Our border crossing into USA was very straight forward, and did not cost us anything.We entered into Vermont, with little idea about where we were going or what we were going to do!As we drove along, I looked back at one of my old note books and found that someone we had met in Thailand was from Vermont and had suggested visiting Burlington, so this is what we did.We walked through the pedestrian Market Street, which was full of interesting little shops and cafes and had a lot of sculptures, particularly many multicoloured cows!Down the street we found a tourist stand, so picked up a few maps and leaflets and got some great advice from the man there.

We drove down to Oakledge Park, which was on Lake Champlain.It was really relaxing and pretty down there, as had been the centre of Burlington.Next we visited the Magic Hat Brewery.The guided tours were not until the afternoon, but they let us do a self tour and gave us 9 beers to sample for free.There were some very interesting peach and apple varieties, so we bought a mixed case to take with us.We decided to head towards Montpelier, to find somewhere to stay for the night, and I noticed on the map that we would be passing near to Ben and Jerry's Ice cream Factory, which offered tours and tasting.This seemed too good an opportunity to miss, so we took a slight detour to go there.The tour and tasting cost us only $3 each, and we got to try a new flavour - Mint Choc Fudge - it was great.The tour guide was a little cheesy, with lots of Mooovie jokes, but still good to see how it all started and how the ice cream is made.We then went in search of some old covered bridges, which are famous in this area.After finding a few we decided to find a motel in Montpelier for the night, where we spent the night watching TV, eating pizza and drinking the beer we bought at the brewery.

The next morning we got talking to a nice couple at breakfast, and they gave us a special Canadian Quarter coin each with a red poppy in the middle, which had been made ready for Legion members for Remembrance Day.We then went to Morse Farm Maple Sugarworks, where we learnt how maple syrup is made and we got to taste the 4 varieties.There were 2 coach loads of OAP's there, so it was pretty crowded, but we made sure we got our free samples!We then drove into New Hampshire and through the White Forest National Park, stopping at various viewpoints along the way.Today was the first day of autumn, so it was great to see some of the trees starting to change colour.We also visited the Mount Washington Hotel at Bretton Woods .This was a very impressive and expensive hotel complex, with huge swimming pool and golf course.Unfortunately our budget would not stretch far enough for us to stay the night, but it was great to have a look around and dream!

That afternoon we found a motel in North Conway, much more suited to our budget, and the staff were very helpful in suggesting things to do and places to eat.On recommendation, we took a drive to see Cathedral Ledge.This is a giant steep rock face, which is popular with rock climbers, and a spectacular sight.We then went to May Kelly's Cottage for dinner, which is an Irish Bar and Restaurant.Again this had been a recommendation, and the food was fantastic - definitely go there if you are in the area.

So, we only have 1 week left of our trip.It does not quite seem real yet that we're coming home!

Maggie x