Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
both sides of the gorge's rim. Or to sample the area on foot, you can follow one of several
hiking trails—some lead all the way down to the river.
Did you know…
In1981glassblowerSimonPearcemovedhisworkshopfromKilkenny,Ireland,
to a historic woolen mill in Quechee. The mill, which now includes the popular
Glassblower Café, relies solely on the Ottauquechee River to power its entire
facility and its furnaces.
2.
Sharon
The bends and straightaways of the White River guide Rte. 14 north to Sharon. While
lovely hilltop churches are signature sights in New England, a religious landmark of a dif-
ferentsortliesjustafewmilesnorthoftown:theboyhoodhomeofJosephSmith,whowas
born in 1805 and later founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A steep,
tree-lined turnoff leads to his family's farm, which today has been designated a Mormon
shrinecompletewithamuseumandagranitememorialdedicatedtoSmith.Thesite'sfields
and forests, about 360 acres in all, are a walker's delight.
3.
Strafford
The drive switches onto Rte. 132, veering northeastward through a pocket of Vermont that
has largely escaped the modern world. A patchwork of rustic villages, dairy farms, clap-
boarddwellings, andmeadows grazed byMorganhorses fills the valleys between the hills.
The West Branch of the Ompompanoosuc River, a gentle waterway, runs beside the road.
Scan the horizon where the views open up at higher elevations: the White Mountains crest
in the east; the Green Mountains lie in a more rounded profile to the west.
Well-keptwhitehousesgracethepeacefulsmalltownofStrafford.Onestandouthereis
theimpressivepinkmansion,aVermont-ownedhistoricsitethatwastheresidenceofJustin
Smith Morrill, a three-term U.S. congressman and longtime senator. Though fond of his
estate, he represented Vermont in national politics for so long—more than 40 years—that
much ofhistime wasspent inWashington, D.C.Oneofhisproudest achievements wasthe
1862 Morrill Act, which granted the states federal lands in order to finance the establish-
ment of colleges.
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