Frommer’s EasyGuide to Vermont. William Scheller

      Northern Vermont is different. On the region’s western edge, along the shores of Lake Champlain, Burlington—the state’s largest, liveliest city—is ringed by fast-growing suburban communities and industrial parks of the non-smokestack variety. But drive an hour east and you’re deep in the Northeast Kingdom, the state’s least developed, most lost-in-time region.

      There are remnants of older industries here—marble quarries in Danby, converging train tracks at White River Junction, a GE plant in Rutland that makes jet engine parts—but mostly it’s still rural living: cow pastures high in the hills, clapboard farmhouses under spreading trees, maple-sugaring operations, and the distant sound of timber being cut in woodlots. New and old co-exist here peaceably, and there are few better places to be on a summer or fall afternoon—winter, too, if you love the season’s sports. (April mud season? Not so much . . . )

Bennington, Manchester & Environs

      Bennington: 143 miles NW of Boston; 126 miles S of Burlington. Arlington: 15 miles N of Bennington. Manchester: 24 miles N of Bennington.

      Bennington (motto: “Where Vermont Begins”) owes its significance to a handful of eponymous moments, places, and things. There’s the Battle of Bennington, fought in 1777 during the American War of Independence (although the battle actually occurred across the border in New York State); Bennington College, a small, prestigious liberal-arts school just outside town; and Bennington pottery, which traces its ancestry back to the original factory in 1793 and is still prized by collectors for its superb quality.

      North of Bennington, a string of closely spaced villages—Arlington, Manchester, and Dorset—presents Vermont at its most Vermont, making the area an ideal destination for a romantic getaway, antiquing trip, or even a serious outlet-shopping trip. This corner of the state is also renowned among anglers because of a winding tributary of the Hudson River called the Battenkill, home of wily populations of brook and brown trout.

      Each of the towns has its own unique charm; you can even visit all of them in a single day if you sleep locally and get up early. That would be a pity, though—even a week’s travel would reveal only a portion of the superb lodging and dining possibilities in an area that offers sophisticated hospitality along with bucolic beauty.

      Essentials

      Arriving

      Bennington is at the intersection of Vermont state routes 9 and 7. If you’re coming from the south, the nearest interstate access is via the New York State Thruway at Albany, about 35 miles away. (But you have to drive through the city of Troy first, which takes time; figure 45 min. or more from the Thruway to downtown Bennington.) From the east, I-91 is about 40 miles away at Brattleboro via Route 9 (the Molly Stark Trail). Arlington and Manchester lie north of Bennington on Historic Route 7A, which runs parallel to and west of Route 7 (it’s 15 miles to Arlington, 24 miles to Manchester). Dorset is 7 miles north of Manchester Center on Route 30.

      Visitor Information

      The Bennington Area Chamber of Commerce, 100 Veterans Memorial Dr. (www.bennington.com; 802/447-3311), maintains a visitor center on Route 7 about 1 mile north of downtown, near the veterans’ complex. This office is open weekdays 9am to 5pm year-round, and also on Saturdays until 1pm mid-May through mid-October. There’s also a downtown welcome center ( 802/442-5758) in a former blacksmith shop at South and Elm streets; look for the big blue flag. Operated by the other BBC—the Better Bennington Corporation, of course—it’s open Monday through Friday year-round, and has a big map of the area to orient you.

      There’s a Manchester Visitors Center at 4802 Main St. in Manchester Center; information on the town is also available at www.manchestervermont.com or www.manchesterdesigneroutlets.com. Arlington maintains its own small, self-serve visitor information center at the Stewart’s gas station on Route 7A. Just take what you need.

      For information on outdoor recreation, the Green Mountain National Forest maintains a district ranger office ( 802/362-2307) in Manchester Center at 2538 Depot St. It’s open Monday through Friday from 8am to 4:30pm.

      Exploring Bennington

      Today visitors will find a Bennington of two faces. Historic Bennington (more commonly known as Old Bennington ), with its handsome white clapboard homes and magnificently steepled Old First Church, sits atop a hill west of town off Route 9. Downtown Bennington, on the other hand, is a pleasant commercial center where practical shops mix with a brew pub, a craft shop in an old bank, and a diner that harks back to the ’50s. The downtown boasts a fair number of architecturally striking buildings. In particular, don’t miss the stern marble Federal building (formerly the post office) with six fluted columns at 118 South St., and the massive granite Sacred Heart-St. Francis DeSales church.

      Turn off Route 9 in Old Bennington’s little traffic circle to visit the Bennington Battle Monument ( 802/447-0550). Dedicated in 1891, this 306-foot obelisk of blue limestone resembles a shorter, paunchier Washington Monument. (This is not the battle site—that’s about 6 miles northwest of here in New York State—but the monument marks the spot where American munitions were stored.) The monument’s viewing platform, which is reached by elevator, is open daily from 9am to 5pm from mid-April through October, and affords wonderful views that extend into New York and Massachusetts. A diorama depicting the battle is on view at ground level. A small fee ($5 adults, $1 kids ages 6–14) is charged. On holidays and during the last 2 weeks of each year, the monument is lit up.

      Near the monument, you’ll find distinguished old homes lushly overarched with ancient trees. Be sure to spend a minute exploring the old burying ground behind the First Congregational Church, where the great poet Robert Frost and several Vermont governors are buried (see “I Had a Lover’s Quarrel with the World” box, left). The chamber of commerce provides a walking-tour brochure that helps you make sense of this neighborhood’s formerly vibrant past.

      That’s the epitaph on the tombstone of