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Day 126 – Sunday, August 31st, 2025 – In: Burlington, VT
On Sunday, Brenda did three loads of laundry in the morning, and I kept busy with blogging, journaling, and trip planning. In the afternoon, we took a walk to the Foam Brewery for a snack, then wandered around the waterfront. The wind was up, and there were lots of sailboats out on the lake. We ended up at Splash!, a restaurant at the Burlington City Marina, just down the shore from where we are staying. We watched the boats going past with the Adirondack Mountains across the lake in the background.
That evening, we were treated to another fantastic sunset. As the sun went down, the wind died down too. There were still a couple of sailboats from the sailing club out on the water, and they had to be towed back to the marina. Brenda caught a great shot of one coming in with the lighthouse just starting to flash.
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Day 127 – Monday, September 1st, 2025 – In: Burlington, VT
Monday, Labor Day, we recalled that it was the day in 2019 when we hit the rock in Canada. We were glad that we were safely tied up to the dock! At 10:00, we took an Uber to the Burlington Airport to pick up a rental car for our trip to New Hampshire. Then went to the Shelburne Museum.
The Shelburne Museum is one of the most unique museums we’ve visited. Situated on 45 acres, it has a collection of 39 buildings and is a cultural institution renowned for its unique collection of American art, history, and Americana. Established in 1952 by Electra Havemeyer Webb, the museum features a diverse array of historic buildings, including a lighthouse, a steamboat, and various historic farm structures, all transported and reassembled on its scenic lakeside campus. Its extensive collection includes American paintings, folk art, quilts, and decorative arts, offering visitors a comprehensive glimpse into American life over the centuries. The sprawling outdoor setting, combined with innovative exhibitions and engaging programs, makes the Shelburne Museum a vibrant destination for art lovers, history enthusiasts, and families alike.
We spent over 5 hours walking around the museum grounds. It is fascinating how Electra would see a building like a three-story round barn with a built-in silo, decide, “That will look good in my collection,” and have it disassembled and moved to the site. The family also had a passion for collecting old horse-drawn carriages and sleighs. There are over 200 on display. When the original two-story U-Shaped barn was filled, Electra had several other barns built with parts of several barns that were being torn down.
Among some of the fantastic buildings that were moved to the site are a Carousel, a Lighthouse from Lake Champlain, a two-lane covered bridge, a General Store, a locomotive and station, and, probably the most amazing, a 200-foot-long steel hull steam ship, which was dragged on temporary rails, 2 miles from Lake Champlain to the museum.
Many of the other display buildings were custom-built to hold specific collections. There is a 525-foot, U-shaped building that houses the 500-foot-long Arnold Circus Parade. This display has over 4,000 one-inch-to-one-foot scale figures, including clowns, acrobats, animals, and circus wagons from the heyday of large circuses.
It would take multiple blog entries to describe all of the fantastic items on display. Below are just a smattering of the collection, including crazy quilts, door mats, hat boxes, trophy animals, glass walking sticks, miniature diaramas, furniture, weather vanes, and ship’s heads—all from the American craftsman period, and most from Vermont or greater New England.
Electra had the two things needed to assemble such a collection. Passion to preserve America’s past, and money, lots of it. Her husband was part of the Vanderbilt family. When she passed away, her children built a replica of a three-story stone mansion in Shelburne that she had always wanted for her collection, but the owner wouldn’t sell. They then moved the contents of her Park Avenue, New York, penthouse apartment and recreated the rooms.
If you are ever in Burlington, Vermont, we highly suggest a visit to the Shelburne Museum! It’s worth a trip on its own! Be sure to save at least a full day, two if you want to take your time and see it all!
We were exhausted after our day-long visit, so on the way back to the boat, we stopped at one of the many brew-pubs in Burlington for dinner.
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Day 128 – Tuesday, September 2nd, 2025 – In: Laconia, NH
We have been planning a trip to New Hampshire to visit my sister, who lives in Laconia. Laconia is in the middle of the state in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, most famous for Lake Winnipesaukee. Laconia is a 3-hour drive from Burlington, VT. Brenda and I grew up in New Hampshire and have driven this route frequently. It was great to see some of the old neighborhood as it were.
