Nature
in the
Northeast Kingdom

If nature is your interest, than the Northeast Kingdom offers some of the best in the United States.

The Mollie Beattie Bog located in the unorganized town of Lewis just outside Island Pond.

The 76-acre Mollie Beattie Bog includes a flat open bog area covering 20 acres and supports a wide variety of shrubs, stunted trees and other plants. A swamp crowded with tamarack and black spruce surrounds the bog.

An inventory of the bog found at least 13 rare plants and animal species and numerous migratory birds using it for breeding habitat.

A boardwalk allows visitors to get into the bog without damaging the plant life or getting wet. Interpretive signs help viewers know what it is they are seeing. It is my opinion Champion has done a great job in making Mollie Beattie Bog a truly Special Place in the Forest.

GETTING THERE:

To reach Mollie Beattie Bog, take Route 105 between Island Pond and Bloomfield. Where the Nulhegan River goes under Route 105 you will see a brown Refuge entrance sign and Stone Dam Road. Turn on to Stone Dam Road (this is a “T” intersection so only one way to turn from either direction from Route 105). Follow this road to a “T” intersection and take a left. Follow this road to the next “T” intersection and turn left. At the next intersection turn right. About a mile and a quarter to a parking area that a sign on the right welcoming you to Mollie Beattie Bog. Enjoy!

In North Troy you can visit the Big Falls. On Burke Mountain you can view a molten rock exposure. In Charleston you can visit the Great Falls of the Clyde River. A Gorge called the "Jay Branch Gorge" in Jay. If it is glacial features you are looking for stop on by in Groton at Pigeon Pond and see an example of Pleistocene glaciating. At Averill Pond in Averill, you will find a glacially scoured basin that has landlocked salmon. On Lake Memphremagog you can view the Black Island Hemlock Forest from the water. In Derby there is Halls Creek Marsh, which supports a great variety of wildlife. You should also make sure to stop on by and visit Willoughby Cliffs where Mt. Pisgah meets the shores of Lake Willoughby, one of the most famous scenes in Vermont. Stop at the Peacham Bog and you may catch a Moose or two just walking around.