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VERMONT ATTRACTIONS

It's never too early to begin thinking about the next ski season in New England. Ever-increasing crowds and new attractions make advance planning and reservations the best assurance of your being able to use the facilities you prefer when you want.  This past winter, we had the opportunity to visit New England’s first true alpine club, which is located at Vermont’s Stratton Mountain. For regular visitors to this area, this can be an attractive upscale club membership at one of the top ski resorts in the region.

The 25,000-square-foot Stratton Mountain Club is located adjacent to Stratton’s gondola. Built of native stone, with a fundamental respect for its mountain setting, the Club features both casual and fine dining restaurants (we were very impressed with dinner at Luna, the more formal of the two): locker facilities on a par with those of top golf resorts; a ski valet service; a friendly bar; a children's activity room and a great room with a large fireplace, comfortable sofas and chairs and cozy nooks for quiet conversation.

The first phase of membership quickly sold out to 300 families and there is currently a waiting list for openings, so if this appeals to you, get your name on teh list for resales or the opening of additional phases. Tel: 802-297-4034. www.stratton.com.

On the same trip, we also checked out the Off-Road Driving School at the Equinox, in Vermont’s Manchester Village and were convinced that regardless of the number of years you've been driving, the course will improve your skills both on and off road.  Our lessons and practice were in a Hummer SUV; we now firmly believe that if you can drive one of these safely, you can handle anything on four wheels.

With care taken not to upset the area's natural ecosystem, you'll learn the finesse of handling a state-of-the-art 4x4, maneuvering along trails, across ditches, up rocky passes, and down seriously steep inclines. Introductory lessons are given on an 80-acre purpose-built course, after which you head out into the rugged Green Mountain terrain that surrounds the Equinox. Cost is approimately $200 per hour for whatever number of hours instruction and trail riding you select.  The program is run by Country Pursuits, which also operates the British School of Falconry and an archery school at the same location.

The program is offered all year, so unless you particularly want to experience winter driving through snow, the best time to participate might be spring through fall, when you can also get in some fly-fishing at the nearby Orvis facility.  Tel: 888-367-7625. www.equinox.rockresorts.com.