Road Scholar : Home
Lake Champlain: Heritage and History

Program Number: 18948RJ
Start and End Dates:
6/23/2013 - 6/28/2013; 8/4/2013 - 8/9/2013;
Duration: 5 nights
Location: Brandon, Vermont
Price starting at: $956.00 - Price may vary based on date, departure city
Program Type: History & Culture
Meals: 15; 5 Breakfasts, 5 Lunches, 5 Dinners    
Meal Options: Low Fat; Vegetarian; Low Salt    

Learn the history of Lake Champlain, a “great” lake nestled between New York, Vermont and Canada, from Native Americans to the Revolutionary War. With historians and local experts, learn about the region’s early settlement before you explore the lake aboard a cruise boat. Relive the story of Benedict Arnold and fife-and-drum music at Fort Ticonderoga. Interpret shipwrecks and lake artifacts, learn about the unique women steamboat captains, and discover the history hidden in the waters.




Highlights

• Explore the shipwrecks, underwater archaeology and “seafaring” culture with staff of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum.
• Discover the history of America’s first victory of the Revolutionary War at Ft. Ticonderoga.
• Meet with the executive director from the Vermont Living History, who discusses Vermont history from Indian settlement to modern times.



Activity Particulars

Walks up to two miles over varied terrain.




Date Specific Information

6-23-2013, 8-4-2013

Enjoy the latest in hearing technology — listening devices — on this date.




Brandon

With its entire downtown recorded on the National Register of Historic Places and the town’s bucolic location among the rolling hills of central Vermont, Brandon is a unique, historic destination near the Green Mountains.
Accommodations
Historic Brandon Inn, on the town common; outdoor hot tub and pool (seasonal); elevator not available for use.

Road Scholar Instructors
These instructors are participating on at least one date of this program. Please note that changes may occur.
James Dassatti
James Dassatti is the executive director of the Vermont Living History Association and states that he “lives to teach.” A graduate of Norwich University in Vermont, James instructs Road Scholar programs on Lake Champlain history and the American Revolution.
 
Meals and Lodgings
   Brandon Inn
  Brandon, VT 5 nights
 Brandon Inn
Type: Inn
  Description: Historic Inn
  Contact info: Route 7
Brandon, VT 05733 USA
phone: 802-247-5766
web: www.brandoninn.com
  Room amenities: Bedrooms are large and individually decorated with period furniture. All rooms have telephones, free Wi-Fi and air conditioning in season.
  Facility amenities: The Inn has been here since 1786. The huge Victorian parlors on the main floor are accented with carved moldings and ornate pillars. There are two gilded floor-to-ceiling mirrors and a circular love seat, as well as comfortable seating for reading. Outdoor swimming pool available in season. There are two community television rooms.
  Smoking allowed: No
  Bathroom: Every room has a private bathroom. Most bathrooms have a shower over a regular tub, a few rooms have a shower over a claw-foot tub, and three rooms have just a stand-up shower stall
  Elevators available: Yes
  Additional nights prior: Please contact the Inn for Eld Please contact the inn directly for availability and rates.
  Check in time: 3:00 PM
  Additional nights after: Please contact the Inn for Eld Please contact the inn directly for availability and rates.
  Check out time: 11:00 AM


Travel Details
  Start of Program:
Check in between 3:00 - 5:00 PM. You will be staying at Brandon Inn that night.
  End of Program:
Ends with boxed lunch to go at 11:00 AM. You will be staying at Brandon Inn the night before.
  Required documents:
The Road Scholar Health & Safety Form is required. None
  Parking availability:
No charge
Transportation
To Start of Program
  Location:  Brandon, VT
  Nearest city or town:  Brandon
  Nearest highway: Route 7
  Nearest airport:  Albany, NY or Manchester, NH
  From End of Program
  Location: Brandon, VT
    (Additional transportation information same as above)
Travel Details
 

Burlington

 

From Airport

 
 

Service:

 

Commercial Van/Shuttle
Middlebury Transit
phone: 800-388-1002
Advanced Reservations Required

 

Per Person/One Way:

 

$70 - $100
Prices are subject to change.
 

Travel Time:

 

1.5 hours 
   

Call for reservations
 

Rutland

 

From Airport

 
 

Service:

 

Commercial Van/Shuttle
All Occasions Trans
phone: 802-775-9563
Advanced Reservations Required

 

Per Person/One Way:

 

$35 - $40
Prices are subject to change.
 

