The Sol Compass

by Caitlin Hummer

Category Archives: Travel Terminal


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Concord, MA

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Hey everyone, happy Thursday!  Last weekend B and I took a mini half day trip out to Concord, MA.  As a couple of nature lovers and history geeks it was the perfect setting!  Our first stop was the famous Walden Pond, we took the trail all the way around the lake and saw the spot where Thoreau’s cabin stood!

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After Walden Pond we went to Minute Man National Park, where the opening battle of the Revolutionary War occurred!  You can see the Old North Bridge (of “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” fame) and talk to some incredibly knowledgeable rangers who can give you a crash course in remembering the finer details that you may or may not have forgotten of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, or the war entirely.

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In the area there’s also the Concord Museum (which has lots of pieces from the Thoreau family) and the Ralph Waldo Emerson House, which would be amazing to check out if you have the time or interest in either of these fascinating figures!

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Outfit Details – Sweater: J.Crew Factory | Top: LOFT | Jeans: Lucky Brand | Shoes: TOMS

Thanks for reading!  Hope you have a great day!

xo, C


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Stowe & Waterbury, Vermont

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Welcome back everyone!  Today is my last post from Vermont.  I had to break my pictures down into separate posts because of sheer volume, but the pictures from Stowe proved the most difficult to narrow down.  I had picked over 50 to share with you all in my first round of cuts!  There is just so much natural beauty and quintessential New England charm everywhere you look that I was snap happy the entire day!

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The downtown area is full of shops, restaurants, and bars that you could easily spend all day in.  There’s also a great coffee shop, Black Cap Coffee, and Vermont’s Ski and Snowboard Museum!

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We stopped by the famous Cold Hollow Cider Mill in Waterbury for some apple cider donuts, and wandered around the charming souvenir displays.  We also stopped by the extremely crowded Ben & Jerry’s, but decided not to do a factory tour since there were about 150 people in line (!!) and they don’t actually make ice cream on the weekends, so we wouldn’t have seen too much.

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Before heading back to our hotel, we found the closest covered bridge to take a few quick snaps!

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Outfit Details – Sweater: Who What Wear (old, similar here and here) | Pants: Old Navy | Vest: Banana Republic (old, similar here, here, and here) | Booties: J.Crew Factory | Rain Boots: Hunter | Purse: Target | Hat: Banana Republic (old, similar here, here, and here)

Thanks for reading!  I hope you all have a great day!

xo, C


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Montpelier

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Hi everyone, happy Monday!  I hope you all had a great weekend!  In today’s installment of our Vermont escapades we visited the capital Montpelier.  I spent a good amount of time here as a child visiting family friends, but it was fun to spend the better part of the day visiting some old places and discovering some new ones!

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Right off of 89 is State Street, and it starts with the beautiful State House (how apropos!)  There is an amazing tour you can take and gorgeous grounds to admire all around the building.  Next door is the Vermont History Museum, which is filled with information about Vermont that you can learn about for only $7!

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Further down on State Street is Capitol Grounds, a coffee shop with a great vibe and delicious cold brew!  We then wandered across the streets (past olive oil stores and —-) into Positive Pie, a delicious pizza shop, where we sat outside and watched our fellow leaf peepers stroll up and down the street marveling at the architecture.  We then drove up to Hubbard Park, which has a ton of trails to walk around and a tower with spectacular views.

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Outfit Details – Sweater: Who What Wear (old, similar here and here) | Skirt: J.Crew Factory | Tights: J.Crew Factory | Shoes: Lucky Brand (old, similar here) | Purse: Target | Sunglasses: Perverse

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On our way out of town we stopped at Bragg Farm Sugarhouse to pick up some maple syrup to take home a sweet taste of our trip (there’s also Morse Farm, but we chose Bragg since it’s where my family used to go!)

Thanks for stopping by, make sure to check in again tomorrow for a new Vermont post!

xo, C


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Quechee and Woodstock, Vermont

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Hello everyone, welcome back to another installment of our road trip through Vermont!  We got off of 89 in search of Woodstock, but ended up finding gem after gem in Quechee, Vermont en route!  After a short walk through the woods (less than a mile) we made it to the Quechee Gorge, the deepest gorge in Vermont!

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There are some awesome restaurants in the area that we could have spent the whole weekend trying out restaurants in these two towns alone!

The Mill at Simon Pearce.  What could be better than “America’s Most Romantic Restaurant”?  One that uses fresh, local ingredients in a gorgeous setting!

Dana’s by the Gorge.  A gorgeous brunch place located across the street from the gorge, Dana’s menu has a seemingly endless variety of pancakes, muffins, and even fried dough that I cannot wait to go back and try!

Worthy Kitchen.  This burger joint has an assuming front a few minutes drive from the Woodstock center, but the inside is no joke.  The gorgeous modern farmhouse interior is home to mouth watering burgers and a carefully curated list of local Vermont craft beers.

Mon Vert Cafe.  This cafe was absolutely packed with tourists while we were there, but it is a great option for food in Woodstock.  They have tons of sandwich and salad options, featuring tons of fresh ingredients from local Vermont and New Hampshire farmers!  An older couple on a foliage expedition was kind enough to share their table with us and gave us some great lunch company in true Vermont fashion!

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Outfit Details – Poncho: TOMS (old, similar here and here) | Shirt: Banana Republic | Hat: Banana Republic (old, similar here, here, and here)| Jeans: Lucky Brand | Boots:  (old, similar here and here) |

Bryan’s Outfit – Pants: Old Navy | Sweater: Old Navy | Shoes: TOMS

Down the road is the Quechee Gorge Village, filled with local Vermont treasures such as a Cabot Cheese sampling area, maple syrup, antique shop, and more!

