Peak foliage season is approaching rapidly! The trees are donning their autumn coats all over the valley, it’s a great time to go for a hike, bike, or scenic lift ride. Here’s a check in from the 21st of September.

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Historically we get clusters of blaze orange leaves popping up all around the valley, but this year the reds have really stood out. The foliage trees interspersed among the spruces as you go higher up into the hills is really something to behold every year. If you haven’t taken the opportunity to ride up our chairlift and ride or walk back down, check out a scenic lift ride up to the top of Vista Peak! Hiking is great too, whether you’re hitting up Harrington’s View for that combination BV and Mansfield shot or just scooting up to the Timberline Mid-Station for that big-sky valley lookout, but we wouldn’t blame you for taking the lift up while it’s still spinning!

Speaking of which, the last day of bike park operations will be Sunday 10/15, and just like last year we will be tiering our ticket prices that day based on the temperature at the peak of vista at the time! That’s right, it’s the return of the Bolton Bundle-Up. Get those last few laps in on your bike before we start the switch back to winter ops, hope to see you out there!

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Below are some pictures of the views from a hike to Timberline Mid station. You can check out the route here. The Timberline route is a great beginner hike and dog friendly! Don’t feel like hiking? You can also sit back and relax while taking in the views from a scenic lift ride. Either way you have to take advantage of this beautiful 10 day forecast we are currently seeing, I can’t tell you the last time we saw that these past months!

You can also join us for some VMBA & Zero Gravity party laps, the Waterbury Skatepark Fundraiser, or 3 Peaks Mountain Race we have this weekend while catching some early color foliage.

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The first few bright spots of color around the base area are the maple trees, currently displaying varying degrees of green-to-red gradient. Bushes planted around the base area are beginning to turn their leaves as well, and listed below are three specific plants that stand out in their early foliage blooms this year.

Red Maple – Acer Rubrum September 18, 2023

Sugar Maple – Acer Saccharum September 18, 2023

Winged Spindle – Euonymus Alatus September 18, 2023

We will continue to follow these trees in particular as well as any other outstanding color patches around the mountainside as fall continues, stay tuned for further updates!

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We can’t speak for the future, but at last year’s Annual Three Peaks Mountain Race runners, supporters, and fans alike were all delighted to view the tail-end of our Vermont Fall Foliage up here while witnessing an incredible race. Curious about what the fun’s all about? Check out the Course Preview this Saturday September 16th!

Follow it up with a glorious scenic lift ride and take in the foliage sightings for yourself with westerly views of Lake Champlain and beyond the Adirondack Mountains.

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With transitional weather rolling through, it’s a good time to remind folks that there is still plenty of end of summer fun to be had up here. We’ve changed over to 3 days of operations now, giving mountain bikers Friday-Sunday to ride our Bike Park from 10am-5pm (weather permitting till Oct 15th). Our own Bolton Babe Force and their friends at Kaden Apparel will be hosting a MTB Group Ride on Saturday September 23rd from 11am-1pm – sign up here! Perhaps coming out to support the Waterbury Skatepark is more your jam? Come out for the Fundraiser on Saturday September 30th from 12-5pm, get your ticket here! Whatever your excuse, make sure to come up and take in some of the foliage beauty before it’s gone.

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After the prolonged rain of mid to late September, we’ve seen a steady stretch of dry skies and sunshine now and the leaves are showing their appreciation. The bronze and crimson hues that dominated the canopy early last week have begun to give way to a softer pastel palette more reminiscent of cantaloupes, peaches and golden blonde lemon gelato. And though all the views are spectacular this time of year, starting with the progression of colors as you drive up the access road framed by the trees, for whatever reason the one that always gets me is the way the glacial bowl frames the main base area village. From several vantage points (whether hiking, biking or taking a scenic lift ride Friday to Sunday 10am to 5pm through Sun 10/16, conditions permitting) off of Vista and Timberline peaks you can see the base lodge and hotel framed by the brilliant colors… throw in the Adirondacks and Lake Champlain further west and the chair lifts framed in there nicely and there’s just something so comforting about it all.

Hope to see you around the mountain soon!

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Autumn is upon us and we could not be more grateful for this beauteous backdrop we get to call home.  This was an exceptionally glorious Friday with the sunshine highlighting hues of gold, scarlet, and jade all around us. The panoramic views up here will only get that much sweeter as we inch towards peak foliage expected for next weekend.

