Of course some of the locals here, mostly our retired neighbors, do head south for a few weeks to months during the winter, but, honestly there are many more that stay in Stowe as the scenery and opportunity to get out and take advantage of our winter season is something most don’t want to miss out on.

Our winter so far has provided a lot of variation. From heavy early snow, allowing us to ski well before Thanksgiving, 2012, to a couple of thaws each followed by brisk cold nights/days and then a winter storm dump of 12 – 14″ of snow. One thaw that happened just before Christmas was quickly forgotten with a full blanket of fresh snow arriving on Christmas Eve! Best Christmas present we could imagine.

Stowe Mountain Resort, with the recent addition of an array of new, high tech. snow making equipment has proven that even in our typically challenging Vermont weather, with daily swings in temperatures, and sometimes questionable precipitation that they can consistently provide a first class ski/ride experience. We have skied easily a day or two each week since Thanksgiving (with some time off during our busy weeks!!) to conditions that can only be described as good, excellent and spectacular. And we look forward to skiing right up to and including Easter Sunday, 3/31.

Each year we have the opportunity to experience Easter Sunrise Service at the top of the Gondola Lift. Hopefully, the weather with provide us with a spectacular sunrise experience. Two out of the past three years it was snowing. After the service we ski down and that is typically our last run of the year. So, yes, we will certainly miss the winter and the great outdoor activities available to us but have to admit we also look forward to getting out the bicycles, dusting off the golf clubs, finding our hiking boots and planning the next garden very soon thereafter.

While there is still plenty of winter left (independent of what the groundhog says…) we suggest you check out our “Sweet Winter Deal” as described in the “View Our Current Specials” tab at the top of this page. See how you can take home a taste of Vermont for free! But hurry, you don’t want to miss winter in Vermont.

Of course if you have followed us in previous blogs you already know that we specifically selected Stowe, Vermont and the Brass Lantern Inn as our home base for this latest leg of our journey through life due in part to the distincly beautiful and wonderful four seasons of northern Vermont.

And an early arrival of snow this year allows us to enjoy some of our favorite things, such as:

flannel lined jeans, early Christmas presents in the shape of snowshoes, freshly tuned downhill skis, skiing before Thanksgiving!, sharing Christmas Cookies with our guests, chatting with our guests around the fireplace, hiking to Moss Glen Falls to see the everchanging ice sculpture by Mother Nature, hot chocolate at the “Octagon House” at the top of the quad chair (seriously, this hot chocolate alone is worth the ride up!), shoveling snow (I know, weird), skiing (or did I already say that?), helping our guests plan the “perfect play day outside”, a good book, a comfortable chaise lounge and snow falling softly just beyond our window…

These are just a few of our favorites and we are absolutely sure that we can help you discover your own favorites here at the Brass Lantern Inn as your choice of lodging in Stowe, Vermont. We invite you to see for yourself what we have found as a perfect place for the quintessential winter wonderland experience.

Don’t forget to check out the “View our Current Specials” section of this blog as we have some new early winter specials for your consideration!

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year, 2013. We’ll see you outside!

Warmest Wishes,
Mary Anne and George

We are moving quickly into our Fall Foliage Season. One of our busiest as we look forward welcoming back guests/friends as well as many new guests here to witness the amazing display of the annual turning of the leaves from green to gold, yellow and reds. The temperatures have finally begun to drop into a range expected – sunny and warm by mid-day and crisp and cool at night. No frost yet (as of 9/16/12) but we expect to see it soon. A welcome relief after an above normal temperature we experienced here in Stowe,
Vermont this summer.

There is already some chatter in town regarding predictions of how much snow will we see this winter! Various images of extended forecast weather maps on the internet have begun to circulate on Facebook and through the local e-mails and my favorite one shows two divergent jet streams coming together in southern New England with a bubble of “above normal snow” centered right smack dab over Vermont. Ok, I did not get the full source of this particular weather map but we certainly hope this prediction comes true.

Stowe Mountain Resort typically works towards a Thanksgiving Weekend opening! The countdown to skiing and all of our great winter activities has definitely begun here in Stowe, Vermont.

And as we look ahead to the Thanksgiving Season we realize the blessing and good fortune we have found here in Stowe as the latest Innkeepers/Stewards of the Brass Lantern Inn. December 16th will mark only the 3rd Anniversary of when we took ownership. In that relatively short time we have hosted guests from 39 of our United States and 24 countries. Sharing life stories with so many guests from around the world is truly the greatest perk of this “job.”

