Groton State Forest encompasses 27,000 beautiful acres of rugged terrain in the northeastern part of Vermont. Located roughly between Montpelier and St. Johnsbury, most of its territory is in the far southwest corner of Caledonia County, and thus the far southwest of the traditional boundaries of the Northeast Kingdom as well.
The primary access to most of the forest is via Vermont route 232, which roughly bisects it. The color wasn't that great in most of Groton State Forest when I was there, so I didn't shoot much within its borders. But I did have a great experience at Noyes Pond, a real gem located off a dedicated access road south of most of the forest's more popular attractions.
Noyes Pond was created in the 1890s to service a mill that operated on the site. In 1939, the pond and the area around it was purchased by a wealthy Bostonian named Harry K. Noyes, who built a guest house near the shore of the pond and named the parcel of land the Seyon Trout Ranch. (Seyon, Noyes, get it?) Eventually the property was bought by the state, and incorporated into Groton State Forest. The color around this pond was spectacular; here you can see the path that leads from Seyon Lodge and the parking area to the water, where a couple of inviting wooden chairs were waiting.
The primary access to most of the forest is via Vermont route 232, which roughly bisects it. The color wasn't that great in most of Groton State Forest when I was there, so I didn't shoot much within its borders. But I did have a great experience at Noyes Pond, a real gem located off a dedicated access road south of most of the forest's more popular attractions.
Noyes Pond was created in the 1890s to service a mill that operated on the site. In 1939, the pond and the area around it was purchased by a wealthy Bostonian named Harry K. Noyes, who built a guest house near the shore of the pond and named the parcel of land the Seyon Trout Ranch. (Seyon, Noyes, get it?) Eventually the property was bought by the state, and incorporated into Groton State Forest. The color around this pond was spectacular; here you can see the path that leads from Seyon Lodge and the parking area to the water, where a couple of inviting wooden chairs were waiting.