Teen Treks

Bonjour! Today we finally arrived in Canada, crossing the border from Vermont into Quebec! We started off our morning weaving through the islands of Lake Champlain to reach the top of the lake right near the border. After we seamlessly crossed into Canada, we found a cute lunch spot where Elliot and Alexa helped decode the all-French menus so the Trekkers could pick their meals. After a high-mileage morning, everyone was excited for a big meal. Lait du chocolat (chocolate milk) was the highlight of the meal, though the cups were gone before we knew it.

The rest of the ride into Napiersville, QC was a nice flat journey, offering a nice change from the hilly landscape of New York and Vermont. We arrived in the early afternoon at our final campsite for the trip which is also the most unique site we’ve stayed at. We were blessed with lots of space and amenities like a large water slide, spacious showers, fooseball, and a covered picnic area. After many runs down the slide, we ended our afternoon with some games of soccer and basketball, making use of both soccer fields and basketball courts adjacent to our tent site.

Famished from the long day of biking and games, we scarfed down a large dinner of pasta, chicken, apples, and peaches very quickly. So, we ended the day with a quick run back to the store to pick up dessert to satiate our hunger. We had an early bedtime to make sure we were ready for our last big day of biking into Montreal tomorrow.

Learn more about Teen Treks’ New York – Montreal Trek.

Our travels through Vermont continued today when we moved on from Burlington and headed to Grand Island. As we traveled along the coast of Lake Champlain, we started off on a scenic causeway, giving us some trouble with gravel that was more than made up for by the beautiful views of the lake.

A quick ferry transported us and the bikes the final stretch to reach the islands in the middle of the lake. Once on the islands, we ate at a busy food stand on the side of US Hwy 2. That road offered rolling hills and took us to our final destination of Grand Island State Park by early afternoon. We spent the rest of the day relaxing and swimming by the lake, before building a blazing evening campfire. We finished our day with toasted hot dogs, roasted corn, and fire-warmed, all-American apple pie to cap off our final night in the US, before we cross the border into Canada tomorrow!

Learn more about Teen Treks’ New York – Montreal Trek.

The seven of us—two Leaders and five Trekkers—awoke in the beautiful state of Vermont for the first time during this trip this morning. After our usual breakfast, we headed out from Button Bay State Park to North Beach Campground in Burlington, VT. We knocked out most of the mileage during the morning, covering over 25 miles of rolling hills with spectacular views of the Vermont landscape.

After a light lunch, we headed into the heart of Burlington for the highlight of the day: taking on Ben & Jerry’s “Vermonster.” For those unfamiliar, the Vermonster is a whopping 20 scoops of ice cream, not to mention additional brownies, cookies, candy toppings, hot fudge, caramel, banana, and whipped cream. Served in a bucket, the trekkers attacked the Vermonster armed only with spoons, and took it down in just over 15 minutes!

Satiated, the group completed the three miles to the campground to set up camp for the night. The group split up, half heading to exploring the town of Burlington, while the other half got ingredients for this evening’s dinner. After a late meal, the trekkers hopped back on their bikes to check out the nearby beach, and the night was finally capped off with a few rounds of cards.

Learn more about Teen Treks’ New York – Montreal Trek.

Our morning began as it usually does—rising a little after 7am, getting ready, packing our bikes, and eating breakfast before leaving the campsite at 9am. From there, our morning was unusual because instead of ticking off mileage on our bikes, we sped through the mileage atop a ferry that took us from Lake George to Ticonderoga.

During the three hour trip, the group took in the beauty of the scenery, listened to the history told over the loudspeaker, enjoyed some snacks offered on board, and had an extra chance to relax. Once in Ticonderoga, we finally fulfilled our craving for diner food by visiting a local restaurant and enjoying food prepared for us, instead of by us!

From there, the day went by as usual. We covered a total of 30 miles along scenic roads that offered views of the mountainous beauty of northern New York. As we rode along the rolling hills, we crossed the border into Vermont and stopped near the Southern end of Lake Champlain to take a dip in the water. Concluding our trip at Button Bay State Park, we had a filling dinner then enjoyed the adjacent basketball court and field by finishing our day shooting hoops and playing a bit of soccer. We’re excited for the day to come tomorrow, when we get to explore even more of Vermont!

Learn more about Teen Treks’ New York – Montreal Trek.