Playing in a Snow Globe- Lake Morey, Fairlee, VT

 

Lake Morey skating trail

Our trip to Lake Morey, Vermont was so magical last year that I longed to go again. Our group would be a little bit different this year. Last year I took our four daughters and eldest granddaughter. This year we included husbands and grandchildren. Unfortunately, Claire and her family couldn't come because they had already made other travel plans. But, Audrey and Tess made plans to fly up from Virginia with their families while Steve and I planned to drive. Chelsea and her family would drive over from their home in New Hampshire and join us for two days. The plans were made months ago and it was finally time to go!

 We had so much fun on the ice! In previous years, Lake Morey Resort took charge of clearing the skating trails on the lake. This year, the town of Fairlee took over the task. They still had a four mile trail cleared around the perimeter of the lake and they had two ice hockey rinks cleared. There weren't as many little, loopy trails in the center of the lake like last year, but it was still great. There was also more snow on the ground this year and the temperatures were equally as cold. 

The family coming along the trail

Seven year old granddaughter turned out to be an excellent skater. One vision that will remain with me always is of her arms windmilling to keep her balance as she zipped along. She loved the outdoors and kept right up with the grown ups. 

Night skating

On Saturday night we decided to go back out onto the lake at dusk. Snow was gently falling as we walked to the shoreline. Violet was being pulled in the sled and twinkle lights adorned the trees. All the day skaters were gone and we had the entire lake to ourselves. Steve and Audrey took flashlights and decided to skate the four mile lake perimeter. The rest of us played on the hockey rink, walked and skated some paths, threw snow, and made snow angels while Violet amused us. It was a memorable evening. As cold as it was outside, I never felt cold. The air was invigorating and I had heaps of energy. When Audrey and Steve returned to us, we made our way back to the inn for dinner. We repeated this outing on Saturday night. It was so peaceful and quiet on the lake with snow falling gently down. All of us preferred the quiet moments when the crowds were gone. We decided if we ever came back again, we would choose a week that was not Winter Carnival week. We like the quiet.

A couple of fun places we visited when it was too windy to be outside or we were tired of skating: King Arthur Flour was only twenty minutes away. We had lunch there one day and the food is fabulous. I use their flours and bake ware too. We also visited Quechee Gorge Village where there is the Vermont Antique Center, a brewery, and gift shops. We also stopped in at Chapman's General Store, right in Fairlee, VT. They have lovely jewelry, gifts, a large toy room, and much more. I must mention that on our drive to Vermont, Steve and I stopped at Ted's Fish Fry in Troy, NY., home of our college alma mater and where we met forty-six years ago. We love a good fish fry!

Tess and Steve

Walking to the lake shore.

In order to remind myself of the reality of this trip, I will make mention of the hard parts. They in no way overshadow the wonderful memories, but let's be real: Chelsea's three boys all came down with the flu the week of our trip. They could not come to the lake to play. But Chelsea was able to come and spend one entire day with us by herself while her husband stayed home with the boys. The snow. While snow is gloriously fun to play in, it is not fun to drive in. Our drive away from Vermont to go home was white knuckle for the first four hours. Cars were off the road, it was slippery and we went through a gallon of windshield washer fluid from all the dirty slush and ice that sprayed up from the road. One family's flight in was canceled due to weather. Luckily they were able to find another flight and all was well, but it was momentarily stressful. One of us caught covid and another the flu as we traveled home. It happens. I have a strong feeling we will still go back again one day. Those frozen lakes are magical and they draw us to them. 

Lake view from the inn.