To let our past guests and potential guests know of our gratefulness with this amazing lifestyle we offer you a special “Thank You Discount.” More details are on our home page under the “make a reservation.” Once on that page click on the tab, “Discounts and packages.” You can save 35% off of your third consecutive night for stays completed between 10/28 and 12/4/12. This discounted rate is on top of our already quiet season rates!

We hope to see you soon!

As of mid-May we still have a few daffodils in bloom though they are becoming increasing crowded out by our perennial favorites, bee balm, cosmos and clematis. We are working on expanding our herb garden plot on the south side of the Inn just in time to add fresh herbs to our breakfast menu. We know that in most parts south of here your flora and fauna are already in early summer mode. Here, things are just a little more delayed – kind of like fine wine!

The skis have been safely tucked away until next winter, the bike tires are now re-inflated, and the golf clubs are out again. George has been out golfing several rounds already at the Stowe Country Club and can tell you that the greens are running fast and true, the fairways are firming up and the views from all over the course are still amazing. And don’t forget about the great hiking near the Brass Lantern Inn.

If you have never been to Vermont or never during this time of year consider our special “Spring into Summer Mid-Week Special” as our personal invitation to the Brass Lantern Inn:

Special Discount for all reservations made by Friday, June 14th, 2012 – Good for phone-in reservations AND online reservations from our reservations page!

Stay two nights between Sunday and Wednesday and receive a discount of 35% off of your third consecutive night stay. This offer is valid from May 6th through June 28th, 2012.

With this great offer you receive all of our exceptional amenities and services here at the Brass Lantern Inn including:
• Full “Vermont Fresh” Breakfast each morning
• Afternoon cookies and tea/lemonade enjoyed on our back porch or patio with spectacular views of Mt. Mansfield
• Indulge in our outdoor hot tub also with those views of Mt. Mansfield
• Free WiFi throughout the Inn

So, what are you waiting for…? Please feel free to call us or complete your reservation online. For online reservations go to our “reservation page” and click on “packages” and locate the “Spring into Summer Mid-Week Special.”We look forward to welcoming you to the beautiful Green Mountain State of Vermont!

This offer can not be combined with any previous or current offers/discounts and is not valid for stays in the Sugarloaf Mountain or Roundtop Mountain Rooms. No black out dates within the time period listed above, however, offer is pending availability.

Stick season allows me to jump on my bike for a brisk ride on our paved Rec. Path without the need to constantly call out, “on your left” as we do in the summer and fall (and hope those ahead of me a., hear it and b., understand that statement) and now experience this ride as if I were on my personal trail. The cool crisp air as I ride along the trail certainly gives me pause to consider how many more trips I can get in before this trail becomes a cross-country ski trail? And then, when I get a glimpse of the mountain and see the upper ski trails coated with the first layers of snow (both natural and with a little help from the snow guns) I know it will just be a matter of weeks till I am gliding down those trails on skis. Winter, bring it on, please.

Our hiking trails in Stick Season yield views and vistas previously shrouded by our dense forest of trees. The openness of the forest may also provide you with a glimpse of deer, moose or even a bear, though most likely those bears are beginning to settle in somewhere deep in the forest for their long hibernation. And I am thinking, why would I want to hibernate when one of the best seasons of the year is about to begin? Yes, winter.

At this time of year it is definitely easier to find a table at one of our amazing restaurants and the slower pace gives us the opportunity to catch up on the latest local news with our restaurant owner friends. The town and businesses are busily preparing for the holiday season, pulling out the Christmas lights, ordering the garland and wreaths and even, in my case, putting a fresh coat of paint on the front door (lots of traffic through that door this year and the door was starting to show some wear and tear).

The firewood is all stacked, and the first fire in the main living room fireplace has been set. Guests are now happily congregating around the hearth with a glass of wine, some Cabot Cheese and crackers and enjoying the opportunity to share stories with other guests and with us Innkeepers.

So, the nesting instinct is in full swing here in Stowe, Vermont and we would be happy to share this quiet time with you. And, if you have managed to get all the way to this point in this lengthy blog, we offer you a deal as a reward – take 10% off any room any night. This discount on top of our already discounted quiet season rates, is based on a two night minimum stay and valid until Thursday, Dec. 14, 2011. This special offer is good only for phone reservations directly with us and other restrictions may apply. Call us to confirm availability and don’t forget to tell us you read this in our blog!

Happy Stick Season!

Stowe seemed to be an oasis as less than 15 miles to the south, our neighbors in Waterbury suffered significant damage to homes, public infrastructures, and businesses. All the while, Stowe appears to have survived the storm relatively unscathed.