We left around 10:00, stopping for some breakfast along the way. The driving was fine, partly on interstate highways and partly on windy secondary roads. We arrived at the Grand View Resort around 2:30. The Grand View is a house, a small two-story motel, and a grouping of cabins situated on a hillside overlooking Lake Winnipesaukee and Meredith Bay. The views were fantastic!
After checking in, we drove to Meredith, where there are many craft shops and small stores to walk around. This was a frequent day trip for us when we lived in New Hampshire. In the evening, we went to a local restaurant that we used to frequent for dinner.
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Day 129 – Wednesday, September 3rd, 2025 – In: Laconia, NH
At 3:00 AM, we were awoken by the fire alarm going off! This seems to be a trend when we stay off the boat. There was no fire, and it turned out to be a defective smoke alarm. We were outside in the 50° air for about 30 minutes until the owner figured out what was going on. Then it was another half-hour before we got back to sleep.
We had planned a day visiting with my sister, starting with breakfast, then taking a cruise on the M/S Mount Washington, a historic cruise boat on the lake. The Mount Washington is a famous tourist attraction that leaves from Wiers Beach (famous for its annual motorcycle weekend). The cruise is a two-hour narrated trip down the lake to Wolfeboro, NH, and back.
Interestingly, the ship that would become the M/S Mount Washington was originally named the Chateaugay when it was built in 1888 in Burlington, VT. After the original SS Mount Washington burned down in 1939, its owners purchased the Chateaugay, disassembled it, transported it to Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire, and rebuilt it as the SS Mount Washington II. It became the MS Mount Washington when it was repowered to diesel engines in 1946.
We had a great time and really enjoyed catching up. We haven’t seen her since we drove up during our last Great Loop trip in 2023.
After the cruise, we visited for a while, then went to dinner at another favorite local Italian restaurant.
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Day 130 – Thursday, September 4th, 2025 – In: Conway, NH
While we were in New Hampshire, we decided to take the scenic route back to the boat through North Conway, another popular tourist stop, located in the White Mountains at the base of Mount Washington (the tallest peak in the eastern US, and home to the world’s worst weather). This is another area that we frequented when we grew up in New Hampshire, and it was the destination of frequent day trips and the kickoff point for many of my hiking adventures.
We took the scenic route to Conway through Ossipee and several other towns that we visited as kids. Conway is now a major Outlet Mall destination with several malls scattered at the edge of town. When we got into town, we stopped and did a bit of shopping, scoring a great deal on Brenda’s favorite New Balance sneakers!
We then went into downtown North Conway and visited some more of the tourist traps like Zeb’s General Store and the League of NH Craftsman shop before grabbing some lunch. We had reservations to stay at the Historic Stonehurst Manor, a historic home converted into a hotel and restaurant. They have a Hotel, Dinner, & Breakfast package that we were able to book with travel points.
The hotel is a classic mountain retreat that has been in operation for quite some time. It started out in the early 1900s as a private estate and was built to look like a fancy European castle, serving as a luxurious getaway for its owners. Over time, it was turned into a hotel and restaurant, becoming a well-known spot in the White Mountains. Today, it’s a popular place for visitors looking for a mix of history, charm, and good old-fashioned hospitality, all while still keeping its historic castle-like vibe.
We arrived at 2:30 and checked in. The manor retains all of its grandeur from its days as a private estate with lots of dark paneling, winding staircases, and stained glass. Our room on the third floor was nice and brought back the vibe from the 1930s.
In the evening, we went down to the “Library,” which serves as the bar, to have a drink before dinner, then went to the dining room, where we were served an excellent meal.
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Day 131 – Friday, September 5th, 2025 – In: Burlington, VT
We had a very good night’s sleep, especially me after two excellent Scotches in the “Library Bar”. After sleeping in a bit, we dressed and went downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast was freshly prepared to order from a menu, not the buffet you get at many hotels today. After breakfast, we packed and prepared to head back to the boat in Burlington.
The day was rainy and cloudy, with the tops of the mountains in the clouds. We picked a route back to Vermont that stuck to mostly secondary roads, taking us through Crawford Notch at the base of Mount Washington. There has been very little rain this summer, and most of the rivers that are typically torrents were just a trickle, and the scenic waterfalls along the road were dried up.
We passed several of the trailheads I took when hiking parts of the Appalachian Trail, the historic Crawford House AMC Lodge, and the entrance to the famous Mount Washington Cog Railway, a train that takes you to the summit.
