Retreat Farm, Brattleboro, a true VT gem and great hiking trails! 8/28/22
Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2022 6:03 pm
Hello SOVTers, what a great way to end a beautiful summer weekend, than a last minute trip to southern VT! I referenced this trip today in my “I'm craving cider donuts!” post so I wanted to share my findings and joy of this lovely place right on route 30 in back of Grafton Cheese.
I have had this gem on my radar for so many years and always passed it in a blink of an eye on my way to places north. Not today! So on a spur of the moment, we headed up 91 and, to my delight, I instantly fell in love with all the old barns, silos and out buildings of the farm. This place has a great history as well. I feel that they hit the nail on the head with their mission statements. So I'll include parts of what I found on their brochure.
“Retreat Farm is a public common where everyone can connect to the land and one another. The Farm's fields, forests, waters, and all that they contain sustain and inspire us.”
From brochure:
“Located on traditional Abenaki homelands, this 19th century farm was established to provide food and therapy for patients at the nearby Brattleboro Retreat. The Retreat Trails wind through land stewarded by the Brattleboro Retreat and Retreat Farm.”
I'll include a couple of links but their trail system is wonderful and great for kids. We did the Nature Trail only because of limited time since we started out so late. We met a cow, donkey and goats. So fun! I don't know where the piggies were but I think a trail is named after them! We passed beautiful meadows and the signage is top notch. If the water levels were not so low, there are opportunities to cross small bridges over streams. Lots of picnic spots! I do know I will be back to explore more of their property in the near future.
You can visit Grafton Cheese before or after as well.
https://www.retreatfarm.org/
https://www.retreatfarm.org/trails-waters
Excellent trail map below:
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/ ... ap_Web.pdf
https://www.retreatfarm.org/vision
I have had this gem on my radar for so many years and always passed it in a blink of an eye on my way to places north. Not today! So on a spur of the moment, we headed up 91 and, to my delight, I instantly fell in love with all the old barns, silos and out buildings of the farm. This place has a great history as well. I feel that they hit the nail on the head with their mission statements. So I'll include parts of what I found on their brochure.
“Retreat Farm is a public common where everyone can connect to the land and one another. The Farm's fields, forests, waters, and all that they contain sustain and inspire us.”
From brochure:
“Located on traditional Abenaki homelands, this 19th century farm was established to provide food and therapy for patients at the nearby Brattleboro Retreat. The Retreat Trails wind through land stewarded by the Brattleboro Retreat and Retreat Farm.”
I'll include a couple of links but their trail system is wonderful and great for kids. We did the Nature Trail only because of limited time since we started out so late. We met a cow, donkey and goats. So fun! I don't know where the piggies were but I think a trail is named after them! We passed beautiful meadows and the signage is top notch. If the water levels were not so low, there are opportunities to cross small bridges over streams. Lots of picnic spots! I do know I will be back to explore more of their property in the near future.
You can visit Grafton Cheese before or after as well.
https://www.retreatfarm.org/
https://www.retreatfarm.org/trails-waters
Excellent trail map below:
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/ ... ap_Web.pdf
https://www.retreatfarm.org/vision