Rutland Vermont from the 17th Tee at Rutland Country Club 

Just a perfect day in Vermont. Temperatures in the mid 70's, plenty of sunshine, and beautiful scenery. if only the golf were better... so to goes...

Today we headed west out of Killington for a round of golf with friends at Rutland Country Club. I always enjoy playing RCC this time of year. The course is always in great shape. The greens are killers as usual. But the views from around the course just say Vermont in the fall.

Rutland Vermont is for the most part a city of short squat buildings. Barely visible above the trees, the brick buildings downtown just blend with the fall colors of the trees. One is left with the quintessential picture of white church steeples rising to the heavens through the fall foliage, with the Green Mountains as a backdrop. Just perfect!

Fall Foliage season is getting underway at Killington, and winter is just around the corner. We at the Birch Ridge Inn look forward to greeting you when you visit.

Killington absolutely resplendent with early fall colors. 

The Autumnal Equinox occurs this coming Friday, September 23rd at 9:04AM UTC (formerly Greenwich Mean Time of GMT). Most of the United States will be in darkness when it occurs, as Eastern Daylight time is 4 hours behind GMT. Here in Killington, since the time will be 5 AM, we will just start to experience an eerie pre-dawn twilight, assuming of course that clouds on the mountains around the area don't get in the way.

The Autumnal Equinox, of course, signifies the moment when the sun transits the celestial equator of the earth, moving the focus of its energy from the Northern to the Southern hemisphere of the planet. It is a time of change. From here on forward, we in Killington will on average become a little colder each day as the area heads towards winter. Those changing temperatures bring high anticipation of another ski season in the mountains for most of us who call Killington home.

But before we get into winter, we have the annual beauty pageant held each year in the mountains of New England called Fall Foliage Season. I say "pageant" not to be flippant, but to give honor to the discussions that invariably occur in the evenings around the bar about what mountain had the prettiest color, or where can one take that picture perfect fall foliage postcard shot of a lifetime.

Over the summer, and especially over the last 3 weeks, we have had some changes in the local scenery. The iconic pictures of Killington Peak with its bunker like old gondola turned restaurant building are now part of history. The K1 Base Lodge, (which many of us call still by its original name KBL or Killington Base Lodge) experienced an architectural redesign of its own, courtesy of Mother Nature. Peaceful brooks which usually only become torrents during spring thaw like Roaring Brook through Killington to Route 4 East and Mendon Brook on Route 4 West are no longer quiet little streams meandering through the forest. Instead they have been replaced by yawning chasms which will serve as backdrops for countless fall foliage pictures for years to come.

While I was doing the "nightly close" yesterday after all the inn guests had retired for the evening, and the staff had gone home, I was listening to Pandora on my computer. "Simply Red's" rendition of the great Cole Porter's song "Every Time We Say Goodbye" came across the net. Originally composed in homage to the changes people experienced going off to WWII, it just hit me as the perfect denouement at the end of a long day.

When I got up this morning, a new day had dawned across the landscape. The sun was burning brightly on the horizon. Puffy clouds were hanging low, just above the mountain peaks. The reds of the maples, the burnt orange of the oaks, and the yellows of the birch were just starting to dress the mountain sides in a cacophony of subtle color. The changes we have experienced in Killington this summer will slip from "major to minor" with the distance of time. But the constant of the mountain... the change of seasons... the lush green summers... the multicolored falls... the snow capped peaks... they survive to help anchor our lives in a beautiful place many of us call home.

Killington Vermont is back open for business. Fall Foliage season is getting underway and winter is just around the corner. We at the Birch Ridge Inn look forward to greeting you when you visit.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin flanked by VT Commissioner of Tourism Megan Smith and Killington Resort President Chris Nyberg cut the ribbon to re-open Route 4 for traffic in Killington. 

In a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by a multitude of Vermont officials, construction and public safety personnel and several hundred Killington residents, Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin officially opened Route 4 for public travel across Vermont. The road has been closed for 18 days after being virtually destroyed by Hurricane Irene as it swept through the area on Sunday August 28th.

Governor Shumlin spoke of the can do attitude of the people of Vermont. He spoke of how local Vermonters have risen to the challenge to rebuild the state after the storm. He commended local officials for taking charge of the situation, and mobilizing the resources to quickly respond. He praised the citizens of Killington, Mendon, Pittsfield, Bridgewater, and Rutland for their volunteer efforts to look after one another, freeing up time for emergency personnel to plot out a recovery process for the area.

