Vermont Properties and Development, Inc.

Okemo Valley Chamber

Relax in the Okemo Valley

Located in southern Vermont, Okemo Valley offers a wide variety of activities close at hand. During Spring, Summer and Fall, residents and visitors make day trips throughout Vermont to visit and explore the many attractions. Okemo Valley offers everything and anything for lovers of the outdoors and indoors alike. Take in the simple pleasures of canoeing on Lowell Lake or exploring the Calvin Coolidge Homestead. See Vermont from a train ride on the Green Mt. Flyer or take a short hike to the 80 foot Cascade Water Fall on Ascutney Mountain

June 28th, 2008 Race for grace 5K and hill climb.

This annual 5km running and walking race is held to raise community awareness and help support a cure for children of Vermont with cystic fibrosis. Start time 9:30 am. New this year, a 5.8 miles bike race starts at Jackson Gore to the summit! Start time 3:00 pm.

July 4th, 2008 Jackson Gore Fry Daddy

Celebrate the 4th of July with Fry Daddy at the Jackson Gore Music Series. The stage will be set for Fry Daddy to play at 6pm. Enjoy a cold American beer, a hamburger, and the great music before the town fireworks at dusk.

July 11th,  2008  Jackson Gore Music

Revision takes the stage on Friday the 11th for a free concert in the Jackson Gore Courtyard. Enjoy great beer and food from the Coleman Brook Outdoor BBQ.

September 20th, 2008 Plymouth Cheese and Harvest Festival

Celebrate the bounties of the harvest and the award-winning world of Vermont-made cheese! The festival features cheese sampling, wagon rides, farm and craft demonstrations and more.

Harpoon Championship of N.E. Barbecue in Windsor. Teams throughout New England compete for $5,000 in prize money and to be crowned State of Vermont BBQ Champion. Many vendors and live music, this event is the largest barbecue championship in Vermont.  More at www.harpoonbrewery.com

Aside from the amenities you can enjoy while at Okemo Mountain Resort including golf, hiking, swimming, tennis, fitness classes, basketball, and raquetball, there are many more opportunities in the area. Here are some of the highlights:

Hiking

Enjoy some great views of the Black River Valley while hiking the trails on Okemo. Easy access from the base of Okemo or  Jackson Gore. Visitors can hike up the trails or follow the 4 and 1/2-mile road to the summit. Walking along the villages of Ludlow and Chester are also very popular. Guests can pick up a complimentary map at the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce Office, located at the bottom of the Okemo access road, or call them at (802) 228-5830.

Hike the Healdville Trail

The Healdville Trail climbs Okemo Mountain's 3,340-foot summit. The trail is 5.9 miles round trip offering a hefty half-day hike. Features along the trail include a fire tower and several lookouts, which offer sweeping views of the local ski area. Finding the Trail Head:  From Ludlow Vermont, take VT Route 103 North toward Rutland. Approximately five miles from Ludlow, turn left on Station Road (by Wright Construction Company). Follow Station Road and cross over the railroad tracks. Turn left and there is a large parking area immediately at the end of a short drive.

The trail, blazed with blue paint leaves the parking area and crosses two small brooks before ascending gradually along the second brook through a scenic hardwood forest. It runs gradually uphill and passes a vista point at 2.5 miles where a fine view of Mt Holly and the main Green Mountain chain can be seen on good viewing days. At 2.8 miles, the trail ascends steeply to a small clearing, which was the site of the fire tower watchman's cabin. The only remaining structure on the site is the chimney. Just after the cabin site the trail merges with a work road, which runs from the end of the Okemo Mountain Road to the fire tower. The fire tower has been reconditioned by the State of Vermont and is open to hikers.

Biking

There are plenty of places to ride in the Okemo Valley region. The Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce has a listing of bike tours from 19 to 40 miles in length. Visit the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce website at for a complete listing of bike tours, complete with directions! Mountain Cycology is another great resource for information. You can call them at (802) 228-2722.

Fishing & Boating

Rivers and streams in the Okemo region such as Black, Williams, and Ottauquechee are local favorites. The Black River along Route 131 offers some of the Green Mountains' best rainbow and brown trout fishing. In fact, six miles of the river are designated as a "Trophy Trout Stream". Visitors can pick up a map of the area from the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce Office. They also track where the fish are "biting".

Fishing season begins on the 2nd Saturday in April and ends on the last Sunday in October. Any person under the age of 15 may take fish without a license. Resident and Non Resident licenses can be purchased at Sporting Goods Stores, General Stores, and Town Clerks offices.

