If you live in Vermont, please respond!!!

F

futurefitnessdyanmo

Cathlete
Anyone who has lived in, or currently lives in Vermont, please tell me about it! My fiancee has a job interview up there, so there's a good chance we could end up there! I want to know about the culture, the CLIMATE, everything!!! Good and bad!!
 
I live in Vermont.

I live at the junction of I89 and I91. The closest "city" on the map would be White River Jct.

Before I answer detailed questions about climate etc... Where is the job?

We are not he largest state in the union however depending on where you live the climate is different. Also depending on what area you settle down in you may find attitudes about everything different.


We moved here from Taxachusetts in 1991, my taxes actually went up however I'm happy because the state/towns spend them in a more controlled manner and the services are good an in my opinion, needed.

The weather is great, you get used to it. Culture can be limited. If you live near Burlington, its a full fledged city. I live near Hanover NH (Dartmouth College) so we're not totally deprived.

Like I said, I need to know where you're headed.

Dave
 
Dave,

Thanks for responding! The job is in Middlebury, although we would consider living between there and Burlington or Montpelier, whereever it looks like I can get employed (I'm a clinical psychologist who specializes in eating disorders and anxiety).

I guess it might be helpful for you to know where I'm coming from too. Athens Georgia - decently sized college town, an hour or so from Atlanta. I grew up in N.C. on a farm.
 
FFD:

I know Midlebury is a college town, so there should be plenty of cultural opportunities and a lot of life. You should also find employment I should think: plenty of students with those issues in which you specialize.

Other than that, my impressions of Vermont (I've never lived there but would like to) are Ben & Jerry's, lots of green in Summer and lots of snow in Winter. Is snow going to be a problem? Do you like cross country skiing?!?!?!?!

A nice contrast for a Southern gal!


Clare
 
Well about the snow....

Texas has had more snow than Vermont this year.

Cross Country skiing is fun but not a constant. They make snow for the downhill folks, Xcountry skiers have to rely on Mother Nature, we had a 57 degree day with 2 inches of rain last week, just about wiped out all of the snow.

Between Middlebury and Burlington you've got most of the "culture" in Vermont. One thing you'll discover fast, all the roads go north and south there are few east/west roads. Someone put a mountain range right down the middle of the state. As it's been said "You can't get there from here."

Rent the movie Funny Farm, its not as a bad as that.

It's a fine state, I've managed 14 years now. Winters can be bad, we had one in 93 or 94 that the temperature never went above 0 in the month of January. It's tough getting those diesel school buses started at -40, the fuel turns into wax.

Middlebury is pretty, they have a great Mexican restaurant called Amigo's.

Dave
 
I live in Burlington and love it here. The weather does take some getting used to but not so much because of the snow, it's because it's so often cloudy. I get to the point where I'm craving sunshine. Cold? Yes, but you do get sort of used to it. And summers are just wonderful around here - very few days in the 90's or higher.

Burlington has a lot going for it. It's a college town but fairly small -- total population about 35,000 although there are more in the surrounding area. There are lots of things going on most days. When you're in Middlebury, look for "7 Days", a local free weekly paper that has all sorts of event listings for central and northern Vermont.

I don't know Middlebury very well but the downtown area is charming. It's a fairly expensive place to live relative to salaries but that's true of most places in Vermont. And they still have a drive-in A&W! A fun place to stop after hiking in the summer. Lots of hiking within a fairly short drive too if that's important to you.

Montpelier is a pretty nice little place too. Population about 14,000 which is the smallest state capitol city in the US. Politics are very approachable here so you can go there and sit in on committee meetings and such if you're so inclined. It's a very crunchy granola town (as is Middlebury). Now, there is a cooking school there, NECI, so if you ever decided to change careers to cooking you'll be conveniently close.

One thing you should know is that it's hard to find housing around here. The supply is limited and zoning is strick so it's hard to find a good selection of houses or apartments and they're both pricy.

But because of the strick zoning, Vermont has much less sprawl than most places and when it does exist, it's fairly contained. There aren't any billboard signs so you get great views from the highways and roads.

And Dave, I think that cold January was in 96 because I moved here in the midst of it!

Anne
 
I live near Middlebury!

Hi ffd,

I live about 10 miles south of Middlebury. DH and I frequent town a lot for grocery shopping, eating out, doing business, etc. I think it's a pretty cool town.

As someone said, Middlebury is a college town, but you'll find all kinds of people there. There are a lot of opportunities to attend cultural events as well as athletic events sponsored by the school - they have a really good hockey team. The school also runs Middlebury Snowbowl, which is a small ski area that's about 10 minutes from town. It's nice, very low-key and family oriented.

The towns surrounding Middlebury are very agricultural - dairy farms, apple orchards, etc. There's a push in the state to keep a lot of this land as farm land.

If you like to do outdoor stuff - hiking, skiing (downhill & x-country), kayaking, snowshoeing, etc, then this area has a lot to offer.

As another poster also said, you'll find more cultural variety between Middlebury and Burlington. Burlington is about 45-50 minutes from Middlebury.

There are a bunch of good restaurants in town.

There are two fitness centers in town. One of them sponsors a bunch of triathalons every summer of varying difficulty. The bike route goes by my house.

Winter here is cold and usually long, but if you find a winter activity that you enjoy, it goes by faster.

A couple of negatives:
- Housing is expensive in this area, and property taxes in the Middlebury area are quite high.
- Winters can get on your nerves if you don't have an activity that gets you out to enjoy them.

I hope this helps a little. If there's someting specific you want to know, feel free to email or PM me.
 
RE: I live near Middlebury!

I used to live in Vermont -- for 10 years -- raised my kids there -- anyway, does that count?

Live in LA now. Love them both. Vermont and LA are my favorite places, I think -- total different ends of the spectrum. Vermont -- warm, fuzzy feelings. Here's my take: Winter: SNOW Fall: SNOW Spring: SNOW (or mud) July: Warmth and sunshine. I loved Vermont. The most beautiful state on the East Coast, and only Montana rivals it in beauty.

You'll love Vermont.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top