent fried chicken sandwich, “dirty fries“ (w/ bits of pork), Caesar salad and a grapefruit cider (from vermont). With rain in the forecast, I needed a coat and found one for $19.99 at sierra outfitters, a discount store next to tjmaxx with remarkably cheap outdoor wear.

Dinner tonight was at Ben & Jerry’s – yes, ice cream for dinner! When in vermont…the ice cream shop is downtown on the pedestrian corridor (aka Church street). I’ve only eaten this ice cream from small store-bought tubs. It was fun to go into a shop with big tubs of 15 or so flavors (chocolate therapy is one fav.) and exceedingly friendly young scoopers offering samples.

We walked along the Burlington greenway, a paved two lane trail through woods hugging shimmering lake Champlain, with the Adirondacks in the distance. Bikes zipped past us on what I assume was a former rail line. The trail goes right past my cousins condo, which has a sweeping view of green lawn and grass and sun breaking through the clouds onto the lake. Tonight we had drinks with old friends from our Des Moines Register days (30 years ago), sitting on the lovely front porch of their stately 1917 house on Union street.

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Gorgeous fall weather here in Burlington where we are visiting my cousin who lives in the “new north end” by the shoreline of Lake Champlain, with spectacular views, a sandy beach you get to though a staircase in the woods, and a shady greenbelt bike path that unfortunately we didn’t have time to ride. Next trip.

We visited some fun hipster drinking spots including St. John’s Club, a private drinking spot, with a back lawn overlooking the lake, and dinner at Burlington Brewery (burgers, salads, a Mexican stew). Breakfast was Montreal-style bagels (chewier than US style) at Myer’s, including good breakfast sandwiches (ex: scrambled eggs, cheddar, sausage). It’s in a former warehouse district along the water that’s turned into arty shops and restaurants.

About a half hour east in the hamlet of Duxbury, tucked into the tree-carpeted hills is Moose Meadow Lodge, run by family friends. It’s a sophisticated but cozy contemporary log-made lodge high on a wooded hilltop with amazing views and rooms with handmade, one-of a-kind bent twig furniture, petrified wood sinks, and decorated with weathered snowshoes, ancient sleds and taxidermies mounted on the walls. Even the refrigerator and dishwasher are camouflaged in birchbark and bent twigs. Behind the lodge is the treehouse, a dreamy two stories, electrified with a fabulous outdoor bathroom/shower in the woods overlooking a gentle pond.

In nearby Waterbury, we had excellent nachos with chunks of barbecued brisket and Vermont cheddar on the dog friendly patio of Prohibiton Pig Brewery, aka Pro Pig. In the sweet smaller town of Wainsfield, we visited the covered bridge, the Vermont Artisans Store (the art and crafts here are good quality but pricey) and a little outdoor cafe, The Sweet Spot, in a pretty rock garden beside a sun-dappled stream flowing under the covered bridge. Classic Vermont. The leaves are starting to change, with a few reds and oranges and purples. In another week or so, they should be a full spectacle. We didn’t have time to visit another small town, Warren. Next trip!

Dinner with old friends who live in Burlington was fun at Leunig’s, an old fashioned “Burlington institution” specializing in steak frites and beef Bourgignon. As we were walking there, along the pedestrian mall I spotted a local celebrity…”Mrs. Bernie” (Bernie Sanders’ wife Jane.)