Things to Do in Waitsfield, Vermont

Built in 1833, this is one of Vermont’s oldest covered bridges and the state’s longest single-span Burr truss bridge. It crosses the Mad River on Bridge Street, right in the village, and still carries cars. The covered walkway on one side was added in 1940, and the bridge rode out Hurricane Irene’s flood in 2011.

★ Good to know Park once and walk; the Heart of the Valley Trail passes right by the bridge.

The Mad River Path is a community effort to link the valley’s towns by trail. Its Hosford Heart of the Valley Trail is named for volunteer Charlie Hosford. It’s an easy 1.3-mile route from the north end of Waitsfield Village to the shops around Irasville. It follows an old levee and the river, with picnic tables and spots to swim and fish.

★ Good to know The surface switches between sidewalk, gravel, boardwalk and packed dirt, so wear shoes that can handle all four.

Local farmers, makers and bakers set up on the Mad River Green every Saturday morning, rain or shine. It’s the easiest way to taste the valley in one stop: vegetables, meat, cheese, bread, flowers, prepared food and crafts.

★ Good to know It runs Saturdays from mid-May to mid-October, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Sugarbush opened on Christmas Day 1958 and is one of New England’s largest ski resorts. Its 111 trails spread over two mountains, Lincoln Peak and Mount Ellen. Its 2,600-foot vertical drop is second in Vermont only to Killington. The resort sits in neighboring Warren, about 4 miles from Waitsfield.

★ Good to know The Slide Brook Express, a two-mile chairlift, links the two mountains when there’s enough snow.

Roland Palmedo founded Mad River Glen in 1947, and its Single Chair first ran in 1948. It’s one of only two single chairlifts left in the country. Skiers bought the mountain in 1995 and still own it as a cooperative. Snowboards aren’t allowed, grooming is light, and Ski magazine once rated its terrain the most challenging in the East.

★ Good to know It’s up Route 17 in Fayston, west of the village; the Kent Thomas Nature Center there runs natural-history programs.

Lareau Farm, on the Mad River in Waitsfield, is the original home of American Flatbread. The restaurant bakes its flatbreads in a wood-fired earthen oven, and the farm also runs a bed and breakfast and an event space.

★ Good to know It serves dinner only Thursday through Sunday, so plan around it.

Sean and Karen Lawson started with a 1-barrel brewery in 2008 after 20 years of home brewing. Their beers have won awards at the World Beer Cup and the Great American Beer Festival. In 2018 they opened their Waitsfield brewery, taproom and retail store.

★ Good to know The taproom is open seven days a week, so it works as an any-day stop after skiing or the market.