The cherry on the sundae here is that there are a number of ways to take in fall foliage depending on your recreation of choice. If you’re not already a seasoned mountain biker, maybe this is your chance to try out our beginner-friendly trail Ebascootcha and finally see what the fuss is all about! The 3.5 mile trail has plenty of pull ofs where you can take five and be rewarded with breathtaking views after crushing those berms.

If I was considering a scenic lift ride I’d probably make a pit stop at the Mountain Market to grab some snacks and beverages to enjoy at one of the picnic tables on Vista Peak. Bonus you’ll also take in views of Lake Champlain and the valley.

Keeping track of your daily steps? Why not be captivated by the fall foliage via a hike on one of our scenic trails? Check ‘em out here. If you’re like me and never venture outdoors without your best furry friend bring ‘em with on a hike up the Snowflake work road that will lead you to magnificent views off the Spellbinder ski trail. Feel free to also check out our trails from the Sports Center that will lead you to gems like Bryant’s Camp, Harrington’s View, and the Bolton Cabin just to name a few. We’re about 2 weeks away from our final lift operations for the Fall Season so take advantage of this magnificent peak in the season and come see the views for yourself.

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And boy are we excited! Nonetheless, before we move forward with foliage fervor, we must take one more pause to acknowledge the historic nature of this past summer here at Bolton Valley.

Truly. Historic.

Sure, Bolton Valley Resort was well known as a year round vacation destination from the ’60s to the ’90s during Ralph DesLauriers’ 1st run at the helm of the place he built and raised his family. But after Ralph sold the resort in the ’90s, BVR really shifted it’s sights toward a winter only focus in the new millennium under the new ownership groups. But when the DesLauriers family came back home (along with some local investors 5+ years ago now) their aim was quickly fixed upon returning the resort her former year-round Green Mountain glory. And boy have we been trying. And gradually, year in and year out, we’d been seeing evidence we were on the right track and things were moving in the right direction. But this summer? Well, it just hit different. From July onward, it was on and none of us hardly had a moment to notice as we were suddenly so busy taking care of our beloved guests day in and day out. When we finally picked our heads up for a minute last week there was a collective realization of what had just happened. It’s an amazing feeling really… to be a part of a team that’s gone through that process of building toward a vision for the future and then to suddenly find ourselves operating within that dream. It feels pretty dang good, if I’m being honest.

From the new outdoor pool, to the hotel renovation, to the recent purchase of The Ponds (a well established wedding venue) to the renovation of the Timberline Lodge (now hosting various weddings, private groups and events in its own right) to the Bike Park… oh, the Bike Park. It’s been years in the making, with the permitting to get the lift running in summer and new trail designs approved, but this summer, with the opening of our new top-to-bottom beginner flow trail, it’s a whole new day in the Bolton Bike Park, that’s for sure! Just like winter, we’re now teaching so many folks to ride with us, whereas before our trails were mostly for advanced riders only. It has been truly amazing to see kids from 5 years old (sometimes even younger) on up loading their bikes on the lift for the first time only to see them an hour or two later in the base area, truly transformed with the joy that is downhill mountain biking. We knew it could be like this, we hoped it would be like this and indeed… here we are. It seems Lindsay’s a chip off the old Ralph block – vision is not something the two of them lack, that’s for sure.

But I digress… when I sat down to write this blog post it was going to be all about fall. Frankly, I have so much more to say about this past summer still… Well, maybe we’ll have to get the #FoliageCheck rolling for 2022 the same way we did last fall when we declared peak foliage in early October. Please keep in mind, past performance is no indicator of future peak foliage date. You’ll just have to get on up here to see how it progresses for your yourself, I guess. Or watch that blog series

But there can be no doubt, fall is clearly arriving as I type this at the highest base area elevation ski resort in Vermont and you know what? We’re ready for it! We love pumpkins and apple pie, cool nights and mums, scenic lift rides and our favorite fall flannel… it’s all just part of the joy of living here in Vermont, each season bringing it’s own vibrant joys.

And certainly with the onset of fall, our snowmakers are getting antsy, too. Didn’t make the most of your summer? No problem, make up for it in fall, winter or next summer, it’s all good. We’ll look forward to seeing you around the mountain soon – whatever your preferred season in Vermont’s Green Mountains.

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