Vermont Route 100

Route description

Burlington sits on the shore of Lake Champlain, with the pedestrian Church Street Marketplace and a bike path along the water. Head east on I-89 or US-2 to Waterbury, and then north on VT-100 to Stowe, a village with a white church spire at the foot of Mount Mansfield, Vermont’s highest peak. The toll road to the summit ridge and the gondola offer wide views in summer and fall.

Above Stowe, VT-108 climbs through the narrow, twisting Smugglers’ Notch between huge boulders; it is closed in winter and not suitable for motorhomes or trailers. Back on VT-100, the road runs south through the Mad River Valley at Waitsfield and Warren, past farm stands, covered bridges and the steep pass of Granville Gulf. Near Killington, turn east on US-4.

Woodstock is one of Vermont’s best-kept villages, with a green, a covered bridge in the center and the working farm museum at Billings Farm. A few miles east on US-4, the road crosses Quechee Gorge, where you can look down from the bridge or follow a short trail to the bottom of the 165-foot gorge.

Fall color usually peaks from late September to mid-October, and campgrounds and inns are full, so book well in advance. Many back roads are unpaved and turn muddy in April’s mud season. Watch for frost heaves on the pavement, and for moose at dusk.