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Fall in Vermont seemed a bit slow to come. Way back in August there were some trees changing, but not a lot. September offered a hint of color with more coming on towards the end. Then the brilliant colors came and went. But I’m getting ahead of myself. It’s time to roll back time to September.

We visited Island Pond and Spectacle Pond along with Brighton State Park for an overnight trip. There was just a hint of color coming on.

We had Island Pond all to ourselves, except for the loons. We’ve yet to be on a lake in Vermont where there wasn’t a loon.

We enjoyed a walk around Sterling Pond, through the red pine.

After the hike we boated on Lake Willoughby before heading home. Notice I didn’t say fished, we did fish by the way, but it turned out to be more of a boating excursion. Next time. I’m going to declare that Lake Willoughby is likely going to be my favorite lake in Vermont, even though we’ve only been to a few so far. The dramatic glacially formed landscape is going to be hard to beat. It could use a boat ramp with some actual parking, but hey, I guess it keeps the crowds down. Plus – stay tuned for part two for some epic scenes from above this lake in part 2.

Fast forward in time a week and we hiked out of Smugglers Notch to Sterling Pond, located in between the neighboring ski resorts of Smugglers Notch and Stowe.

I found it a little odd that Sterling Pond is perched at the top of the hike, on a mountain. I’m no stranger to mountain lakes, but it seemed like a unconventional place for a pond. The clouds seemed to drop down to the mountain top upon our arrival but we were still able to get a few views.

Before long we were headed back down the trail. Just as rocky and steep as every other trail we’ve found so far in Vermont. Oh, yes, and the beautiful trees.

We headed through the actual notch, down through Stowe, picked up our first cider donut and then looped back home by way of Montpelier. As we approached Lake Elmore it seemed that those first true colors were really starting to pop. And just like that, it’s fall in Vermont.