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| A last leaf. |
Last day and night in Vermont. Our buddy, Frank, had to return to Boston a day early, so we made an executive decision to return the bikes a day early. This meant we drove to Putney, an hour South, where we rode a local twenty mile route along a pleasant road called the River Road. We bid Frank adieu, turned in our rentals, repacked Judy's bike, and made it back to Ludlow in time to rest, shower, and prepare for our exotic Vermont dinner at the Downtown Grocery, which is an upscale, high priced, extremely popular venue in downtown Ludlow. The couple who own the restaurant do an superior job. The husband, the chef, who we didn't meet, and the wife, who we did, provide a nice experience. The gal, who hails from Oxford, Mississippi (Y'all) was bit over the top, but genuine, hard working, and as smart as a whiplash. Our dinner could not have been better. It was a perfect end to an excellent week. While I do realize as Robert Frost says, "...that as way leads on to way we may not pass this way again...", I sincerely hope I'm blessed to experience this state once again in some other fall season. We all agreed that the foliage this year is the best we've ever seen, so for that we are happy, and grateful we are that life is good, especially today.
I snapped a photo from roughly the same angle at roughly the same time every day. Notice the color change.
Faint colors.
Emerging colors.
Vibrant colors.
Ridiculously spectacular colors.
The last we'll see this year.
Photo boy, Ed, snapping the "Downtown Grocery".
Johnny's brother, Danny, joined us for dinner. Former Exxon geologist, he spends his summers in Vermont and his winters in Houston. A pure joy. as a human being, and a nice addition to our dinner conversation. He even regaled a story that turned his brother's face a couple of shades of red.
The beginning of the dinner parade. Fresh baked sweet rolls with a nicely crisp butter crust.
Frites sprinkled with chopped shallots.
The main course, something called the Decker Steak, which is the cap of the ribeye resting on a bed of squash and finished with an watercress chimi-churra.
Our salad was a high stack of heirloom tomatoes layered with ricotta cheese and dressed with high quality balsamic vinegar and a splash of extra virgin olive oil.
In keeping with our host's Southern roots we enjoyed a dish called "Late Night Breakfast", which is a decadent mix of French toast, bacon infused ice cream, and a slice of candied Vermont bacon all smothered in Maple syrup. Oh, my!
Until the next visit, let the biker babes rejoice.
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