Top Travel Days of 2022, A Vermont Craft Brew Run with Our Dog, Theo

In mid-December, Lisa and I took a road trip with Jake and our dog, Theo, to northern Vermont. First stop was the Dog Chapel in St. Johnsbury. Perched on a hill in the countryside, this chapel is an oasis for dog lovers around New England who plaster the walls with thousands of photos of their dogs. Then it was on to Hill Farmstead, the award-winning craft brewery located down a dirt road in the heart of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. This is the authentic part of the state, where you drive miles up and down mountainous dirt roads to reach your destination. To grab a pint of Edward at Hill Farmstead is worth the trouble. It was a relatively mild winter day, so we drank our pints outdoors with Theo, before purchasing a case of 4-packs to go. The last stop for the day was Willey’s Store in Greensboro, one of the finest country stores in the state, where we stocked up on rare Jasper Hill Farm cheeses made nearby and more local craft brew like Heady Topper from Stowe’s Alchemist Brewery.

That night, we stayed at the dog-friendly Hotel Vermont in Burlington and dined at the James Beard-award winning Hen of the Wood, located less than a block away. It was the perfect start to a two-day getaway, where Theo could romp through the snow along Lake Champlain and we could try more craft brew at Foam Brewers.

It’s been fun sharing my favorite travel days of 2022 with you this week. Thanks for looking! With trips already planned to Morocco, South Korea, and Portugal, in 2023, travels are only going to get more exciting this year.

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Once we drove up the hillside and saw the surrounding mountains, you couldn’t help but breathe deeply. Surrounded by fields of green, this is the soothing remedy my mind and body yearn for post-pandemic. They even have dog friendly rooms so Theo could venture on his first road trip. We spent the days playing Frisbee golf at a relatively new course carved through the fields and forest at Trapp’s, then hiking at Moss Glen Falls to see the water cascading down. Twice we visited dog-friendly Wiessner Woods to walk deep in the forest and fill our lungs with mountain-crisp oxygen I sorely missed all these months away. At night, we dined on bratwurst and schnitzel, washed down with Trapp’s award-winning pilsner and Kolsch at their bierhall. Then went for a requisite meal at Plate in the village of Stowe, my favorite dining establishment in town and one of the few places I know where you can find a Heady Topper on the drink menu. Of course, we stocked up on Heady Topper and Focal Banger at The Alchemist before leaving. Our fridge is now happily filled with craft beer and artisanal cheese. And yes, that Edward and Citra Single Hop IPA found at Hill Farmstead was well worth the detour to get there.

Interested in a pet-friendly room at Trapp Family Lodge? Please let ActiveTravels know and we’ll find you a room!

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