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Brisk winds and choppy water couldn’t stop scores of runners, walkers and bikers from crossing a 200-foot gap in the Colchester Causeway — all without getting their feet wet. An impressive trick, for even the fittest of the bunch. Of course, they had a little help in the form of their friendly neighborhood Bike Ferry. I rejected both bike and running shoes and walked to the causeway, a trip long enough to turn my “farmer’s tan” from bad to worse.... Read more

The sound of a jackhammer startled Linda Fitch on her Isle La Motte farm one summer evening in 1995. It wasn't just the racket that unsettled her - it was the realization that someone was breaking up rocks at an adjoining, long-abandoned quarry that happens to be one of the most important coral fossil sites in the world.... Read more

Remember when Ben & Jerry's was considered Vermont ice cream? A lot has changed since the company's 2000 sale to multinational Unilever. A new generation of über-local, premium ice cream makers now shares the freezer shelves with the corporation that produces Chunky Monkey and Phish Food. The two biggest natural-food stores in Chittenden County -- City Market and Healthy Living -- carry a combined total of four Green Mountain brands, from Leonardo's Italian and Blue Moon sorbets to Wilcox Dairy and Strafford Organic ice cream.... Read more

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Swanton, Vermont, is dairy country. Travel down Swanton's Middle Road, and you're surrounded by pasture. The driveways lead to farmhouses, barns and tall, silver silos.

But there's another kind of silo here, too. Not far from town is a long, unmarked driveway, a little wider and straighter than the others. It leads to a pair of round-roofed, metal buildings called Quonset huts, which are partly obscured by a stand of trees and surrounded by a barbed-wire fence.... Read more

This year at the Champlain Valley Fair, the Green Mountain Bonsai Society tried something different with their display. Instead of putting their tiny trees next to the giant pumpkins and heirloom tomatoes, the 60-member group placed its pots on tables inside a square area bordered by cream-colored screens. Visitors essentially had to step into a different world to see them.... Read more

Grand Isle County is probably one of the last places you'd look to find a nationally recognized escort service. That is, unless you need someone to take your aging mother to chemo treatments five times a week. The county is home to CIDER, an innovative special-needs transportation agency that's largely driven by volunteers. It's been helping seniors get around since 1993. The nonprofit also builds wheelchair ramps, delivers meals, and sponsors classes on topics such as end-of-life care.... Read more

A diamond-flecked copper and green table runner adds dazzle to your dinner party. Deep blue and gold wall hangings lend the living room a regal air. Fine handmade fabrics can play a role in altering the decor inside your home. But in the case of Creative Women, what's really changing is 6000 miles away, in Addis Ababa, where the goods are produced.... Read more