Travel Time:

 

1 hour 
   

Call for rates and reservations.
 
Driving Directions
  All Directions How to get here from there (Directions from you to us) The Brandon Inn, located along U.S. Route 7 is easily accessible from points throughout the Northeast. Major airlines serve the Burlington International Airport, 45 minutes away; and Rutland Airport is 30 minutes by car. Vermont Transit and Greyhound buses from New York City, Boston, Montreal, Springfield, Mass., and points in between, stop virtually at the Inns front door. Motorists can reach Brandon via Interstate 91 and 87, which connects with U.S. Route 7.
  North and South Motorists can reach Brandon via Interstate 91 and 87, which connects with U.S. Route 7. The Inn is on Route 7.
Elevation Note: None

Equipment Requirements: None
The prices listed for commercial services and facilities that are not included in the program cost, such as airport shuttles or extra nights lodging, are subject to change without notice. Since Road Scholar cannot guarantee the accuracy of these prices, we strongly suggest contacting the companies directly for the most up-to-date information.


Daily Schedule

Day 1: Arrival, registration/Orientation
(Sunday, June 23)
   
 Arrive To: CHECK-IN: Please arrive at the hotel between 3:00-5:00pm. Check into your room at the front desk and then register with Road Scholar staff in the Main lobby. At this time you'll be given a welcome packet containing your name tag, up-to-date itinerary and other useful information.
 Dinner: Dinner at the inn
 Evening: ORIENTATION: After dinner we will have our Orientaion. This will provide you with information about the hotel, program itinerary, instructors, venues and on site staff.
   
Accommodations: Brandon Inn
Meals Included: Dinner

Day 2: Lecture with James Dassatti
(Monday, June 24)
   
 Breakfast: Breakfast is served at the inn
 Morning: PRESENTATION: Morning lecture by James Dassatti which includes early settlement around Lake Champlain, French & Indian War along Lake Champlain, the American Revolution on Lake Champlain and surrounding area. Jim is a graduate of Norwich University in Vermont. He has been associated with Road Scholar for the last eight years instructing programs on Lake Champlain history and the American Revolution. Jim is the Executive Director of the Vermont Living History Association and lives to teach.
 Lunch: Lunch is served at the inn
 Afternoon: PRESENTATION: Continuation on Lake Champlain during the American Revolution and foreshadowing on tomorrow's field trip.
 Dinner: Dinner is served at the inn
 Evening: EVENING PROGRAM: Enjoy some light evening entertainment at the Inn.
   
Accommodations: Brandon Inn
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3: Lake Champlain Cruise aboard the M/V Carillon, Fort Ticonderoga Visit
(Tuesday, June 25)
   
 Breakfast: Served at the inn
 Morning: FIELD TRIP: Program aboard the M/V Carillon on Lake Champlain. Learn the history of the capture of Fort Ticonderoga and lower Lake Champlain. the 60ft luxury vessel "Carillon", French for "Ringing Bells," is a replica of a 1920's 1000 Island's cruise boat. Explore the historic waters of Southern Lake Champlain. Named after Samuel de Champlain, the Lake celebrated its 400th anniversary of his discovery in 2009. Let your imagination take you along with Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys as they travel from Hand's Cove in Shoreham, Vermont to Willow Point on the New York shore. Learn of Nathan Beeman, a young lad who leads the men into Fort Ticonderoga. Visualize the capture of the fort as the Carillon pauses offshore. The defeat of the British at Fort Ticonderoga was the first Revolutionary War victory for the Americans. View and learn the importance of Mount Defiance. Sail past Mount Independence where upwards of 14,000 Americans were quartered in the Summer of 1776. During our cruise watch the drop-down TV for side-imaging sonar images of artifacts and wrecks below dating as far back as the 18th century.
 Lunch: Served at Fort Ticonderoga
 Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: This afternoon we explore the history of Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain. Enjoy a guided program with afternoon events that could include a Fife and Drum, cannon and musket firings. Fort Ticonderoga, formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century fort built by the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain in upstate New York in the United States. It was constructed by Michel Chartier de Lotbiničre, Marquis de Lotbiničre between 1754 and 1757 during the Seven Years' War, often referred to as the French and Indian War in the USA, and was of strategic importance during the 18th-century colonial conflicts between Great Britain and France, and again to a lesser extent during the American Revolutionary War.
 Dinner: Served at the inn
 Evening: EVENING PROGRAM: Enjoy a chat with Jane Vincent on women steam boat captains on Lake Champlain.
   