In Waterbury, one of our favorite restaurants, The Alchemist, is reported to be a total loss and has closed indefinitely. We know how well liked this restaurant was so we know that they will return. It will just take time and unfortunately a lot of hard work on the part of the owners to bring this great restaurant back to this great community.

While The Alchemist has had to close, other favorite Waterbury restaurants of ours such as Hen of the Wood, have been fortunately spared any significant damage. We had dinner at Hen of the Wood last night and had a wonderful evening.

We want to help our neighbors in Waterbury. There are a couple of immediate things we can and will be doing:

1. Support those businesses that are still open. While it is tragic for the loss of business for those who were flooded out, there are other businesses, especially restaurants, that still want to pay their staff and serve wonderful dinners. If we stop patronizing those who remain open the devastation to the business community expands.
2. We will be donating 5% of our gross revenues for all room sales from Sept. 1 through Sept. 15 to the United Way managed Vermont Disaster Relief Fund, www.vermont211.org, and we encourage other business owners in Stowe to join us with similar offers and efforts.

We know how fortunate we are here in Stowe when we see and read the reports of such significant losses in areas as close to us as Waterbury. We wish we could do even more as we know our neighbors in Waterbury, Morrisville, Jeffersonville, Hardwick and others would do what they could for us if the situation was reversed. Our prayers and thoughts are with all of our Vermont Neighbors during this time of clean up and re-build.

The Green Mountain State of Vermont is overall in great shape. While there are some tragic conditions spread throughout the state (mostly in southern Vermont) we feel like we live in an oasis here in Stowe, Vermont. The extent of our damage at the Brass Lantern Inn – 1. One sunflower blown over – restaked with a bamboo pole left over in the garage and now the sunflower seems happy to be facing the sun again, 2. One wall planter/container blown off the wall and cracked, decided, or rather rationalized, that the new crack “adds some character to the container” so now back on the wall, 3. Small puddle of water inside the doorway to hot tub deck (door faces the typical wind direction), shop vacuum and dehumidifier and the situation is resolved. That is the full extent of the damage. Thank goodness and this rain helps keep our valleys and mountains green.

We very much appreciate the thoughts, concerns and prayers of many of our past guests and those yet to come. We know we “dodged a bullet” and want you all to know that we are ok, especially for our guests that are planning to be here in the next month or so and especially for our Signature Fall Foliage Season guests.

Please feel free to contact us if you still have questions, concerns or stories of how you survived Irene. We would love to post the stories on our Brass Lantern Inn Facebook page.

By the way, become a Friend of ours on Facebook, and drop us a comment on our Brass Lantern Inn Facebook Page regarding how you survived Irene OR something special regarding your own hometown and we will give you a 12% discount on a two night or more stay (offer expires 12/31, discount applies to all rooms except Roundtop Mtn. and Sugarloaf Mtn., not valid during holidays, special events or Fall Foliage). And of course in true Facebook fashion if you let your Friends know about this deal, everyone wins!

Thanks again everyone for your concerns. Beautiful day here, think I will go golfing.

There are a few general questions we typically hear from our guests and one that will instantly bring a smile to our face is, “So, are you semi-retired?” While it is certainly and most likely a popular belief that most B&B Innkeepers are semi-retired, the truth is that this Innkeeping gig is definitely not the lifestyle of the Gentle Farmer. Honestly, it is my hope that my semi-retirement includes a bit less work (especially paperwork) than what we currently accept as part of the deal to maintain this wonderful lifestyle.

And “work” has an entirely different meaning in this “Chapter 2” phase of our lives. In my corporate days I didn’t necessarily perceive a time clock but I did have a clear sense of work time and non work time. Sunday evenings in particular were dreadful to me as my head began to think about the meetings and pending deadlines of the coming work week. Now, I get so absorbed in the everday life and process of operating this Inn that I find myself looking at the newspapers in the living room to confirm the day of the week, seriously. I think that is pretty cool. The trade off; as it has become obvious to us in our short tenure as Innkeepers, there is a profound sense of realization that there just isn’t enough time in the day to do everything you want to do. But, truthfully, isn’t that the same for most of us anyway? And all things considered I am happy to be filling my days as an Innkeeper than anything else I can dream up.

