For the next four days I’ll be on an “Inn-to-Inn” walking tour offered by a group of B&Bs in southern Vermont. I’m always on the look-out for “Camino-like” hikes in the US, and while this is more upscale than the Camino, it offers the chance to walk in interesting countrysides and towns with some other hikers, just like the Camino.

Shirley and our friend, Mary Gohsman, are also on the trip. During the day, while I’m walking, they plan on doing some fun activities like horseback riding. They may walk some of the route too.

Each night we’ll stay at a different B&B. They’ll provide breakfast, snacks for the trail, and dinner. They also plan out the route, carry gear to the next Inn, and drive hikers to the trailhead when it’s necessary. The longest hike will be about 13 miles. Hikes will generally be on country dirt roads and village sidewalks. By all accounts, it’s a very hilly route.

This will be nice training for another European Camino I’ll be doing later in the summer. More in August about that.

If you would like to know more about this Vermont Inn-to-Inn tour, you can check-out their web site here.

Day Minus 1 – Manchester, New Hampshire

After arriving in Boston yesterday, we spent last night in Manchester, New Hampshire. We stopped there intentionally to visit Annie Speranza, Abbey’s college roommate (and our unofficial second daughter). We had a wonderful dinner with Annie and her boyfriend Kobe. It was a lovely way to start our vacation.

Day 0 – The Golden Stage Inn

Today, we drove from Manchester to Proctorsville, Vermont, where we are staying at our first Inn, The Golden Stage Inn. This inn dates back to 1788 when it was a stagecoach stop. We had a nice home-made dinner and we met the hikers that will be joining me for the next four days. We’ll start walking tomorrow after a good breakfast. Our route is essentially a circle, so we’ll end up back here again in four days.

Since we had some extra time today, we did some sightseeing. First, we toured the Shaker Village in Enfield, then we walked the streets of Woodstock (a quintessential New England village).

Tomorrow the hiking begins.