FIELD NOTES #3

SMUGGLERS NOTCH,

VERMONT

A long shot that paid off

Dates

Jun 29 – Jul 6, 2026

Miles to camp

179

Weather

78-95

Sunny w/ Storms

Symptom Score

11

(baseline: 23)

WOuld we return

Yes

Where We Stayed

Smugglers Notch RV Village – Jeffersonville, VT

  • Easy to back into full hookup site
  • Campground is clean, and it looks like brand new
  • Host and owner are great. We received a bunch of helpful emails that helped us to navigate swimming holes, hikes and bike rides like locals
  • Very close to so much to do. Swimming holes just a few minutes down the road, Mt. Mansfield and all it has to offer is just 10 minutes away
  • For kids there isn’t a ton to do, no playgrounds or “dedicated kid spaces”, but there is some woods and frisbee golf
Overall Rating

How I Felt

During our stay my average score was 11, which is a huge reduction from our time in Montague, should this continue it would be a huge positive development.

What We Did

We were able to pack a ton of exploring into our time in the Smugglers Notch area. No doubt about it the boys favorite part of this area was the diverse and numerous opportunities to go swimming. They loved that we have at least a dozen different swimming holes that had everything from shallow fast moving water with waterfalls you could use as slides to peaceful reservoirs hidden just a short hike away.

Meg and I (and the boys once they got into it) really enjoyed all the hikes going up Mount Mansfield. Our favorite was the Sterling Pond Trail and Spruce Peak (combined together for a technically challenging 2 mile hike). The trail was fun with lots of rocks and streams to scramble up until you reached Spruce peak. Sterling pond gave the boys a great place to take a swim halfway down the trail on the way back.

Our big adventure day was to ride the Stowe Gondola up Mansfield Mountain and then hike the final mile or so to the very peak which is the tallest point in Vermont at over 4,300ft. It was a VERY challenging climb, but Finn and Gabe were excellent billy goats and traversed the rocky terrain with ease.

We also caught the local 4th of July parade in Jeffersonville, which was a much larger celebration than we anticipated and completely restocked the boys candy reserves (much to their delight).

Our Favorite Moment

A late afternoon hike up past Sterling Pond to catch the view and a quick dip in a mountain pond.

Observations

  • Very limited sub-canopy
  • Very few White Pine and Red Pine
  • Fast draining rocky soil
  • Limited fields, weeds and grasses
  • Less leaf decay than Michigan
  • Frequent wind
  • Not close to industry pollution
  • Lots of mature variety
  • Some farm fields
  • Higher AQI and PM2.5
  • Hard to find houses
  • Limited availability to services

The Journey Continues

We are visiting 45 campgrounds in 300 days to find a place where our family thrives and my symptoms improve. Follow along as we share what we learn along the way

Graham Simplified

Scorecard

  • Symptom Relief

8 / 10

  • Access To Necessities

6 / 10

  • Livability

8 / 10

  • Activities/Sights

9 / 10

  • Food

8 / 10

  • Cost

8 / 10

  • Come Again?

For Sure

Overall

8

/ 10
  • Quick Insights
  • This was EXTREMELY encouraging. Feeling better in Vermont was a long shot and so far it is paying off. Vermont is not too dissimilar to a lot of areas in the USA.
  • It feels like we are hitting our stride and becoming true “campers”. The changes that felt drastic are starting to be embraced and we are feeling like the camper is home no matter where it is.
  • Cooking remains a challenge, we are going to have to start finding new things to make even with limited refrigeration and space.
  • Remi proved to be an awesome hiking dog, our timid, easily frightened pup is rocking long, grueling and technically challenging hikes.
  • Our storage and space setups seem to be holding up to the challenges, but they will be tested more when homeschooling starts.
  • Could We Live Here?
  • There is so much to love outdoors in this area. It was so easy to get away to a beautiful view, awesome swimming spot, challenging hike or scenic bike trail.
  • People were very kind, welcoming and it wasn’t too busy like other outdoor-focused destinations.
  • I saw amazing symptom improvement compared to what we expected. By the last day we stayed I was already able to run around with the kids, no longer felt cold on my skin or any joint pain. I was running, lifting and living closer to how I used to.
  • The environment was noticeably different than Michigan. High rocky ground, no canopy, less rotting leaves, very few white and red pine, very few meadows, fields and marshes.
  • It snows a lot here (over 30ft seasonally), much like Michigan’s U.P. There is lots of winter activities but it could be rough
  • It is 45 minutes to the nearest major city (Burlington) and it has limited services compared to Grand Rapids
  • Next Stop

Next we are headed to:

Woodbury, Vermont

This will be a test to see if low-lying Vermont with marshes and grass-lands still works for me.

Related Reflections

  • Field Notes #9 – Rockport Maine

    Bygrahamcr.gvsu@gmail.com

    The boys and I started our week in the Rockport/Rockland/Camden area with a hike up Mount Battie in the Camden State Park. The climb was short, rock, steep and technical – just how the boys like it. At the top we were rewarded with a great view of the ocean and an opportunity to climb the WW1 monument tower which sits on top of the mountain.

  • Field Notes #8: Part 1 – Southwest Harbor, ME

    Bygrahamcr.gvsu@gmail.com

    This leg of the journey was supposed to be our “vacation time.” No homeschool for the kids, just a chance to enjoy everything Acadia National Park and Mount Desert Island have to offer.

    It started great. We spent lots of time exploring tide pools, found several new hikes, and after even more repairs (this time replacing the bike’s shifter cable), we were finally able to get some bike rides in as well.

  • Field Notes #7 – Unplanned Stop

    Bygrahamcr.gvsu@gmail.com

    For those of you who have been following along with our journey across the United States to find a location where my MCAS symptoms are better, you might notice that this post looks a bit different than the previous ones. This was on purpose, because we didn’t plan on making this stop. Our truck decided to.

    We were planning to spend the morning driving through New Hampshire’s White Mountains before continuing east into Maine—a drive of about five and a half hours to Sebasticook Lake Campground. We were going to stay there for a couple of days while Meg had important meetings and then continue on to Southwest Harbor, Maine. Once again…our truck had other plans.

  • Field Notes #6 – Goshen, NH

    Bygrahamcr.gvsu@gmail.com

    We didn’t do as much while camping in Goshen due a lot to the three days of storms and because we had already been here for almost three weeks. We spent a lot of time enjoying the beautiful campground beach and Rand’s Pond. We got the boys each a tube, which they had a blast using in the pond and to get out to the floating dive platform.

    We did sneak a few hikes in between the rain and homeschool time. We hiked the Sawyer Trail (which a name like Sawyer how could we not!!) which was an easy 1 mile hike through a mature forest. One morning we also to the short drive to the Ruth LeClair Memorial Trail, which is a 3 mile hike around a beautiful man-made lake.

  • Field Notes #5 – Newport, NH

    Bygrahamcr.gvsu@gmail.com

    We didn’t struggle to find things to do in the Sunapee Lake area. We managed to find everything from full day trips to the Quechee Gorge area to nice evenings out picking blueberries at a U-pick farm down the road.

    Probably our most eventual day was a trip to the Quechee Gorge hike, the amazing Vermont Institute of Natural Sciences (VIMS) Raptor Center and the King Arthur Bakery, Café, Store & School. It was incredible how well the Raptor Center at VIMS held the boys attention.

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