5th Annual

Vermont Lakes Region Cycling Weekend

Saturday, August 2 and Sunday, Sunday August 3, 2008

The Vermont Lakes Region

Local cyclists think of the Lakes Region as a slice of cycling heaven.  It is a quiet section of a rural state crisscrossed by a good network of roads meandering through picturesque villages and scenic countryside.  We are sure you will find the area as beautiful and friendly as we do.

Photo by C. Helfer

Poultney, a small community of 3,600 residents, is nestled along Vermont’s western border in the heart of the Lakes Region and the Slate Valley.  It sits in a valley west of Vermont’s Taconic Mountains and east of New York’s Adirondack Mountains.  Four lakes are nearby:  Lake Saint Catherine, Lake Bomoseen, Glen Lake and Lake Champlain.  Slate quarries dot the valley and have long provided a base of steady employment for local residents.

The town of Poultney was chartered in 1761 and encompasses the villages of Poultney and East Poultney with its beautiful green.  Both villages are on the National Historic Registry.  Poultney is the site of the first Union Church in America and was the birthplace of George Jones, the founder of the New York Times.  It was where Horace Greeley learned the printing trade and is the home of Green Mountain College.  You can learn more about Poultney at www.poultneyvt.com.

Just north of Poultney sit the villages of Fair Haven with its grand mansions around the town green and Castleton with its beautiful colonial buildings lining the main street.  Nearby are Hubbardton Battlefield, the site of a Revolutionary War battle, and Ascension Rock where believers awaited the end of the world in 1844.

Photo by E. Duling

“I’ve never cycled by so many cow pastures in my life”

              A past participant