Swimming

The Camp Plymouth State Park beach and recreational area is located just outside of Ludlow on the east shore of Echo Lake. The total acreage is 295 acres of which 46 acres comprise the developed portion of the park. There are also 249 acres with hiking trails, fishing, hunting, gold panning, and primitive camping, but is largely forestry oriented.
The Park features a group camping area on the south side of Buffalo Brook consisting of six lean-tos, tent sites, pit toilets and a large field for activities. There is also a large picnic area, play area, sandy beach, horseshoe pits, concession, and boat rentals. The four rental cottages will be available through Columbus Day. There is a large enclosed picnic shelter including a kitchen for larger groups as well as two smaller open pavilion-style picnic shelters. The season runs from mid-May to September (Labor Day). For more information, call (802) 228-2025.This region is also well known for its swimming holes, including Buttermilk Falls - a must-see while in the area.

Horseback Riding

Saddle Up at Cavendish Trail Horse Rides. Guided trail rides through picturesque meadows and woodland are available at Cavendish Trail Horse Rides, on Twenty Mile Stream Road in Cavendish at Brook Farm, the site of Bates Mansion, just six miles from Okemo Mountain.
Riding experience is not required for this Western saddle-style tour on scenic trails. Reservations are suggested, but walk-ins are accommodated if horses are available. Available daily from mid-May, starting at 9:30 a.m., weather permitting. For the less adventurous, wagon rides are available by reservation. Call for more information: (802) 226-7821.

Wildlife

VINS Nature Center is located just west of Quechee Gorge on Route 4. The VINS Nature Center features over 30 live birds of prey native to Vermont, and is considered to be one of the most impressive collections of live raptors in North America. You'll find a beautiful winding nature trail that leads to the Ottauquechee River, featuring a bird blind, a vernal pool and several other natural points of interest. Programs such as Predators of the Sky and Fledgling Corner are both educational and entertaining. There is also a Nature Store filled with wonderful books, educational toys and games, bird houses and birdfeeders, clothing, art, jewelry and other gifts.

Ludlow Parks & Recreation Department

The Ludlow Parks and Recreation Department offers a host of summer recreational programs for residents and visiting guests. Activities include summer camps for kids, swimming lessons for all ability levels, soccer, basketball, junior tennis, archery, horseback riding, karate, water skiing, yoga, aerobics classes and much more. (802) 228-2655

Ludlow Mini-Park - Located at the Corner of Main and Depot Street

It's Ludlow's epi-center. The municipal park features park benches for relaxation and "people watching". Garden Club flower planters adorn the park during the summer season.

Veteran's Memorial Park - Across from the Library on Route 103

Veteran's Memorial Park is one of the most photographed sites in Ludlow. The park features a performing arts gazebo for music concerts, art shows, chicken BBQ's, tag sales and craft fairs. It's also home to the Vermont State Zucchini Festival in August.

Summer Lawn Concerts are offered on selected Sunday evenings throughout the summer, starting at 7 pm. Bring your own chair, relax and enjoy the music.

West Hill Recreation Area - Located on West Hill

This recreational complex is a favorite in the summer. The facility features a lakefront beach for swimming, two basketball courts, in-line hockey rink, fishing area, sheltered picnic area, rest rooms, pool house, playground, barbecue grills, hiking trails, campground, horseshoes pits and playing fields. A limited number of sporting items are available for use and rental. These include horseshoes, volleyballs, soccer balls, footballs, basketballs, hockey sticks and in-line skates. There is a nominal fee to use the facility. The Annual July 4th Celebration is always held at the West Hill Recreation Center.

Vermont's Hearthland Course.

You tee it up. Before you is a rolling bent grass fairway framed by golden fescue that waves gently in the breeze. Beyond that you see strategically placed bunkers and an expansive bent grass green. Off in the distance are the mountains that let you know this is Vermont. Welcome to a New England golf experience like no other. Welcome to Okemo Valley.

Passionate golfers are discovering just how special Okemo Valley is. Featuring bent grass greens, tees and fairways, our par 70, 18-hole championship course is New England's first heath land-style course. One-of-a-kind fairways are filled with dips, ripples, rolls and hollows, which invite fresh mountain breezes. Greens are sweeping and fairly sculpted to reward your short game. Put all of this against the backdrop of Vermont's dazzling Green Mountains, and you have a golf experience you’ll never forget.

Okemo is a new golf club that has been created with special attention to the traditions of the game. Amenities include a 9,200-square-foot clubhouse with locker room tastefully appointed in polished brass and rich cherry. Impeccably manicured grounds.

A full-service golf pro shop offering quality apparel, equipment and sage advice, plus handicap scoring.

And for lunch, dinner or relaxing after a round, there's Willie Dunn's Grille, our 120-seat lounge and restaurant.

Course Layout

The championship 18-hole layout is a par 70 that measures 6,400 yards in length and features bentgrass greens, tees and fairways with multiple tee areas on each hole ensuring playability and challenge for all ability levels. Rolling hills, moderate elevation changes and wide fairways with well-placed hazards enhance the Heathland layout. Explore the Front 9 or the Back 9

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