Uncover the Best Winter Activities Across Vermont
It’s not much of a secret that Vermont is a full-fledged winter wonderland. The season starts early and often runs into the spring months. While skiing and snowboarding are the most recognized ways to pass the winter months, Vermont offers a wide range of activities, festivals, and events to fend off the winter blues. Here are great ways to spend a winter day in the Green Mountain State.
Ice Fishing on Lake Champlain, VT
Vermont is well-known for its sport-fishing. Although the spring and summer months see the most fishermen, Vermont’s lakes and ponds offer exceptional cold-water angling year-round. Lake Champlain, the state’s biggest lake is the perfect place to ice fish. This 120-mile-long lake offers ice fishermen the opportunity to catch salmon, lake trout, pike, crappie, and perch. To ensure a safe and successful experience, inexperienced ice-fishermen should consider hiring a Registered Vermont Guide. The guide will be able to take you to the right spot and provide you with all the gear you will need to catch fish.
Stowe Winter Carnival, Stowe, VT
The Stowe Winter Carnival, which runs from Jan 22-26, is evidence that the community of Stowe fully embraces its identity as a winter paradise. Over this two-week period, visitors can watch skilled ice sculptors chisel away at their seasonal masterpieces or get in on a game of snow golf or snow volleyball. This Stowe tradition started in 1921, so they take it seriously. While you’re in town, you’ll also have the chance to indulge in Stowe’s award-winning culinary offerings.
Craftsbury Outdoor Center, Craftsbury Common, VT
Maybe you’re not into flying down hills at breakneck speeds. If this is the case, cross-country skiing might be your winter activity of choice. While there are cross-country skiing opportunities all around Vermont, the Craftsbury Outdoor Center is a great place to start. Their facilities offer miles upon miles of unspoiled, backcountry trails. Beginners can rent equipment on-site and seasonal memberships. Once in the woods, be on the lookout for Charley’s Cabin, a rustic structure where skiers can enjoy a warm fire, hot cocoa, and cookies. What more can you ask for?
North Branch Nature Center, Montpelier, VT
Even though the season is long, there is no shortage of wildlife scuttling and sneaking through the winter woods. The North Branch Nature Center (NBNC) in Montpelier offers a variety of outdoor and indoor nature-related activities for you and your family to enjoy during the winter months. These include borrowing snowshoes to explore the 28-acre preserve, taking tracking classes and participating in clubs in January, attending art classes in February, and tree identification classes in March. If experiencing nature from the indoors is more your style, you can partake in their evening lecture series, Naturalist Journeys, in-person or online.
The Essex Resort & Spa, Essex, VT
If the cold is tensing you up, take a weekend to unwind at one of Vermont’s many full-service resort spas like the Essex Resort Spa. Stay the whole weekend or pamper yourself for a day with a massage, facial, and time in the sauna. Aside from the spa treatment, these inns and resorts offer visitors world-class cuisine and gorgeous settings where you can unplug from the world and reconnect with yourself.
Sledding Spots, VT
No matter how many exciting winter sports you may enjoy, no winter activity matches the sheer youthful exuberance and nostalgia of sledding down a hill on a saucer, inner tube, or classic toboggan. Nearly everyone will agree that sledding is timeless, though you may get different answers as to where the best spots are. Each town has their special spot, but if you’re looking for a hill that has a little statewide credibility, check out Casey’s Hill in Underhill, Laplatte Nature Park in Shelburne, Hubbard Park in Montpelier, or Marshall Hill in Stowe.
Snowmobile Vermont, Killington, VT
There are so many ways to get out and interact with Vermont’s rugged winter beauty. Riders of all levels, even those with no experience at all, will have a blast with Snowmobile Vermont. Snowmobile Vermont is the state’s oldest snowmobile touring and rental company. With locations at Mount Snow, Okemo, Killington, and Stowe, you’ll never be too far away. Snowmobile Vermont offers a variety of packages that include training, rentals, and guided tours through Vermont’s pine-studded winter wilderness. The tour at the Mount Snow location goes through Green Mountain National Forest. According to Snowmobile Vermont, if you can drive a car, you can drive a snowmobile.
Winter Hike, VT
Hiking is not just a summer thing. With a little help from snowshoes, you can do it year-round. If you’re a hiking enthusiast, a winter hike lets you see the landscape differently and keeps your legs strong. A jaunt up the Lye Brook Falls trail, near Manchester, rewards hikers with a view of Vermont’s tallest waterfall, frozen in mid-air. The bare trees and blanketed forest will light up under the winter sun and make it easier to track and see wildlife. If you’re looking for a vista, the Sterling Pond trail northeast of Mt. Mansfield provides unobstructed views of Smuggler’s Notch. You don’t have to look too far to find a quiet trail in Vermont.
Sugarbush Resort, Warren, VT
Sugarbush in Warren is perhaps the most extreme of ski resorts in Vermont. This six-peaked facility is the place to go for an adrenaline-packed day. What sets Sugarbush apart is the sheer variety of ways that you can enjoy the slopes. Those seeking the most extreme adventure can take a guided tour that includes cliff jumps and tree-skiing. Aside from your usual lift and ski routine, you can hike up to Allyn’s Lodge for a luxurious meal before skiing down the mountain after nightfall. With a big enough group, you can even reserve one of the slopes, Mount Ellen, for yourself.
Higher Ground, South Burlington, VT
Vermont is all about the outdoors, but sometimes you just want to get out without having to be outside. Higher Ground in Burlington is one of Vermont’s best music venues. The venue is intimate enough to ensure a memorable experience but big enough to attract some great national talent. The venue’s three bars offer up a full range of tasty libations to warm your core. What better way to spend the night than to be packed into a toasty, energized club, taking in some local music heroes or discovering tomorrow’s major talent?
Green Mountain Rock Climbing Center, Rutland, VT
With this cold-weather sport, you can raise your wintertime adrenaline to new levels! Climb a freezing waterfall while getting professional guidance from knowledgeable, devoted guides. Discover the essential skills for novice ice climbs at low angles and experience an adrenaline rush unlike anything you've ever had! Take on the challenge and thrill of winter climbing right now.
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