Down in Woodstock the main appeal is just strolling the village area.  The famous covered bridge, gorgeous houses, and stunning foliage provided endless eye candy everywhere we looked.


Thanks so much for stopping by!  Make sure to tune in next week for more of our adventures up north!

xo, C

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Newbury

Hello my loves, welcome back!  Over the weekend B and I went to Newbury and Newburyport for a little day trip.  We try to go somewhere fun and different once a week, but the summer had been so busy with the two of us traveling opposite weekends and a lot of get togethers planned with our friends that it was nice to be able to get away for a day and spend some time with just the two of us!

I last talked about Newburyport two years ago in this post, and it all still rings true.  It’s a quaint little coastal city in the northeast corner of the Bay State, with a seemingly endless supply of boutiques, coffee shops, and waterfront restaurants.  We got burritos at Dos Amigos (they were so fresh and delicious it was a welcome change from the usual Moe’s/Chipotle run!) and then stopped at Black Cow Tap and Grill and sat outside on the patio at the bar, enjoying the beautiful September weather.

The real star of the show was Colby Farm in neighboring Newbury and their spectacular display of sunflowers.  Less than two miles off the highway is this local farm stand which for approximately one week is home to two acres of beautiful sunflowers.  If you can get there early this week you’ll still be able to see them!

Outfit Details – Dress: LOFT (also love this one and this one!) | Shoes: Vans (old, similar here and here) (I’d also love this look with Supergas!)

The winner of the Starbucks Giveaway is Karla!  She’s a fellow blogger so be sure to check her blog out (Karla, expect an email from me later today!)

Thank you so much for stopping by!  Make sure you stop by on Wednesday for another giveaway!  Have a wonderful week!

xo, C


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Bridge of Flowers

 

Hello everyone, welcome back!  Today’s bonus post is all about the Bridge of Flowers.  B had been talking about taking me on a surprise excursion out to Western Mass for almost a year now, and a couple weeks ago we both had a free Sunday and decided to go for it!  He could have taken me to have a picnic in a parking lot and I would have been excited that I didn’t have to plan anything on such a beautiful sunny day, but the surprise was better than anything I could have imagined.

Eleven and a half miles from the Vermont border, Shelburne Falls is a quaint village full to the brim with all the charm you would expect out in Western Mass.  It’s filled with charming stores and cafes, and is located right on the Deerfield River and the Mohawk Trail.  But our main attraction was the Bridge of Flowers.


An old Trolley Bridge, the first flowers were planted in 1929 by the Shelburne Falls Women’s Group who were tired of looking at the empty bridge growing weeds.  Today, almost 90 years later, it is brimming with dozens of plant varieties, from bulbs to shrubs.  Knowing how much I love flowers, B was 100% right knowing this was the perfect getaway for me.


For lunch we stopped at Baked, an adorable cafe inside an old garage, for coffee and sandwiches.  Then we headed over to see the Glacial Potholes!

 

Thanks so much for stopping by, have a great day!


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Road Trip Ready

 

Welcome back everyone!  This year I’ve gone on four summer road trips in varying lengths.  B and I kicked off Memorial Day Weekend in Portland, Maine, Michaela and I took our annual sister trip to NYC, my mom and I drove to Ottawa on ten hours notice, and B and I went down to the Cape with my best friend and her boyfriend.  With my love for summer adventures, I consider myself somewhat of an expert on making your road trip enjoyable, whether it’s two hours or two days.  Today I’m sharing my go-to travel outfit formula and the five apps I never road trip without!

Spotify.  Mac and I never even go to Target without our downloaded Spotify playlists.  We are regular listeners of “New Music Friday” (M) and “Indie Pop” (me) and love our Spotify family membership!

Waze.  Michaela has a long commute, so she is always the first to suggest checking Waze on a regular basis for traffic and travel updates.  I, on the other hand, am not as good about remembering to check until after we’re sitting in bumper to bumper….

Along The Way.  Along The Way is exactly what it sounds like.  It finds coffee, food, attractions, and more on the route you’re taking to your end destination.  If you’re trying to expand on your road trip and stop to find hidden gems along the way, you definitely should check out this app!

GasBuddy.  On our regular route to NYC, we know exactly which BJ’s Gas Station we can stop at off the highway (it’s in Wallingford, right off the Merritt).  On other road trips (such as last year’s excursion to Saratoga Springs), we have to get a bit more creative to make sure we aren’t paying 60% more for gas.  This is where GasBuddy becomes your absolute savior!  Not only does it find you a gas station, but it finds you the cheapest gas station!

Sit or Squat.  This app always makes me chuckle a little bit, but it is extremely useful if you’re in an area you’re not familiar with.  It’s an app by Charmin, and it finds public bathrooms near you!  The best part about it is it rates them based on cleanliness, so if there are multiple options nearby you can choose the cleaner option!

 

My road trip uniform is based in a maxi or t-shirt dress.  They are so comfortable, you have no harsh waist band rubbing against you for multiple hours, and you still look cute when you arrive at your destination.  I love the classic summer stripes combined with an easy olive jacket and comfortable Chuck Taylors like I wore here, or a maxi paired with gladiators and a cozy sweater (which is exactly what Jenn wore driving down to the cape!)

Outfit Details – Dress: Milly (old, similar here, here, and here) | Jacket: GAP (old, similar here, here, and here) | Sunglasses: Coach | Bag: Sole Society | Sneakers: Converse

Thank you so much for stopping by!  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.  Follow along with our adventures on the ‘gram!

xo, C