Vermont State Parks

Come to D.A.R. State Park this weekend for a fun festival celebrating everyone's favorite local lake monster. Champ Weekend will feature crafts and activities, a bike parade on Saturday, movies about Champ, and a chance to take pictures with the monster himself!  D.A.R. State Park is a popular local spot in Addison, Vermont, and features a picnic area, volleyball nets, and a short trail down to Lake Champlain. A lovely stone pavilion overlooks the lake.  The full schedule for Champ Weekend is listed below.  Weekend Schedule of Events: Friday: 3:00pm: Photo and information scavenger hunts Saturday (by the shelter): 10:00am Coloring pages, mask making table, Champ drawing contest, scavenger hunts (information and photo)  11:00am First talk/tv show episode about Champ  12:30am Second talk/tv show episode about Champ  1:00pm Photo with Champ! 2:00pm Decorating for the bike parade 2:30pm Bike Parade through park ...

By 2016 guest blogger Tara Schatz Gorgeous mountain vistas, an array of unique hiking trails, and a beautiful family-friendly campground, Mt. Ascutney State Park is a playground for nature lovers, history buffs, and outdoor adventurers. It’s close proximity to Wilgus State Park on the Connecticut River means you you can hike to spectacular vistas in the morning and paddle the meandering river in the afternoon. What more could you ask for? Built between 1935 and 1938, Mt. Ascutney State Park was one of the very first state parks established in the Vermont. The mountain’s first hiking trail was created way before that — in 1825. It was the very first organized mountain hiking trail in Vermont, and some accounts suggest it was the first in the country. Today, hikers can scale the mountain from one of four trailheads, or they can explore a series of summit trails after driving up the 3.7-mile toll road (free for campers and other park visitors). Mt. Ascutney is unique as far as...

Submit Your Recipe and Video and Win Big! Vermont State Parks invites you to participate in the first ever Vermont State Parks Campfire Cook-off video competition. Craig Whipple, Director of State Parks explains, “Cooking in the outdoors is an intrinsic part of enjoying summer. And in Vermont, with our outdoor culture and bountiful local produce, outdoor cooking has ascended to an art form. After years of listening to stories of extraordinary campfire culinary conquests, we decided it might be fun to lay down a campfire cooking challenge, and to share the best for all to enjoy.” The contest challenges entrants to submit videos of themselves and/or their team preparing their favorite camping recipes. Finalists will be selected by park staff and the winners will be chosen by online voting. Videos and recipes will be shared online at vtstateparks.com. First, second and third prizes will be awarded and winners will receive free camping, firewood, Vermont products and braggin...

Yes, you can camp with an infant & it is fun for the whole family By Jen Williams, @jen_butson For many new parents, the idea of going into the woods and away from the comforts of home is riddled with a lot of “what if” scenarios. I know, I’ve been there, and unfortunately, a lot of parents think that putting off camping until their baby is older is the only option. Sure, ordinary tasks like diaper changing, providing sun protection and feeding seem more complicated. Then there’s water supply, bug protection and making sure you’ve got plenty of phone battery for picture snapping all those first moments. But, truth be told…it’s really not that complicated. And so… with our 12 week old and a trip to Vermont on the horizon, I broached the idea of going camping with my husband. In our pre-baby lives, camping was a normal, easy and beloved activity. His concerns read like a well-intended Mom blog, with packing woes, diaper disposal, and sleep arrangements on the top of the ...

The town of Lake Elmore, home to Elmore State Park, bills itself as “the beauty spot of Vermont”. It certainly a lovely place- the lake is clear and cold, and the popular hike up Elmore Mountain offers spectacular views of the lake, valley, and surrounding hills, including Mt. Mansfield. It’s also occasionally a hot spot for romance. We recently received an email from a woman named Krystal, who had good news for us. “Yesterday my boyfriend Joshua, (now fiancé!!!) proposed to me! I'm so thrilled and wanted to share our story with you! Early on in our relationship we began hiking in Vermont. We have so many incredible memories from hiking and many pictures documenting it! We had talked about starting our hiking season back up and when we finally had a day off together we decided on Saturday that we would go to Mount Elmore Trail to hike to the Fire Tower. This was our first time visiting Elmore State Park and it was gorgeous! We commented the whole time on how we wante...

Emerald Lake State Park is nestled in a deep valley between the Taconic Mountains to the West and the Green Mountains to the east. The two mountain ranges are only a few hundred yards apart here, and they rise up steeply on either side of the lake. Covering just 20 acres, Emerald Lake isn’t big, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in beauty. It’s clear green waters and sandy bottom attract swimmers, paddlers, sunbathers, and anglers throughout the summer. My family and I aren’t strangers to Emerald Lake’s charms. We’ve picnicked on the shores and spent countless hours exploring in and out of the water. Last week we decided to dig a little deeper and explore the trails and campground of this beloved local park. We quickly learned that there’s more to Emerald Lake than swimming. It’s also a hiker’s paradise, a haven for dog-lovers, and a perfect spot for family camping. We’d love to share some of our discoveries with you. Camping at Emerald Lake State Park  The...

MONTPELIER - Designed to share the joy of camping with Vermonters, "Random Acts of Camping" will be coming to a state park day use area near you.  Random Acts of Camping rewards lucky park visitors with two free nights of tent, RV, lean-to, or cabin camping in any  Vermont State Park  campground. One winner will be chosen at random on nice weather weekends through August beginning in Camp Plymouth State Park  on the weekend of June 25-26. The program was developed as a way to increase statewide accessibility to camping and to foster a lifelong love of the outdoors. Vermont State Parks will be giving away the free park stays to day users at Camp Plymouth , Kill Kare , Boulder Beach , Branbury and Waterbury Center state parks during busy weekends this summer. The winners will be chosen at random by park staff. Winners will also receive personal trip planning assistance from the state parks customer service team.  "Camping with your famil...