Governor Shumlin singled out, with truly high praise, local construction contractors including Craig Mosher of Killington and Doug Casella of Mendon for quickly getting their equipment on to the destroyed road in the first days after the storm. Their initiative set the stage to jumpstart reconstruction efforts. Without local contractors taking the initiative to reopen roads for emergency vehicles, without waiting for approval from the State to work on roads, the situation could have been much worse for the citizens of our community.

Tourism Commissioner Megan Smith spoke about welcoming back visitors to Vermont for fall foliage season. The reopening of Route 4 provides a vital corridor for tourists visiting the state to see fall colors. Route 4 reopening signifies that the State of Vermont is open again for all to visit.

Local officials also spoke at the gathering. Killington Resort President Chris Nyberg, town of Killington Interim Town Manager Seth Webb, and Killington Chamber of Commerce President Chris Karr all spoke about how the community has been hard at work during the period of road reconstruction to prepare the area to greet visitors to Killington. To back that up, they mentioned that the Killington Resort will be restarting the Gondola to Killington Peak this weekend for scenic fall foliage rides. The 2 golf courses in Killington have reopened. Traditional fall events including the Killington BrewFest on October 1 and the Killington Ski Club Ski Swap on Columbus Day weekend are all set to take place again this year.

The official ribbon cutting took place around 11:30 AM. You probably will see pictures of it on TV in the news this evening.

Killington Vermont is back open for business. We at the Birch Ridge Inn look forward to greeting you when you visit.

The Birch Ridge Inn at Killington on a rainy late summer day. 

The last stanza of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, "The Rainy Day" is totally apropos for Killington this afternoon:

"Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary."

Killington has been very dreary today as a light late summer drizzle hangs over the area. Heavy clouds are skidding low across the tops of the mountain peaks. It is cool, it is damp, and it seems foreboding.

In a normal year, today would seem like a normal transitional day as the summer season slides into fall then into winter. We are still kissed by the color across the landscape of an abundance of summer flowers, intermixed with early fall colors. The colorful tableau will be with us for many more weeks, before we slide into "Twig Season" waiting for the first winter snow.

But the sun actually is shining in Killington today, and all across central Vermont. After 3 short weeks of what can only be described as heroic efforts, Route 4, the main corridor across Vermont on which every guest visiting Killington must travel, will be officially opened.

Today, the Vermont Department of Transportation announced that Route 4 will be officially opened for all travel in each direction starting tomorrow, Friday September 16th. From the release put out by the town of Killington:

"There will be a state press conference with Governor Shumlin and other officials Friday, Sept. 16 at 11AM at the intersection of Rt. 4 and River Road in Killington to officially open the road and welcome visitors back to the region. All are encouraged to attend...... Don't forget to bring your Vermont pride!"

If you are planning on attending tomorrows ceremony, the town has asked us all to " please park along the side of River Road and access the road via Thundering Brook Road."

To all of the citizens, contractors, volunteers, National Guard Members (from Vermont New Hampshire and Maine) who worked to make this possible, we salute you. And to our politicians, we commend you for having the foresight to quickly gauge the level of peril caused by Hurricane Irene on the great state of Vermont, for responding in kind to the peril, and for having the courage to enable Vermonters to get the job done. If "The Suits" had taken control of the situation, we could have been eating MRE's and drinking FEMA supplied water all winter, like they are in other parts of this country years after being struck by natural disasters. Instead, Vermont is hanging out the "Open Sign" and brimming with activity to welcome guests back to travel across the state to visit some of the prettiest places on earth.

Come up to Vermont this fall to look at the splendor of the change of seasons on display. Plan your winter vacation to Killington for some of the best skiing and riding on earth. And if your drive up to visit us takes you briefly on a detour onto a local road, stop for a minute if you can, look around, take in the unexpected...Some days must be dark and dreary...but behind the clouds the sun is still shining!

Fall colors showing on the 4th hole at the Green Mountain National Golf Course 

After a long stretch, today we indulged ourselves with a round of golf with a friend at Green Mountain National in Killington. The good news is that it was just a beautiful day to be on the course. The bad news is that after a long layoff, my body was just missing some of the finer motor control reactions necessary to hit a golf ball well. This had the added effect of making it hard to focus my mind on the game, especially late into the back nine. But so it goes... Did I tell you it was a beautiful day!

I have been playing golf since forever, so I know that this too shall pass. Hopefully, Mother Nature and life around the inn allows for several more rounds before it is time to put away the clubs and take out the long boards.

