230 miles via US 202, MA 122, MA 2, MA 10, I-91, I-89, US 2 and US 9. Cumulative route miles: 230. Total auto miles: 250. Cumulative auto miles: 250. The extra auto miles were due to a shopping trip before leaving the cabin.
This was a trip made on a beautiful but cool Sunday in light traffic. It was a pleasant drive from start to finish. The highlights were a tour of the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream factory in Waterbury VT, a couple of hours browsing stores in downtown Burlington VT and an auto ferry to New York.
We got a late start and had to hustle to get to the Ben & Jerry’s tour for the 1:30 start (yes, you need to reserve a time to do this tour). In fact we didn’t make it on time – we arrived at the tour desk at 1:40. But we were allowed to hurry upstairs and join the group, missing only the 10-minute video. We saw the production floor, which was very small compared to the Tillamook cheese factory. But there is a second factory in NH which produces most of the B&J products so this original factory is now the public face of the corporation. It is also where new flavors are created. And where decisions about terminating flavors are made. One of the fun features of the site is a “flavor graveyard” that contains a headstone for each flavor that has been withdrawn.
We ended our tour by sharing a pint of Coffee Coffee Buzz Buzz ice cream. Delicious. That was after the free sample of Mango.
Burlington is about 30 miles from the Ben & Jerry’s factory. Because it was Sunday the traffic was light and the parking was free. We walked the entire length of the Church Street Marketplace which is about 4 blocks long. It is a first-rate people watching experience. Burlington is a funky college town. And if that was not enough there was a gay pride party in progress. If you ever get a chance to visit, do it. Great city.
The route to the ferry to New York took us past the Apple Island Resort where Jett and I spent the summer of 2016. The marina where I worked was closed – too late and too cold.
The ferry was also cold. But the sun broke through long enough to get some nice photos. This was Marlene’s first auto ferry ride.
