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Guest Post – Little Explorers V

06.07.2014 By: Eliza, MiniBury Founder

While we adjust to life as a family of 5, a few local bloggers kindly agreed to keep MiniBury readers entertained with tales and adventures from their own lives. Today Julie Barry shares the fifth installment of her series”Little Explorers,” reports on her hiking adventures with her husband and her two and four-year old. Take it away Julie!

IMG_1859

Trail: Texas Falls

Distance: 1.2 miles

Level of Difficulty: easy – moderate

Baby Jogger Access: no

Bikes Permitted: no

Of Interest to the Kids: the falls, numerous short bridges over little creeks

How to get there: driving east on 125, go about 3 miles past the Middlebury Snowbowl, turn left on Forest Service road 39, parking will be .5 and .7 miles up the road

More Info: look here.

Our Experience: There were several cars parked by the overlook for the falls so we drove .2 miles further to the picnic area parking. There’s a pavilion with a number of tables under it as well as a nearby grill.  If you’re with a smaller group there are several privately sited picnic sites with their own table and grill – all right along Hancock Brook.  Gravel trails connect the pavilion, the sites, and the vault toilets.  With not a soul around my 2 and 4 year-old had a blast exploring the trails and picnic area on their bikes. The brook itself is beautiful, clear and cool and filled with light-colored rocks  (what are they?) that give the river a clean, almost blue appearance.  It also offered great opportunities for exploring and rock hopping.

IMG_1881We then hiked the nature loop, starting across the road from the picnic area, continuing to the falls and back around to our starting point.  The falls itself was really interesting – rocks scooped and carved by so much water – with good vantage points from a bridge and several fenced overlooks.  In many places the trail itself was rugged – lots of roots and rocks, a few large logs across the trail.  It was also hillier than I expected: not a docile nature loop.  My two year-old rode on my back going up hill but otherwise she trooped along gamely.  The loop took us about 1 3/4 hours but we had lots of little breaks to examine bugs, balance on logs and jump off rocks and a long snack stop which involved not only a careful investigation of our trail mix but an actual sorting of it.  (And here I’d thought that the beauty of trail mix was all of those yummy things mixed together.  Silly me.)  I somehow ended up with a number of pictures of the snack stop and not one of the falls.  Ah, well.

The kids can’t wait to come back and bring their papa to picnic and explore – so we’ll get a photo of the falls then!

Related Posts

  • guest post - Little Explorers VI

    While we adjust to life as a family of 5, a few local bloggers kindly…

  • Guest Post - Little Explorers

    While we adjust to life as a family of 5, a few local bloggers kindly…

  • Guest Post - Little Explorers v.IV

    While we adjust to life as a family of 5, a few local bloggers kindly…

Eliza, MiniBury Founder

Hello, I’m Eliza. I founded MiniBury in 2012 because I had a hunch that I wasn't the only parent in Addison County missing fun family friendly events. I love the challenge of finding and sharing information about our community to other parents.

Upcoming Events

Jun
2
Fri
10:30 am Lincoln Storytime @ Lincoln Library
Lincoln Storytime @ Lincoln Library
Jun 2 @ 10:30 am
Little ones and their caregivers get together for stories and songs.
12:30 pm Homeschoolers Open Gym @ Middlebury Rec Center
Homeschoolers Open Gym @ Middlebury Rec Center
Jun 2 @ 12:30 pm – 2:30 pm
Come play at the town gym with other homeschool families.
2:00 pm Champlain Orchards Cider Garden ... @ Champlain Orchards
Champlain Orchards Cider Garden ... @ Champlain Orchards
Jun 2 @ 2:00 pm – 8:00 pm
The orchard’s new cider garden is opening for the summer on June 2nd! It will be open through the summer 2-8 p.m. on Fridays and noon to 8 p.m. on Saturdays for full cider pours [...]
7:00 pm ‘Matilda Jr.’ @ Mount Abraham Union High School
‘Matilda Jr.’ @ Mount Abraham Union High School
Jun 2 @ 7:00 pm
This MAUSD Expanded Learning Program Middle School Musical features 6th, 7th, and 8th graders performing the classic Roald Dahl tale.
Jun
3
Sat
8:00 am Spring Wave Race @ Lake Champlain Maritime Museum
Spring Wave Race @ Lake Champlain Maritime Museum
Jun 3 @ 8:00 am – 1:00 pm
The spring open-water rowing season for all middle and high school rowing teams ends with this seasonal championship race at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. Over 100 youth rowers from around Vermont and New England will [...]
9:00 am Middlebury Garden Club Annual Pl... @ Middlebury Town Green
Middlebury Garden Club Annual Pl... @ Middlebury Town Green
Jun 3 @ 9:00 am – 11:00 am
Get your garden and house plants — annuals, perennials, vegetable starts, shrubs, and more — for the coming season. Plants are in pots and labeled by name, color and basic care. There will be a [...]
9:30 am Vergennes Saturday Playgroup @ Vergennes Congregational Church
Vergennes Saturday Playgroup @ Vergennes Congregational Church
Jun 3 @ 9:30 am – 11:00 am
Little ones (birth to 5) and their caregivers get together to play, make new friends, and build a supportive family community. Complimentary coffee will be served for adults; BYO snacks. This playgroup meets every week [...]
10:00 am CVUUS Rhubarb Festival @ Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society Sanctuary
CVUUS Rhubarb Festival @ Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society Sanctuary
Jun 3 @ 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Come celebrate all things rhubarb at this annual festival open to all at the Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society. Buy pies, plants, seedlings, aprons, potholders, gently used books and scoops of homemade rhubarb crisp with [...]
10:00 am UVM Morgan Horse Farm Foal Day @ UVM Morgan Horse Farm
UVM Morgan Horse Farm Foal Day @ UVM Morgan Horse Farm
Jun 3 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Come meet the 2023 UVM Morgan foals as they are turned out with their dams. Excellent photo ops, bring a picnic lunch and enjoy the spacious grounds. Learn about a Morgan’s first year and take [...]
10:30 am Bixby Young Writers Club @ Bixby Library
Bixby Young Writers Club @ Bixby Library
Jun 3 @ 10:30 am
The Young Writers Club is held the first Saturday of the month in the Bixby’s Vermont Room. We will work on fun and informal writing activities. This program is recommended for elementary school-aged children.
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