The
Great America Road trip, where you pile your family into one car and hit the
road. Have you made that trip? If so
where have you ventured to? We tend to
make a road trip at least once per year, but sometimes those trips are little
more than going from point A to point B.
The best road trips are when we can take a little bit of time and
explore the road ahead.
We
did this, for the most part, when dropping off number two at college. We picked him up in Nashville, since it was
“on the way,” and he was coming from another state other than Texas. While there, we explored Nashville a little
bit, but definitely could do with more exploration. Our highlights from our
short visit, were the farmers market, where we picked up some micro greens and
vegetarian jerky. Surprisingly the jerky
was pretty tasty. We also stopped by and
walked around Aphrodite’s Temple, which is a replica of the one in Greece. The temple
was pretty amazing. Once we retrieved
the kid from the airport, we hit the road for real.
Our
end goal was Maine, and there are a few different routes you can take, and we
figured since we were taking the Northern route, we would stop by and check out
Niagara Falls. That did not disappoint! What an amazing experience to see and
experience this natural wonder. Imagine
being an explorer and paddling along the river, to suddenly hear the roar of
the water gaining ground towards the falls.
Turn back and bail out. Hopefully
no explorers went over the falls before realizing what lay ahead.
From
there we made our way to Maine to drop him off and hug the girl, before
departing on a few days together. We did
not make our destination as soon as we had hoped, but we had great food and
fellowship with the girl and her boyfriend’s family before hitting the road
again. We finally made it to
Vermont. A new State to explore and
experience and it was worth the trip.
We
found a fantastic Bed and Breakfast, The Feather Bed Inn, to spend the night
and explore the Mad River Valley of Vermont.
Our inn keepers were wonderful and sent us in the right direction for
dinner and fun. All of her food
recommendations that we tried were delicious and a would go back experience. Plus,
the Inn itself was situated on a beautiful piece of property, with a pond that
backed up to a hiking trail that connects all over the valley. Most definitely worth a multi-day stay to
explore those trails.
We
also happened to be in the area when a local flatbread restaurant was having a
flatbread festival to celebrate their origins and bring food to the
people. The flatbread was free, the line
was long and the music was hopping. This
restaurant incorporated an art show along with messages about how food has
changed over the years and how that has affected farmers. A beautiful functional garden with pigs and
chickens is also situated on the property and guests could walk around and see
a little bit of how this family has managed their food and grows what they use
on the flatbread. The whole experience
resonated with us and what we try to share with our guests.
Sadly,
we had to leave the next day but would plan to return during any other part of
the year to experience the valley.
Winter would be amazing, since the Featherbed is located minutes away
from two ski resorts, and Spring and Summer allows for great hiking, biking and
water exploration. Since the valley is
surrounded by low mountains the color change in the fall must be a sight to
see. Before we left, we did take a hike
up to catch the view from one of the mountain tops. What an experience!
Of
course, when we travel we love to find restaurants off the beaten path to dine
at while out. We hit the jackpot in
Niagara with a delicious Korean family-owned restaurant and with an
amazing Asian Fusion in the Valley and
Italian restaurant in Keene. I don’t
think any of our food choices were a disappointment, since we always walked
away full and ready to explore.
Take
the road trip with the family, explore parts of the country that you might not
have seen yet. There are so many great
and diverse experiences here in Texas and in the United States as whole that
could make your road trip the best ever.