Green Mountain National is in beautiful shape. The rest it has received these last few weeks really shows all over the course. The greens were putting very true. My putter, on the other hand... well GOLF is a four letter word.

The fairways on the course were very lush. Divots from earlier summer play have grown back in, leaving the fairways nice and smooth. With the exception of a few holes which naturally accumulate water, I don't think I did a lift/clean/place all day.

My game on the other hand; well that's a different story. Having not played in over 3 weeks, I came out free swinging. After starting off a little rocky, I finished the last 6 holes of the front nine very strong. Then, as often happens when things go your way in golf, my mind kicked into gear. Never....Never....Never...let your mind think when you are swinging a golf club. Do all of your thinking as you prepare for the shot. But once you stand over the ball, you are committed and it should be automatic... But alas, this is GOLF I am writing about, and GOLF is the ultimate four letter word.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway, and start studying up on the PGA Leaf Rule for fall golf.

Closing KUDO"S to Chris Franco, chef at On The Rocks in Killington, for his Hole in One today on the 5th hole at Green Mountain National. Congratulations Franco!

Road paving operations nearing completion on Route 4 in Killington. 

What a beautiful day Vermont experienced today. Beautiful blue sunshine, light breezes, temperatures nudging 80 degrees... just a perfect late summer day.

Mary and I have some business contacts in Montpelier that we needed to see, so today was declared "Road Trip". Off into the Vermont countryside we went.

We travelled down Route 4 from Killington through Bridgewater, Woodstock, and Queche on our way to Route 89 north. We took a brief diversion into West Lebanon to ship an oversize package before heading out on the highway. If you did not know about "Irene", you would quickly think that Vermont had taken President Obama's economic stimulus package for "Shovel Ready Jobs" to heart. There was road construction in some spots, but in general there was free flowing traffic from Killington all the way to the New Hampshire border. It was a beautiful day for a ride.

Montpelier is a beautiful little city. By population, some claim it is the smallest state capital in the United States. With the little gleaming golden dome of the state house, it is just the perfect little city for a lunchtime stroll.

We took a quick lunch at "Chef's Table", a restaurant run by the New England Culinary Institute (NECI) and staffed by students. When we do road trips, we are always looking for new ideas to bring back to the inn. In this case, they had some nice bistro tables which we though would fit perfect in the Great Room Lounge back at the inn.

The Vermont countryside along Route 89 was as beautiful as ever. The leaves are definitely starting their fall progression from a verdant green to falling down. It will be quite a while before the colors approach peak. But then again, quite a while is measured in weeks and days at this time of year.

Mary and I know we are very lucky to live in one of the most beautiful places on the planet. The only thing missing from today was that I could not convince Mary to drive me to Montpelier in her Mustang convertible, with the top down of course. That fall foliage ride is for another day.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway, and start studying up on the PGA Leaf Rule for fall golf.

Flowers in bloom on our walk through the neighborhood of the Birch Ridge Inn at Killington. 

dare I say "Normal"!

I had a funny email exchange with a friend today on this topic. You see, Killington is not your "normal" town. So saying it is returning to "normal" can be somewhat of an oxymoron, as it is hard to tell what "normal" is.

As the last couple of weeks have demonstrated, Killington is a great little town smack dab in the middle of Vermont. The small businesses that operate in the community, their hard working free spirited employees who call Killington home, the retired population, the self employed who do not work for the Resort or local businesses, and the Resort itself, are all fiercely independent and brimming with ideas. Many times those ideas clash, as the recent spat of political differences around town highlighted. But when everyone gets on the same page, mountains can quite literally be moved as we have seen these last 2 weeks.

Visually, Killington is rapidly returning to "normal". Summer flowers are in full bloom, becoming almost perky in response to the cooler temperatures we have had the last couple of evenings. Fall colors are starting to show, revealing beautiful scene after beautiful scene around ever bend on every road. Speaking of roads, as they are quite empty if cars, they are being repaired at a rapid pace. Wildlife in town might be defined by the Orange Day Glow Safety cone for a while, but it is amazing what some dirt, hardpack, and a little sweat equity can do to make life "normal".

In a few weeks, when visitors rediscover that Killington is a great place to visit to view fall foliage colors in Vermont, and in a few months when the snow flies and the ski season begins, in a little as 8 weeks by the way, then the transition to "normal" will be complete.

In the mean time, Mary and I are enjoying our walks, taking in the flowers and the mountains, and getting back to "normal" after an "interesting" couple of weeks.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway, watch for changing colors in the leaves, and stay on the road side of the Orange Day Glow cones!