HELLO
MOUNTAINS
HIKING AROUND BURLINGTON
Vermont is home to the oldest long-distance hiking trail in the United States. The steep, rocky, 273-mile Long Trail, which inspired the Appalachian Trail, is the shortest and most accessible North American thru hike. The trail follows the ridgeline of the Green Mountains, carving through hardwood forests and tagging summits from Massachusetts to Canada. But you don’t have to commit to hundreds of miles of hiking to enjoy it. The Green Mountain Club maintains eighty-eight Long Trail spur trails statewide, whether you want to day hike to the top of Mt. Mansfield, Vermont’s highest peak, or overnight in one of the trail’s open-front shelters. And for every heart-pounding mile of the Long Trail, Vermont has just as many nature walks, forest meanders, day hikes and overnights from family-friendly to sweaty and exposed. Throughout the state, meandering miles of trails welcome hikers of all ages and abilities to explore woodlands carpeted with spring trout lilies and trillium, and ponds chirping with peepers. Nab sparkling, shimmering vistas of Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks from the top of Mt. Philo, or spot New Hampshire’s Mt. Washington from the top of Camel’s Hump on a clear day. The Green Mountain National Forest, Vermont State Parks and Natural Areas, town forests and on private land all welcome hikers. So it’s easy to find solitude as well as magic hiking Vermont’s woods, and to commune with nature. Every trail has its treasures. Look for garnets embedded in trailside rocks, Osprey soaring overhead, and remnants of historic homesteads. Hike to scenic waterfalls, and take a dip in a bubbling river or stream when it’s time for a break. Many hikes are dog friendly-- check trail conditions and guidelines before you go. Then lace up and hit the trail.
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LOCAL
STAPLES
ALSO CHECK OUT
Twenty-nine chapters of the Vermont Mountain Bike Association build and maintain trails state-wide, and other mountain biking trail systems, from lift-serve to cross-country, welcome riders with a day ticket or season pass. Road bikers and gravel bikers can access endless miles of quiet backroads bordering cornfields polka-dotted with classic red barns and black and white Holsteins straight from Burlington.
Vermont’s rock is predominantly green schist and limestone. Venture further. But whatever the geology, climbing in Vermont is thought provoking, featured, and technical with tricky crux sequences that will challenge you to master unique and dynamic body positions, and reward you panoramic views of the Green Mountains and Lake Champlain from above the lush forest canopy.
Roughly 120-miles long and 14 miles at its widest, the craggy shoreline of Lake Champlain holds adventures for every paddler. Lake Champlain laps at the shores of downtown Burlington, where parks, public beaches, and boat launches provide easy put-ins for canoeists, kayakers, stand up paddleboarders, and dragon boaters. Paddler’s trails crisscross the lake, and connect with other waterways for every length adventure.