Meet Erin, Evan and Their New Blog Series: Picnics in the Parks

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Erin and Evan live in Berlin, VT with two cats and two dogs.  Erin works and teaches at the Community College of Vermont and likes to spend her weekends gardening, going on walks, and checking out Vermont State Parks!  Evan works as a prosecutor in the Criminal Division of the Vermont Attorney General's Office.  In his spare time, he likes to work around the house, go swimming, cook, and check out new movies. 

This summer, they will be touring our Vermont State Parks and making delectable picnics with local food. So check out this ongoing series for tips on where to get great food and places to enjoy it!

Picnic in the Parks: Silver Lake State Park 
This summer we’ll be checking out some of the great picnic spots in the Vermont State Parks: A true Vermont culinary adventure. For our inaugural outing, we visited Silver Lake State Park in Barnard, VT on Memorial Day (opening) weekend. 

As part of this project we are hoping to feature places to stop and pick up picnic items en route to our destinations.  For this trip, we stopped at the Barnard General Store located approximately one third of a mile from the park entrance.  
The Barnard General Store

This general store was recently purchased by the Barnard Community Trust and features many local products in addition to some of the staples we all love to see at a general store.  For our picnic, we chose some Castleton Crackers, cheese from the deli, seltzer water, 9th Hole Mix, a grapefruit, and a local peanut butter whoopee pie.  
The picnic pavilion at Silver Lake State Park


Silver Lake State Park features several campsites, as well as a beach with bathroom facilities, a playground, and boat rentals. The park also includes two great picnic spots within walking distance of the parking lot. The first is a large pavilion with several picnic tables and a couple of BBQ grills. The second is located in between the lake and the circular walking trail. It also has several picnic tables and BBQ grills.  


We opted for a sunny spot in the second picnic area right on the shore where we could watch the kayakers and enjoy the serenity of the lake. If you are looking for a smaller spot to enjoy a summer day, have a picnic, and go swimming, then Silver Lake State Park is for you.


Ummmmm, Vermont food
Join us next time when we try to find the perfect picnic spot at the top of the notch in Smuggler’s Notch State Park!


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