Accommodations: Brandon Inn
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 4: Meet someone from the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum
(Wednesday, June 26)
   
 Breakfast: Breakfast is served at the inn.
 Morning: PRESENTATION: Today's program will be conducted by the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum with lectures that could include ship wrecks, underwater archeology, etc. The LCMM is a non-profit maritime museum dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of Lake Champlain.
 Lunch: Lunch is served at the inn.
 Afternoon: FREE TIME: Afternoon is free to explore the area. Your on site staff will be happy to help you with suggestions or directions.
 Dinner: Dinner is served at the inn.
 Evening: EVENING PROGRAM: This evening, enjoy a discussion on Samuel Champlain.
   
Accommodations: Brandon Inn
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 5: Lake Champlain Maritime Museum/Shelburne Museum
(Thursday, June 27)
   
 Breakfast: Breakfast is served at the inn.
 Morning: FIELD TRIP: This morning we travel to the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum where you will have time to visit their many exhibits including the replica gun boat of Benedict Arnold, The Philadelphia.
 Lunch: Lunch is served at the Shelburne Museum
 Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: This afternoon we visit the Shelburne Museum for a self guided exploration followed by a program aboard the M/S Ticonderoga. Shelburne Museum is a museum of art and Americana located in Shelburne, Vermont, United States. Over 150,000 works are exhibited in 39 exhibition buildings, 25 of which are historic and were relocated to the Museum grounds. It is located on 45 acres (18 ha) near Lake Champlain. The steamboat Ticonderoga is America’s last remaining side-paddle-wheel passenger steamer with a vertical beam engine of the type that provided freight and passenger service on America’s lakes and rivers from the early 19th to the mid-20th centuries. Commissioned by the Champlain Transportation Company, the Ticonderoga was built in 1906 at the Shelburne Shipyard in Shelburne, Vermont on Lake Champlain. The Ti measures 220 feet in length and 59 feet in beam, with a displacement of 892 tons. Her steam-powered engine, handmade by the Fletcher Engine Company of Hoboken, New Jersey, was powered by two coal-fired boilers and could achieve a maximum speed of seventeen miles per hour.
 Dinner: Dinner served at the inn.
 Evening: EVENING PROGRAM: It is movie night at the Inn.
   
Accommodations: Brandon Inn
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6: Morning Lecture, wrap up
(Friday, June 28)
   
 Breakfast: Breakfast at the in
 Morning: FINAL PRESENTATION: Today we conclude our program with a final lecture.
 Lunch: Box lunch to go following program.
   
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Free Time Opportunities
  
  Brandon, VT Discover New England
An excellent web site for everything about New England. For additional information, visit www.discovernewengland.org
  Vermont Dept. of Tourism and Marketing
Vermont Dept. of Tourism and Marketing 6 Baldwin St., Drawer 33 Montpelier, VT 05633-1301 Phone: 802-828-3676 E-mail: info@VermontVacation.com If you would like to order a travel packet to help plan your next vacation to Vermont, use our on-line form To order your travel packet by phone, call our toll-free number: 1-800-VERMONT (US and Canada) For additional information, visit www.vermontvacation.com/
Important information about your itinerary: Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information featured on this website. Itineraries are based on our best information at this time. Circumstances beyond our control may require us to adjust itineraries or other details. We regret any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding. Information will be sent to you from your Program Provider approximately three weeks prior to the program start date. The prices listed for commercial services and facilities that are not included in the program cost, such as airport shuttles or extra nights lodging, are subject to change without notice. Since Road Scholar cannot guarantee the accuracy of these prices, we strongly suggest contacting the companies directly for the most up-to-date information.


You can't find a better value than Road Scholar.


As a not-for-profit organization, we are dedicated to providing all-inclusive educational programs at great value. From lectures to gratuities to field trips to accommodations - the tuition you pay up front is all that you pay.



Specifically, this program includes:

Plus these special experiences...

View the Daily Schedule to see more

And included with all Road Scholar programs:


© Road Scholar 2013 | Call toll-free: 1-800-454-5768