Northeast Kingdom Map and View from near my house |
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The Northeast Kingdom of Vermont is the area bounded by the Connecticut River on the east, the Canadian border on the north, the central ridge of the Green Mountains on the west, and by the southern border of Caledonia County. The NEK is composed of the counties of Caledonia, Orleans and Essex. The area is rural and mountainous; it has a population of approximately 50,000. It has an economy based on tourism, skiing, forest products, farming and dairy products, education, furniture and high-tech firms. Major towns include St. Johnsbury, Lyndonville, Barton, Newport, Derby, and Island Pond. The quality of life is considered high, with small towns and villages where one knows one's neighbors, where beautiful views and quiet streets are the rule. In order to maintain this quality of life, many people willingly work more than one job for lower than average wages.
This area is best accessed by Interstate 93 or Interstate 91, which meet at St. Johnsbury.
Burke is north of St. Johnsbury [and northeast of Lyndonville]. Take Interstate 91 north to Exit 23, then Route 5 through Lyndonville to Route 114; Take this route to East Burke, follow signs to Burke Hollow.
Route 114 goes from Lyndonville to Island Pond. This route is famous for moose viewing and moose-car accidents, which can be severe.
Air travel many times is best through Montreal [Dorval or Mirabel airports]. To get to Montreal, one takes Interstate 91 north to Derby, where it becomes Canada 55 at the border. Near Sherbrooke, one takes Canada 10 west to Montreal. Air travel is also possible through Burlington, if one rents a car for travel to Burke, taking Interstate 89 to Montpelier, and then Route 2 to St. Johnsbury.. [follow instructions above from St. Johnsbury.] Also, an increasing number of people travel to Manchester, NH for air travel beyond the region.
If you plan to come to visit me, I can email you a special page of instructions to get to my house, complete with pictures of turns along the way from East Burke to Burke Hollow.
