Thursday June, 25
Our morning got started around 9:00 today. We packed up, loaded up, and headed off to our next destination. On the way out of Corning, we returned to the glass museum for about another 1.5 hours before hitting the road.
While we were there, I stopped in the gift shop to make my first major purchase of the trip: this beehive necklace that is handmade with cast glass and bronze. I love it so much! It was definitely hard to pick just one thing, because of how HUGE the gift shop is.
In the meantime, my parents went to finish up a couple of museums they missed the day before.
After the gift shop, we went to watch some glassworking demonstrations the museum offers. Anna and I went to the flame-working demonstration. In the span of 15–20 minutes, the artist transformed a blob of glass into a beautiful clear glass vase with a handle. The most fascinating part was seeing the hot glass stretch and bend into a solid shape. They said the hot glass has the consistency of honey, so I guess that makes sense.
At 11:00, it was time to head toward Brattleboro, Vermont, where we would stay for the night.
About two hours in, we were ready for lunch, so we stopped at the Undercover Eggplant Company in Oneonta, New York. It was one of the freshest (and biggest) sandwiches I’ve ever had. We all thought the food was great! Locals usually know where to eat, and their sign said, “Eat where the locals eat.” The locals were right!
We continued driving through New York until we reached Arlington, Vermont. This little town has a signature Vermont covered bridge that made for the perfect roadside stop. It led into a beautiful little piece of land with a church, a creek, a huge piece of farmland, Norman Rockwell’s home, and horse pastures. I feel like you get the idea of how beautiful this was without me saying. It was a hit!
On our way back to the main highway, we took an unexpected detour due to a closed bridge. I’m so glad we did. It gave us a chance to see farms, homesteads, houses, a small creek, turkeys, and a deer.
The drive continued through the dense forests of Vermont, passing beautiful pieces of land along the way.
One of the things on my bucket list was getting some local maple syrup from Vermont. So, when I searched and found Dutton’s Farmstead, I knew it was just the place we needed to stop.
It ended up being a highlight of the trip for me! Inside, customers could shop their wide range of local products. There was produce, dairy products, maple products, wine, apple cider, and plants. Talk about a selection! The best part was it was all locally grown and made in Vermont.
The best part may have been the outside. They had chickens, goats, geese or ducks (I don’t really know what they were), rabbits and even turtles. They were all so sweet and cute… especially the goats. They really loved Anna.
The greenhouses also had a huge selection of beautiful flowers and plants to browse.
After we made our purchases, we finished out the drive to our hotel in Brattleboro. Once we got checked in, Anna requested McDonald’s (basic, I know). So, my dad, Anna, and I went for a quick gas and dinner run while my mom worked.
We got back to the hotel, ate, took showers, and went to bed.
I loved driving through the beautiful state of Vermont and will definitely have to make another trip through here!
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