Green Mountain High Letterbox LbNA #34734
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Add Location| Owner: | Adoptable |
|---|---|
| Plant date: | Sep 2, 2007 |
| Location: | |
| City: | Stratton |
| County: | Bennington |
| State: | Vermont |
| Boxes: | 1 |
| Planted by: | MusicMakers  |
|---|---|
| Found by: | Afabas |
| Last found: | Oct 11, 2014 |
| Status: | FOF |
| Last edited: | Sep 2, 2007 |
Green Mountain High Letterbox (note: new clues as of 8/8/2009 because one of the landmarks disappeared during the winter)
In old times, fire towers and the spotters who staffed them were a key component to preventing the spread of forest fires. Spotters would scan the hills for signs of smoke or fire, especially after thunderstorms. Early detection allowed ground crews to put out fires before timber valuable to logging or paper companies could be destroyed. Today, aircraft and other more “hi-tech” methods are used to detect fires and only a few fire towers remain. These are used for scenic views by hikers and are a great way to get a Green Mountain High.
One of the remaining towers is the Stratton Mountain Lookout Tower perched on the top of Stratton Mountain in Southern Vermont. It was built in the 1930’s by the FDR’s Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) program.
To find the Green Mountain High Letterbox you must first go the Stratton Mountain Lookout Tower. There are several ways to do this:
1. Easiest – on a summer or fall weekend go to the Stratton Ski Area and take the Gondola to top of Stratton Mountain. When you exit the gondola at the top, look for the signs to “Fire Tower” and follow the trail 20-30 minutes at a leisurely pace to the tower. At 55 feet high you’ll recognize it when you see it! This is by far the easiest method of reaching the tower, but the Stratton Gondola is only open on weekends in the summer and fall, and there is a fee to ride the gondola. Check the Stratton Web-site at www.stratton.com for hours of operation. Don’t be late returning to the Gondola, or you will have a long walk down!
2. Harder – Go to the Stratton Ski Area and hike up the ski trail that goes under the gondola to the top.
3. Hardest – Turn left on the Stratton-Arlington Road where it exits from Route 100 just North of Mount Snow ski area. Continue straight on the Arlington Road, ignoring the signs for Stratton Ski Area. Continue on this road even when it becomes a dirt road just after the road to Grout Pond Recreation Area. Half a mile past Grout Pond you will see the Appalachian Trail/Long Trail cross the road. There is a parking area here on the right. Head up the Appalachian Trail/Long Trail following the white blazes and the sign that points to Stratton Mountain. After a short flat part the trail heads steadily uphill for approximately 3.5 miles to the top of Stratton Mountain and the Tower.
Once you have reached the tower, enjoy the view and say hello to the very nice folks that spend their summer living on top of Stratton Mountain serving as caretakers for the tower.
From the Stratton Mountain Lookout Tower – Locate the signs that point to the Appalachian Trail/Long Trail (AT/LT) NORTH. The AT/LT is marked by rectangular white blazes painted on trees. Locate the first white blaze on a tree to the left of the trail. Then look for the 2nd white blaze on the right of the trail. From the 2nd white blaze, walk 6 paces north along the trail. (A pace is an adult right step, left step.) At your feet you will see an interesting rock, that with a little imagination looks like a heart. Now, look to your right. There is a much larger rock with lots of moss. Leave the path and stand next to the rock with it on your right. Walk into the woods about four steps and look high and low to find the hiding place of the Green Mountain High Letterbox.
Stamp in and carefully seal and re-hide the box. When leaving the hiding place and returning to the main trail try to walk on a different path than you walked in. This will help protect the plants from being beaten down in any one area and will help keep the letterbox a secret.
Return to the Stratton Tower and go back the way you came.
Note: The Stratton Ski Area and its employees are not aware of this letterbox. Please be discreet. The Stratton Mountain Tower caretakers do know about the letterbox, but they have been sworn to secrecy.
In old times, fire towers and the spotters who staffed them were a key component to preventing the spread of forest fires. Spotters would scan the hills for signs of smoke or fire, especially after thunderstorms. Early detection allowed ground crews to put out fires before timber valuable to logging or paper companies could be destroyed. Today, aircraft and other more “hi-tech” methods are used to detect fires and only a few fire towers remain. These are used for scenic views by hikers and are a great way to get a Green Mountain High.
One of the remaining towers is the Stratton Mountain Lookout Tower perched on the top of Stratton Mountain in Southern Vermont. It was built in the 1930’s by the FDR’s Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) program.
To find the Green Mountain High Letterbox you must first go the Stratton Mountain Lookout Tower. There are several ways to do this:
1. Easiest – on a summer or fall weekend go to the Stratton Ski Area and take the Gondola to top of Stratton Mountain. When you exit the gondola at the top, look for the signs to “Fire Tower” and follow the trail 20-30 minutes at a leisurely pace to the tower. At 55 feet high you’ll recognize it when you see it! This is by far the easiest method of reaching the tower, but the Stratton Gondola is only open on weekends in the summer and fall, and there is a fee to ride the gondola. Check the Stratton Web-site at www.stratton.com for hours of operation. Don’t be late returning to the Gondola, or you will have a long walk down!
2. Harder – Go to the Stratton Ski Area and hike up the ski trail that goes under the gondola to the top.
3. Hardest – Turn left on the Stratton-Arlington Road where it exits from Route 100 just North of Mount Snow ski area. Continue straight on the Arlington Road, ignoring the signs for Stratton Ski Area. Continue on this road even when it becomes a dirt road just after the road to Grout Pond Recreation Area. Half a mile past Grout Pond you will see the Appalachian Trail/Long Trail cross the road. There is a parking area here on the right. Head up the Appalachian Trail/Long Trail following the white blazes and the sign that points to Stratton Mountain. After a short flat part the trail heads steadily uphill for approximately 3.5 miles to the top of Stratton Mountain and the Tower.
Once you have reached the tower, enjoy the view and say hello to the very nice folks that spend their summer living on top of Stratton Mountain serving as caretakers for the tower.
From the Stratton Mountain Lookout Tower – Locate the signs that point to the Appalachian Trail/Long Trail (AT/LT) NORTH. The AT/LT is marked by rectangular white blazes painted on trees. Locate the first white blaze on a tree to the left of the trail. Then look for the 2nd white blaze on the right of the trail. From the 2nd white blaze, walk 6 paces north along the trail. (A pace is an adult right step, left step.) At your feet you will see an interesting rock, that with a little imagination looks like a heart. Now, look to your right. There is a much larger rock with lots of moss. Leave the path and stand next to the rock with it on your right. Walk into the woods about four steps and look high and low to find the hiding place of the Green Mountain High Letterbox.
Stamp in and carefully seal and re-hide the box. When leaving the hiding place and returning to the main trail try to walk on a different path than you walked in. This will help protect the plants from being beaten down in any one area and will help keep the letterbox a secret.
Return to the Stratton Tower and go back the way you came.
Note: The Stratton Ski Area and its employees are not aware of this letterbox. Please be discreet. The Stratton Mountain Tower caretakers do know about the letterbox, but they have been sworn to secrecy.