Stride Americana: The Hills are Alive for Hike #7 at the von Trapp Family Lodge & Resort. And also, COOS!

A dozen highland cows grazing in a Green Mountain meadow, a Robert Frost poem in the woods, and pretzels that stole the show. Hike #7 had a little bit of everything.

Members of von Trapp’s beautiful herd of Highland cows

We sipped our coffees, quietly reading our books and occasionally whispering to each other to avoid waking the others still sleeping in the house. On the first full day of our Vermont trip we were treated to the refreshing mountain air, with puffy clouds dotting the sky, no humidity, and a slight breeze. I love the adventure of travel, but peaceful mornings in bucolic settings like this are what make it a true vacation.

Eventually everyone in the house began to stir, and over breakfast the adults made our plans for the day. Knowing there was an impending heat wave and rainstorms, we easily agreed that getting out on the trails on day one to take advantage of this delightful weather was a must. We decided upon von Trapp Family Lodge and Resort since it would give us a wide range of outdoor activities to allow us to enjoy the day.

One of those activities is a visit with their herd of highland cows (or “coos” as they’re called in Scotland). Those fluffy guys with their emo hairstyles are my absolute favorites. Both of my daily tea mugs (one for the office, one for home) feature coos, and I have an irrational dream of moving to the UK and opening a coo-themed bed and breakfast, modeled after our beloved Fat Sheep Farm in Vermont.

As we pulled up to the Outdoor Center, I could easily see why the Trapp Family Singers (of the real von Trapp family of Sound of Music Fame) chose this spot to settle in 1942 amidst their worldwide tours. This region reminded them of their beloved Austrian Alps, which led to the choice to plant roots and eventually build a thriving, multi-generational family business.

We stepped into the Outdoor Center/Gift Shop to get our bearings and a resort map and were immediately greeted by a large display of maple goods. Perusing a little further we found an abundance of von Trapp family merchandise and an extensive selection of highland cow plushies. Before we shopped though, we were on a mission.

“Point us to the cows!” we said. And the clerk happily started sharing her wealth of knowledge of the unofficial resort mascots. Including when she directed us to look for Ricky the bull, who had recently sired 40 calves. “He’s been busy this year!” she exclaimed, as we stifled our laughter to appear the mature ones around our children.

Before we left in search of the cows though we needed to make one quick purchase. Sam asked for the hackey sack he had been carrying around since we entered the store, and we gladly agreed knowing it would provide another way of keeping the kids active and occupied if they got restless on the trail. Turned out to be a great call.

We ventured off towards the pastures, through a small wood before emerging on the other side to the most amazing sight. Roughly a dozen cows, grazing in the meadow just feet from us, surrounded by the Green Mountains. I was in heaven.

All of them were munching hungrily on the grass, the “crunch crunch” audible as we all approached quietly to not disturb their meal. Some were right up close to the fence, while others gathered in a cluster along the tree line. That’s where we spotted what we believe to be Ricky, following closely behind one of the other cows looking ready to go for calf 41.

We finally tore ourselves away from the beautiful beasts, and admittedly I was the last to trail along reluctantly behind the others. I caught up as discussion was underway to settle on the Sugar Road Trail for what would end up being The Family Stride’s hike #7, consisting of a fairly flat ~2-mile loop through the woods. Before we hit the trail though we made a quick detour to the gardens.

We all split up for a moment as we explored the twisting paths. I'm not sure what the rest of the group was doing, because for the few moments when Steve and I settled onto the bench overlooking the mountains, no one else existed.

We migrated to the bench in the background right after this picture.

Eventually we returned to the group and said a quick hello to the toads on the lily pads in the nearby pond. Or maybe they were frogs. I’m actually not sure how to tell the difference.

We all made our way to the trailhead, and just a short way in we came up on a few fun surprises.

We took Sugar Road out and Fox Track back

One last vista shot before heading into the woods for a bit

The trails were well-marked and easy to follow.

The first was a set of fitness bars, first pullup and then parallel bars. The kids and some parents gave it a try, including the 5-year-old who proudly scored the highest number of pullups (with a little help from Dad).

Next, we spotted a plaque with Robert Frost’s poem, “The Birthplace,” seemingly describing the very spot where we stood, where nature had grown over a small stone foundation of some sort.

Mental note 💡 plan a trip focused on literary sites throughout New England

Finally, we came upon a little grove of hammocks, which were oh-so-tempting but oh-so-soaking wet. Oh well, had to skip that one.

We wrapped up the trail, with the hackey sack providing entertainment in the down moments. Win.

We chilled on a bench together for a bit

We had all worked up an appetite, and the thought of pretzels and beer cheese at an Austrian-inspired brewery sounded like perfection. And I was right. Their von Trapp Pretzels with Mount Mansfield Half Pipe beer and four runner cheese dip at von Trapp Brewing was incredible. I’m not really sure about anything else at the table. That stole the show in my memory.

I do remember though how impressive the bierhall was, with its natural wood beams holding the brewery’s multiple award banners. Towering floor to ceiling windows exposed the stunning view around us. After lunch and a necessary AC cooldown we went back outside for fresh air and an impromptu group lesson in disc golf.

von Trapp, like many breweries these days, is also home to a disc golf course which tees off at the bierhall. There’s a practice basket off to the side, which the kids quickly claimed after we retrieved the discs stored in our trunk (+1 new von Trapp branded disc just purchased as a souvenir).

The beautiful biergarten at von Trapp Brewing

Disc golf wasn’t a very familiar sport to the other kids in our travel crew, so Sam gladly provided a lesson to his friends and the additional child who had at some point joined their little party. We watched from a distance as they all quickly caught on and cheered for each other every time the disc made its way into the basket.

It wasn’t easy to step away from all of this, but we knew we had an amazing property waiting for us back at home that we had only just begun to take advantage of. There was another beautiful day in the forecast for tomorrow, and our next adventure would take us to a rustic swimming hole that would give the kids’ imaginations plenty to work with. More on that is coming next.

Stride Americana: The Hills are Alive for Hike #7 at the von Trapp Family Lodge & Resort. And also, COOS!

Stride Americana: Chasing (Dog’s Head) waterfalls for hike #7.5

Stride Americana: Headed North