The town of Dummerston, VT may be small but there are quite a few historic places to take note of. These are some of the best things to do in this southern Vermont town.
1. Stay at Naulakha
Naulakha was the former home of famous author Rudyard Kipling. In fact, he wrote The Jungle Book, The Days Work, The Seven Seas and Captains Courageous while living there. The Landmark Trust USA restored Naulakha to its former glory and it is now available for short term vacation rentals. The house comfortably sleeps eight people.
Naulakha was designed to look like a boat sailing across the mountains of Vermont. There are extensive gardens and a clay tennis court that are available to for guest use. It has been designated as a National Historic Landmark.
To read about our experience staying at Naulakha, click here.
2. Drive across a covered bridge
The West Dummerston Covered Bridge is Vermont’s longest covered bridge that is still in use. It is just over 267 feet long and spans the West River. While the Cornish-Windsor Covered Bridge in Windsor is thought to be the longest covered bridge in the world, half of it is in New Hampshire, giving the Dummerston Covered Bridge the title.
Driving across is an experience! Be sure to wait your turn since it is a single lane bridge.
3. Visit the farm market at the historic Scott Farm
The Scott Farm has been a working farm since 1791. That means that George Washington was president when they were doing business! They grow over 130 varieties of heirloom apples and an array of different pears, plums, peaches, cherries, and berries.
Academy-award winning movie, The Cider House Rules, was filmed at Scott Farm in 1998.
4. Drive down the winding roads to see how sap is collected
As you drive down the beautiful back roads, you will notice a lot of webbing through the trees. Warm days and cold nights are needed for the sap to flow and that usually occurs in March.
Just to give you an idea of what a labor intensive process it is, 40 gallons of sap are needed to make one gallon of maple syrup! Many people sell maple syrup along the roadside and it is set up on the honor system.
I will also mention that this time of year is mud season in Vermont, so getting down some dirt roads can be a bit of an adventure.
5. Visit Dummerston Falls
This 25 foot tall horsetail waterfall is easily accessed. It is located on the roadside so no hiking is involved. The best time to visit is between April and June when the snow is melting off the mountains. If you haven’t gotten your waterfall fill, head over to Jelly Mill Falls which has some smaller cascades.
As you can see, this little town packs a punch. Dummerston, VT is the perfect place for a fall foliage getaway. Brattleboro is just 10 minutes away and there are loads of restaurants and shops to enjoy there as well.
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