Weston: Vermont Country Store

After what seemed like a long drive up Route 100 without a lot of excitement, Weston was exactly what I was looking for. I had already planned to stop here to check out the Vermont Country Store, but as I explored, I found much more to see.

But let’s start in the town’s biggest tourist draw, the Vermont Country Store. It looks rather unassuming from the front (that’s it, in the picture above — the red building with the second-story porch).

I’d be willing to guess that the Vermont Country Store will be packed with customers, almost all of them tourists, no matter what time of the year you visit. But if you show up in the middle of Autumn, you won’t have much room to move, let alone shop. When you walk through the front door of the store, you’re greeted with cheese — more types of cheese than you could ever imagine. There are samples of everything, and you could easily fill up on cheese, crackers, jams and jellies, just by making several laps around the store. You will, without a doubt, buy some cheese before you leave.

Beyond the cheese section, the store goes on and on. It’s filled with unusual items you would never find at Target: housewares, clothing, tools, toys etc. Sure, it’s all made to appeal to tourists, but it’s still fun to browse.

Okay, I admit it, they had me at the cheese.

The Vermont Country Store also has a second store in Rockingham, Vermont, in case you choose to travel up I-91 instead of Route 100. You can also browse its online store, here.

The Vermont Country Store isn’t the only cheese dealer in town. Across the street, you’ll find the Vermont Cheese Emporium. I’m not certain the prices are any better there, but I did buy a hunk of smoked maple cheese from them. Later, in the security line at the airport, I learned that a block of cheese looks a lot like a block of plastic explosives, and I had to undergo extra screening. Fortunately, my cheese was not confiscated.

In fall, expect to find pumpkins lined up on the front porch of the store…

… and barrels filled with Autumn flowers lining the street.

Across Route 100 from the Vermont Country Store, I shuffled through the leaves in the town common…

… and spent a few minutes lying on a park bench, looking up, as the leaves rained down on me.

You can keep track of where the leaves have changed on Yankee Magazine’s fall foliage website. Its interactive map allows users to provide leaf reports, and submit pictures.

Before you leave Weston and continue your drive, take a quick hike up Lawrence Hill Road, and admire the Church on the Hill. It was built in 1838 by Baptists, but now serves as a non-denominational community church.

Across the street, a small dam forms a manmade waterfall…

… and behind it, a peaceful, reflective lake. The area is preserved as Cold Spring Brook Park, and you can walk across the stream and along the opposite side of the pond.

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