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Two New Vermont Properties to Try This Winter

Skiers will want to know that two Vermont hotels are about to open in the state. The Taconic, the first Kimpton property in Vermont, will make its debut in Manchester. The hotel has 87 rooms with views of the Taconic and Green Mountain ranges, three standalone cottages, an indoor/outdoor restaurant, and a large wraparound porch. It’s a great option for folks who want to ski at nearby Stratton or Bromley, a 30-minute drive. In Stowe, Lark Hotels purchased Ye Olde England Inne in late 2014 and is now ready to unveil the 30-room Field Guide. 

 

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Savoring the Great Outdoors in the June ActiveTravels Newsletter

It’s the beginning of the big family travel season. If you want to keep your kids happy with as much activity as possible, in some of the most spectacular settings in the world, then try one of the tried and true trips in the latest ActiveTravels newsletter. They all received rave reviews from members or from our own firsthand experience. Also in this month’s issue, we offer you a Quick Escape to Provincetown, Massachusetts, and a wonderful deal in Napa Valley. Please check it out! 

 
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Favorite Travel Days in 2013, A Special Shout-Out to Boston!

While a subway ride to downtown Boston doesn’t really qualify as travel, I can’t hide the joy I felt watching the Red Sox parade with good friends the first Saturday in November. Seeing Big Papi rap, hearing the Dropkick Murphy’s sing “I’m Shipping Up to Boston,” watching our surprise hero, Koji Uehara, blow kisses to the crowd, it was exhilarating. The stunning worst to first turn-around for the Red Sox was exactly what this city needed after a hellish Marathon day. I was at the Marathon, taking my usual space with my family cheering on the runners near the infamous Heartbreak Hill on Mile 19. It was a perfect day for running, sunny and brisk. Then I went home to watch the Red Sox win with a walk-off hit in the 9th inning. Everything was perfect until it wasn’t. The next thing you know my hometown is in lockdown during our precious April school break while the police are in a shootout in nearby Watertown with the brothers who bomb innocent people. 

 
Sad as it is, tragedy has a way of bringing out the best of people’s humanity. I was suddenly talking to reclusive neighbors and everyone was heading into the city to support the bars and restaurants most affected from the senseless act. The Red Sox simply rode the wave of adulation and support, as if the World Series win was predestined. And Boston continues to grow and evolve, especially the area around the Seaport and Fort Point. I was just in the Fort Point neighborhood over the weekend, enjoying oysters, lobster rolls, and an excellent local microbrew (Trillium) at Row 34, the latest offering from the team that brought you Island Creek. If you haven’t been to Boston in a while, 2014 is a great time to return and see all the changes. Best if you come during Patriots Day (April 21st) to cheer on the runners. 
 
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Sail Maine and Stay at the 102 Year-Old Linekin Bay Resort

Maine’s 2,500-mile stretch of granite coast is custom-made for sailing. No other sport gives you the freedom to anchor in a pristine cove, hike on an anonymous island, and sleep with seals by your window. Some 2,000-plus pine-studded islands, more than in the Caribbean or Polynesian archipelago, welcome sailors from around the globe. If you’re feeling a wee bit intimidated to tackle the sport in these salty waters, take a refresher course at Boothbay Harbor’s Linekin Bay Resort. The 20-acre oceanfront property has been a family retreat for over a century. Known for their all-inclusive rates in the summer months, Linekin Bay also features a full fleet of Rhodes 19 sailboats and a staff of sailing instructors. Other activities include tennis, walking trails, Kids Camp programs, and swimming in a heated saltwater pool.

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend! I’ll be back on Tuesday.
 

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Back on My Feet

Three times a week at 6 am, a select group of runners head to Boston Common to work out. One day, it could be sprints, the next day a long jog. The one thing these folks have in common besides a good sweat is that they are all homeless participating in the Back on My Feet program. Launched in 2007 in Philadelphia, the nonprofit organization has become such a success that it has already moved on to Baltimore, Washington, DC, Chicago, and this past May, Boston. Obviously, the program is much more than a good run on an often chilly morning. Back on My Feet builds self-esteem and confidence through leadership training. Though it doesn’t provide shelter or food, the organization does help with connections to housing, job placement, and self-sufficiency. All you have to do is be present at least 90 percent of the workouts to show your commitment. As I always say to my kids, strong body, strong mind.
 

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Head to Historic Banning Mills to Try the Tallest Climbing Wall in the World

Hey Georgians, take a break from your holiday shopping this Saturday and head 45 minutes outside of Atlanta to Historic Banning Mills. Representatives from the Guinness Book of World Records will be on hand to verify that the new Banning Mills climbing wall is indeed the tallest in the world. Give the wall your best shot and then try the largest zipline canopy tour in America. More than 40 ziplines span over 7 miles of course. That means you can be out there for eight hours, flying high above the Snake River and its exquisite gorge and not sample the same zipline twice!

I’ll be heading south this next week to kayak, bike, and hike in the Everglades. I’ll be back on December 20th. Have a great week and keep active!

 

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Clark Art Institute Launches Free Snowshoe Program

Located in Williamstown in the Berkshire Mountains of western Massachusetts, Clark Art Institute is a treasure trove of Impressionist paintings by Monet, Degas, and no fewer than 30 works by Renoir. American artists are well represented by rooms of Homers, Sargents, and Remingtons. The grounds are also exquisite, set on 140 acres of rolling hills and forest. And now the museum wants you to venture outside as well as inside, offering visitors a chance to borrow a pair of snowshoes for free. The Clark has installed a snowshoe rack and benches adjacent to the west side of its Manton Research Center building. Snowshoes are available in three sizes for both adults and children to borrow. While there, see the Turner and Constable show, on view through March 10th, along with a show on Thomas Gainsborough’s drawings, on view through March 17th. 

 

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