OutDoors
by Elizabeth Bassett, October 20, 2011.....

Get Out of Town
and Outdoors

Some folks dream when they pass a candy shop. My dreams are of exploring new places while getting fresh air and exercise. Some ideas for winter vacations in the outdoors, with back-up plans for rotten weather:

One-Day mini vacation
Natural light floods the Swimming Hole in Stowe on even the grayest days. The Swimming Hole has an eight-lane, 25-meter pool with diving board; a heated children’s pool with water slide and giant, sprinkling water fountains; and light-filled rooms dedicated to strength, cardio and cycling. Pack exercise clothes and a bathing suit. Buy an individual or family pass and enjoy classes, fitness and a swim. Stop at Ben & Jerry’s on the way home! theswimmingholestowe.com

Overnight and weekend getaways
A half-hour drive but a world away is Sleepy Hollow Inn, a bed and breakfast on Sherman Hollow Road in Huntington. Eight guest rooms are steps away from a pond-side, wood-fired sauna and miles of magnificent cross-country skiing, lighted at night. Breakfasts may include Vermont milled whole-wheat blueberry pancakes with Sleepy Hollow’s maple syrup, Harrington’s cob-smoked bacon and a fresh fruit salad. Bed and breakfast rates start at $115 for two and include skiing. skisleepyhollow.com
Some travel to Craftsbury Center on Little Hosmer Pond in Craftsbury just for the three hearty, healthy, all-you-can-eat local meals. (The Center has spawned a cookbook, now in its fifth printing.) Others make the beautiful drive for the best cross-country skiing in the east. Accommodations are simple, with or without private bath, and the price is right. The rate for a small double midweek is $94 per person including three meals, skiing and Wi-Fi. There’s snowshoeing, too. The setting is beautiful, ski trails extensive and well groomed, and the vibe is local, green and committed to life-long sports. craftsbury.com.
Montreal embraces winter. In addition to an underground city, world-class museums and great dining, outdoor activities abound. Before Canada’s 1867 confederation, Montreal opened the country’s first prepared commercial skating rink in 1850. The tradition continues with two refrigerated rinks at Mount Royal Park and the Old Port. The city hosts hundreds of outdoor rinks in neighborhoods across town.
About 40 minutes north of the city, Mont Avila has the winter equivalent of a water park for snow tubing. With graduated prices for young kids and family packages, tubing starts January 2 and is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; 5 p.m. on weekends. montavila.com/Pages/GlissadesTudesAvimontagne
Speaking of skating, make this the year to visit Ottawa’s Winterlude. Three long weekends, from February 3 through 20, feature ice carving competition in the central square (brrrrrr), snow sculptures, a gigantic snow playground, fireworks, the world’s largest skating rink on the Rideau Canal (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and Dow’s Lake, and free busses to connect all this fun. You can get culture, too, as Ottawa is Canada’s national capital with a full complement of museums and a beautiful Parliament Building. ottawafestivals.ca/tag/winterlude

Ten days, plus or minus
A favorite family vacation was to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, a 402,000-acre preserve in southern Georgia and northern Florida. In rented canoes we paddled amongst alligators, bald cypress and exotic birds. Alligators nosed our canoes, rocking us to and fro, and then 15-year-old Putnam steered our craft into a bush where a five-foot snake snoozed overhead. We paddled backwards, quickly!
The Okefenokee is one of the oldest and best-preserved freshwater systems in America. While we chose to explore on our own and at our peril, guided boat tours focus on history and wildlife. Water trails and platforms make it possible to camp. For those who prefer to stay on land, boardwalks and trails lead to viewing platforms and observation towers. Hunting and fishing are permitted in season. The weather was great in April for our visit. fws.gov/okefenokee
If you’ve budgeted for an outdoor vacation, there’s great value in VBT walking and bicycling vacations (vbt.com). In late March, when our snow is rotting and warm sunshine reminds us that spring will come in about six weeks, VBT starts its spring rides from Charleston to Savannah via Beaufort and St. Helena Island. Spanish moss drips from live oak trees and crab, grits and hush puppies appear on menus. Visit Revolutionary and Civil War monuments, a tea plantation and a live oak tree estimated to be 1,500 years old. You will never see a tree that old in Vermont.
Do you wonder how Asian countries grow at five to ten percent a year while the United States stagnates? Demystify the East by bicycling in Vietnam or Thailand. The countryside is spectacular and the people are welcoming. Taste lemon grass, coconut milk, fish sauce and basil. The dollar is stronger in Asia than in Europe. Inclusive VBT tours, including international airfare and fuel surcharges, bike and helmet, van support, accommodations and a majority of meals, can be less than $300 per day. That is value.
Closer to home, VBT packages six biking vacations to Italy, including three in Tuscany. Don’t bike? VTB Walking Vacations visit Italy, Ireland, Egypt, Hawaii, Machu Pichu in Peru, Patagonia and Costa Rica.
President Gregg Marston stands behind VBT’s value in the marketplace. “If travelers find a U.S.-based active vacation company offering a lower-priced trip that includes round-trip international airfare, free use of a custom bicycle or walking poles, local trip leaders and accommodations of the same quality as ours, we’ll give you one VBT vacation—for free,” Marston says. “None of our competitors can match our features and unsurpassed value.”
For even better value, gather a group of friends or family. Bring along eight people, plus yourself, and you get half off your trip cost. Bring ten people, plus yourself, and travel free. I may take the challenge.