Photo by The Joneses A look at the Trapp Family Lodge. The von Trapp Family, immortalized by the "Sound of Music" musical and movie, settled in Mount Mansfield, Vt., in 1942.— — — E-mail Gisela — — — SLIDE SHOW: The scenic northeast
ARCHIVES: You wouldn't believe how beautiful Canada is! Wouldn't change a thing Who knew there was so much to see in South Dakota? Time is flying by — but at least we're having fun! I (heart) Hart Ranch, South Dakota Rallyin' in Goshen, Indiana A special day From friends to work to warmer temps, we're still having fun in Florida Traveling to Texas Finally, we're in Alaska! On the way to Canada Boise sure has changed a lot Escapees Rally in Wyoming Bittersweet trip through the southeast From Boy Scouts to ‘Stars on Ice’ Michigan is full of treasures Arriving in Florida Earning our ears Celebrating Christmas and New Year's in Florida and the Disney Parks Down in the Lowcountry Making our way through Minn., Wisc. and Ill. The holidays in Florida Our time in Lakeland has come to an end Couldn't have had a better time in Omaha! Arriving in Charleston A day with friends from Frederick 'Life is good' in Lakeland, Fla. Leaving Florida, and heading north Our final days in Kentucky Into the Keys Out of Charleston and off to Indiana Dreams come true in Vermont You never know what you'll see or who you'll meet in Alaska Leaving Indiana, but not before taking some of the state's best sites Idaho is full of natural treasures — and moon-like craters, too It's all about the theme parks From prairie country to beautiful views to grand 'ol Yellowstone Thunderstorms, flooding, tornados and a visit with the 'Duke' And so it begins ... Moving days for Greg and his family The gang's all here! Happy to be in Florida again Strawberries, and more strawberries 'The RV Capital of the World' From the beautiful Maine coastline down to southern Connecticut Training for our jobs at Disney World Chillin' out at 'Camp Monaco' Under the weather Back in Florida At long last, back in the area Lots to see in the 'Show Me' state With family and spectacular sights in Hailey, Idaho Look back, look ahead Back in the Lower 48 The cold weather is hitting Florida From Dallas to devastation Back on the road again Leaving Idaho and heading east Beautiful Alaska A memorable visit to Alaska's Kenai Peninsula Watch out for flying dinner rolls

Our first stop was near Binghamton, N.Y., where we stayed two days — withi no sightseeing, just relaxing and enjoying the beautiful upstate New York countryside.

Our next stop was Stowe, Vt., situated just below Mount Mansfield, which at 4,395 feet is the highest mountain in Vermont. I wanted to go there to see the Trapp Family Lodge. The von Trapp Family, immortalized by the "Sound of Music" musical and movie, settled there in 1942.

While the movie is not entirely correct in describing the von Trapp life — after all it is made in Hollywood — many aspects are truly the history of this amazing family. Maria did leave the convent to take care of one, not all of the seven children. George and Maria married in 1927 and had two children (girls) before they left Austria in 1938 because of the "Anschluss," the taking over of Austria by the Germans. They toured Europe as the von Trapp Family Chorus and came to the United States in 1939 touring the country.

In 1942 they purchased a farm in Stowe, Vt., where in the following years they turned it into a beautiful lodge with European-style rooms, guest houses, villas and three restaurants. Their third child, Johannes, was born in 1939 in the U.S. and he is now President of the Trapp Family Lodge.

I have always been fascinated with the history of the von Trapp Family. Actually, there are two German movies made long before Roger and Hammerstein wrote the musical. The first film is (I still have the movies) about their life in Austria and the second about their life in the U.S. Anyway, for me visiting Stowe was a dream come true and I can see why the von Trapp family settled here. The lodge is in a most a most scenic setting in the middle of the Vermont Mountains and so much like the part of Austria they came from.

In the campground, we met a nice couple from Florida. They are "half-timers," which means they spend half of the year (winter) in their house in Florida and the other half they travel with their RV in the Northern part of the U.S The four of us went for dinner at the von Trapp Lodge. The décor inside the Lodge is so charming, so Austrian/European, I thought I was somewhere in the southern part of my home country. The dinner was excellent — very German — a bit pricy, but so delicious it was worth it.

And the highlight (for me) was to see Maria F. von Trapp, the youngest girl of the seven children — that would be Gretl in the movie. She is now 94 years old and was in a wheelchair, but Millie knew it was her because she and Allan come to the lodge very often. Also, Maria’s hairstyle was so Austrian/Bavarian, she had her hair braided around her head, so I knew she had to be one of the von Trapp’s. All in all, it was a delightful evening.

While in Stowe we visited the Ben & Jerry Ice Cream factory, located in Waterbury just south of Stowe on highway 100. The tour was very interesting and we learned how two childhood friends turned a $5 Penn State correspondence course into a global ice cream phenomenon.

They no longer own the company – and are probably are somewhere on a Pacific Island enjoying life — it was sold to a large conglomerate. Of course, we also had some ice cream there. The sampler for that day was Mint Chocolate — yummy. But I also had some of my favorite — Butter Pecan.

The area around Stowe was beautiful; we enjoyed riding around and admiring the breathtaking scenery. Unfortunately, we were just between seasons — summer and fall. I can imagine in the summer with everything is bloom it is even prettier.

Certainly the fall when all the trees are in color has to be spectacular. I hope we can come back to Vermont again and stay longer. This time it was just a stop on our way to Maine to visit with Ralph’s sister, Ruth.