So, in my semi-retirement life plan, I would be hiking more trails, hitting more golf balls, tacking and jibbing more on my sailboat “Oh Chessie” on Lake Champlain, bicycling many more miles through our beautiful valleys of cornfield and dairy cows, skiing trails such as Nosedive and Perry Merrill at Stowe Mountain on a much more frequent basis, and snowshoeing and/or x-country skiing along the Catamount Trail right after that perfect snowfall. Essentially, semi-retirement would appear to allow me the opportunity to become completely and totally absorbed in this amazing landscape of Stowe, Vermont.

Hmmmm, semi-retirement would be a great thing here in Stowe.

With a generous glass (or two…) of Chardonnay, some Extra Sharp Cheddar Cabot Cheese, French bread with a little prosciutto, live music, in this case, from “Crooked Still” (folk/bluegrass “with a contemporary twist”) and wonderful weather, I found myself absorbed with the ever changing natural light of the background scenery and keeping only an ear on the great music.  It is amazing how quickly and dramatically the light changes the sense of depth and scale of the Sterling Mountain Range.  As any amateur photographer can easily attest, it is impossible to capture that sense with a photograph, no matter how fancy of a camera you may or may not have. Ok, and maybe that glass of Chardonnay had some effect as well…

At this concert we shared the evening with some good friends that happen to also be Innkeepers in this small New England town.  Like most people, our community of friends and neighbors  is also closely tied with our type of business and profession which in our current station in life happens to be Innkeeping.  We all have a feeling of deep appreciation for where we live and the opportunities we have at this point in our lives to participate in this lifestyle.

Last night, the sunset from our back porch was as dramatic as last night but without the live music.  Instead, we shared that moment of the sun slipping behind “the slumbering man” (Mt. Mansfield) with some wonderful guests from Boston as they played a rousing game of scrabble on a blanket stretched out on the floor.  The sun going down behind Mt. Mansfield, highlighted by streams of light through the distant thunderhead clouds, again memorable, but so very difficult to fully capture or permanently record.  Good thing we can see this event repeated many times over in a typical summer! 

Summer in Stowe, Vermont, filled with great memories….  Why not come on up to Stowe and create your own here at the Brass Lantern Inn?

As with any business, profession or vocation that you love, you should find it easy to literally pour yourself into the day to day operations and to a great extent, blissfully lose track of time. It is very easy to do, I know from personal experience now as an Innkeeper!

So, here is how we insert some Vermont time into our day with some of our/my favorite Outdoor Pursuits -

Bicycling – the Rec. Path is just a 1/4 mile away and provides a wonderful lunch hour break. The trail is 5.5 miles one way and typically I can make that roundtrip of 11 miles or so well under an hour, unless of course I stop to take photos and get distracted by the ever changing scenery along the Path.

Hiking – there are several short hikes within minutes of our Inn – Moss Glen Falls is one of our favorites and an easy one to slip out of the Inn and enjoy.

Golf – unbelievably beautiful vistas from every hole of the Stowe Country Club. The SCC is not a fussy, high brow kind of place but one where I am likely to see a neighbor a fellow Rotarian, our own guests or get partnered with a tourist and have a great time and a good conversation over a Trapp Lager at the 19th hole. It feels more like a club that happens to be in in the country.

Sailing – ok, I have to admit, I do miss the Chesapeake Bay (our former home of 20+ years). Stowe, VT is a heck of a long way from our other favorite town, Oxford, Maryland, where we used to spend some great family time in the summer sailing our 19′ Mariner. “Oh Chessie,” though most would consider as a small sailboat (at least by Chesapeake Bay standards), is still a bit big for most of the bodies of water near us. While Lake Champlain is really only about 50 mins. away, typically it is difficult to fit this into the time schedule of a Innkeepers life. And Lake Memphramagog is just 60 mins. north along the border with Canada, that too is even more difficult to squeeze in.

As most of us inherently know, of all of thie “things” we can possess, time is probably the most precious (though I guess one could argue or question whether or not you can actually possess time). We typically do not know how much time is left in our personal account and unless you have “hit the lottery” or “have other means” we all of course have to “make a living” and consequently have to strike some realistic balance in our pursuit of happiness and surviving.

That is why it is so critically clear to this dreamer, now Innkeeper, that prior to creating this Chapter 2 in my/our life I had better find a balance in my life for the things “I have to do” and the things I truly “want to do.” And if you are really lucky, as I believe I am, by witness of being here in Stowe, Vermont, you find a way to do both. I am still challenged with that pursuit to find that balance each and every day and can’t imagine it any other way.

We look forward to helping you find your passion or perhaps retreat here in Stowe and hope you feel comfortable while here to share your Stowe experiences with us on the back porch at the end of the day. Happy Trails All. George