The Summer Preview Issue Heralds Vermont's Sweetest Season

We know, we know. It doesn’t much feel like summer out there right now. This week’s run of cool, gloomy weather has more of a late-March mood than late May. Hailstorms in Charlotte! Snow on Mount Mansfield! But we promise, sunnier days are ahead. Or as Clem Snide singer Eef Barzelay once put it: “Summer will come, with Al Green and sweetened iced tea.”

Before long, folks will be hitting the lake on paddleboards, kayaks and sailboats — likely with help from Burlington’s Community Sailing Center, whose mission is making Lake Champlain more accessible. Sailors gazing back at land might spy Lake Champlain lakekeeper Julie Silverman picking up trash along the shore or teaching kids about lake science and stewardship.

At beaches, parks and backyard barbecues, friends will strike up games of cornhole, Kan Jam or, if Clint Bierman has his way, Shweebee. The Middlebury musician is convinced his patented flying disc game is the future of yard gaming.

Summer weather brings summer music festivals and an opportunity to class up your act at one of the many chamber music events happening throughout Vermont. There are plenty of local outdoor rock and pop shows, too, but don’t overlook the wealth of concerts worth driving for beyond state lines.

Speaking of road trips, Québec is a favorite destination any time of year. But the province comes alive in summer. Travel writer Jen Rose Smith hips us to what’s new in Québec. Sadly, crossing the border might be the only way for Vermonters to interact with our northern neighbors this summer, since word has it that fewer Canadians will be vacationing here.

On the bright side, maybe fewer tourists will make for a less crowded Burlington Farmers Market. If not, there are other markets every day of the week relatively close by. In addition to fresh veggies, you’re likely to find local art at all. Or head to Woodstock for art in a more unusual setting: on barns and buildings at Billings Farm & Museum.

Here’s hoping this summer will be far less dramatic than the past two, when powerful storms and epic flooding caused chaos around the state. If not, Vermont’s Urban Search and Rescue Task Force is ready for an uncertain forecast.

Finally, summer is creemee season. Several new frozen-treat spots are set to open, along with some old favorites that are coming back. That news should delight everyone. Everyone, that is, except creemee curmudgeon Chelsea Edgar, who offers A Hater’s Guide to the Burlington Creemee Scene.

Now that’s a scoop.

The original print version of this article was headlined “The Creemee Rises | The Summer Preview heralds Vermont’s sweetest season”