Resupply in Stowe and Waitsfield

Howdy,

I'll be section hiking the LT this August sobo from the northern terminus to Rt 4, with a can stove. Resupply in Stowe and resupply/nero day in Waitsfield.

Clearwater Sports in Waitsfield has told me they sell denatured alcohol by the ounce, but I got no response from Umiak Outfitters in Stowe.

Is anyone sure if Umiak in Stowe sells denatured alcohol by the ounce? Or, is anyone sure that gas stations in Stowe sell Yellow HEET in the summer?

Any lodging/restaurant/fun recommendations in Waitsfield would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Brian

Waitsfield: Do not miss the Mad Taco, and if you like beer, get anything they have from Lawson's. We got this advice when we hitched in from App Gap, and did not regret it :) There are two small grocery stores, both are fine for resupply. We spent the night at the Hyde Away. Nice place, good little restaurant and bar. Easy hitching to and from the trail.

Stowe: not sure. We stopped in Waterbury, which is not far, and they had the best grocery store of the trip (Village Market, I think). We spent the night in town, then got to Smuggler's Notch. Stowe looked a lot smaller.

Not sure on alcohol fuel in either place. We had canisters, which have their own resupply problems....

Good luck and happy trails.

I don't recommend going to Stowe. Lots of traffic through Smugglers Notch, but it's all tourist traffic and they don't often give rides. Plus it's a two part hitch, as you have to go a few miles south on RT100 to get to the center of town and the supper market or other services.

At Waitsfield, I think I stayed at the Hyde Away Inn, which is on 17 a few miles before town. They have a restaurant and bar. Between the room and dinner, I dropped $150 staying there. Lodging in this area is top dollar.

I resupplied in Johnson, Waitsfield, Richmond, (west on RT2) and Manchester Center. Ops, forgot Rutland. Stayed at the Inn and took the bus to Rutland.

I don't remember where I got my HEET when doing the E2E a few years ago, but I didn't have to go out of my way to find it.

Yes, gas stations in Waitsfield sell Heet in summer. But . . . if they don't, Bisbee's Hardware will have it.

Cool places in Waitsfield:

American Flatbread at Laureau Farm. It's a pizza place but all natural, cooked in front of you in the wood fired, bee hive type oven. A bit pricey but it's good food. There's also a swimming area in the Mad River just across Rt. 100 from here.

The Big Picture Cafe. Cool little movie theatre where you can have a meal while you watch the movie. There's often something else going on here like an art show.

Chez Henri in the Sugarbush village. $$$ Walk down the ski slopes from the Long Trail. But then you've got to walk back the slopes up to the trail.

if you will be NOBO on the LT, I'd get off at Lincoln Gap and hitch into Waitsfield then hitch back to Lincoln Gap the next day. Warren Falls isn't far from where the Lincoln Gap road joins Rt. 100. That's worth a visit . . . lots of naturally formed pools and waterfalls cascading along.

Thanks for all the info. I'm convinced now that denatured alcohol and/or HEET will be easy enough to find.

The reason I'm planning on Stowe is because they have a 7-day-a-week outfitter for my mail drop (Umiak Outfitters, according to longtrailvermont.com, though I haven't verified that yet). If I'm a half day late it'll be Saturday afternoon and the PO will be closed til Monday. I have a food dehydrator and BJ's Wholesale in my town, so mail drops are the way for me.

Suggestions for an alternative? To be clear, I need someplace in Stowe or within a day's trail of Stowe, and it has to be open on Saturday and Sunday for a mail drop.

Do people agree that Stowe is a pain? Full of hostiles?

Thanks,
Brian

when i hiked the LT i full resupplied in waitsfield, hitched into richmond and bought some snacks at the bakery there and at a gas station.

next full resupply was in johnson.