It rained off and on for most of the trip, and many of the mountains and valleys were hidden in the mist. On our way, we were looking for a Maple Sugar house to stop and pick up some syrup. Entirely by chance, we came upon Goodrich’s Maple Farm in Cabot, Vermont. One of the largest producers in Vermont. They tap 7,000 acres of trees, averaging 150,000 trees a year! We stopped and visited the maple house. They had a great display! As this is the off-season, one of the owners was sitting in the evaporator house, answering questions and giving tours. They have a huge evaporator capable of being hooked directly to a tanker truck of raw sap. Also on display was a cross-section of a 200-year-old maple tree showing the scars from the taps beginning in 1840! Another display featured a board covered with sections of the tap lines that had been chewed, stretched, or otherwise damaged by various animals, including moose, bears, mice, and woodpeckers. We picked up some maple syrup, sugar, and cheese before continuing back to the marina.
When we got back to the marina, we picked up our replacement thruster, which had arrived while we were gone. It was three days early! That’s a first! We unpacked the car and put our stuff away on the boat. The wind was really blowing on the lake. We were seeing wind gusts reaching 30mph! Fortunately, it was blowing from the south, which was right on the nose of the boat, and the combination of the docks in front of us and the break wall kept the waves in the marina to a minimum. By that time, it was almost time for dinner, so we drove up into Burlington to Farmhouse Tap & Grill for dinner.
When we got back to the boat from dinner, the sky was beginning to clear, and we were treated to a beautiful sunset on the New York side and an almost full moonrise on the Vermont side.
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Day 132 – Saturday, September 6th, 2025 – In: Burlington, VT
Overnight, it rained heavily. As the front came through, we clocked a 43.4 mph wind gust! By morning, it was still raining, but the wind was calm. We had planned to empty our waste tanks when we got back from our trip yesterday, but the wind was blowing too strongly. We got the boat ready, and at 9:00, we moved over to the fuel dock, emptied our waste tanks, topped off our fuel tanks, and then went back to our slip.
On Saturday, Burlington has a large farmers’ market in what is known as the Arts District. This weekend, they are also holding an Arts exhibition with the local artists opening up their studios and showing their work. The Arts Studio is at the southern end of town and was an old warehouse district for the nearby rail yard and barge canal. Today, the warehouses have been converted into artists’ studios, bakeries, breweries, and rather “bohemian” apartments.
It was raining off and on, not heavily, but you did need an umbrella and a raincoat. The area was very busy, even with the rain! All of the nearby parking lots were full, and we ended up parking about four blocks away. We walked around the stalls and tents, checking out the art, crafts, and food. Then, we wandered through the warehouses looking at the many styles of artwork. There were a lot of potters, sculptures, and a few woodworkers. Most of the artwork is what we would call “eclectic” (just plain weird), but it was fun to look at. We found a glass-blowing studio that was putting on a demonstration and watched for a while.
We walked around for about 90 minutes, and by that time, our feet were soaked. We skipped breakfast to take care of the boat, so we were hungry too. We had several errands to run, so we walked back to the car and headed to Harbor Freight to pick up some wrenches I will need to replace the thruster. Next, we stopped at, you guessed it, a Brew Pub for some lunch. Next, we headed across town to Walgreens to pick up some prescriptions, then to Walmart for some supplies. We were surprised by how empty the shelves were in Walmart. They didn’t have many of the items on our list, so we went down the street to a Hannaford Supermarket to finish our shopping.
We drove back to the boat and put away our groceries. It was still raining off and on, and we worked on the blog for a while until dinner time rolled around. Neither of us was very hungry after our late lunch, so we just went to Foam Brewery next to the marina and had one of their “Snack Meat & Cheese Slates”.
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Recap of the week
We didn’t travel with the boat at all this week (except for the couple of feet from our slip to the fuel dock and back), so our trip total is still 2,863 miles. We had a great road trip back to New Hampshire and an excellent visit with my sister!
Next week, we will move 17 miles down Lake Champlain to Point Bay Marina on Wednesday. Thursday, we will have the boat hauled out of the water to replace our stern thruster, re-pack one of our rudder shafts, and change any of the annodes on the bottom of the boat that need replacing. Assuming everything goes as planned, we will continue south and enter the Champlain Canal with its 11 locks.
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Thanks For Visiting! – Tom & Brenda
