By Susan Durant
It was a brisk afternoon for the final Killington Farmers’ Market of the 2018 season. A group of friends thought it was the perfect excuse to explore the trails at Mission Farm and end the afternoon at the market. Four of the friends, from the Greater Killington Women’s club, were joined by the Killington Rec Director, Cathy Foutch.
The five trails (2.4 miles in total) at Mission Farm are fairly short and vary in degree of difficulty. The easiest is Diane’s River path, named after Diane Root, the former vicar. The 0.6 mile loop is a mostly flat, mowed path behind the vicarage. It meanders through a meadow and alongside the Ottaquechee River. The most challenging trail is the half mile Ellen’s Vista trail. The trail is named in memory of Ellen Booth. She was a life-long member of Church of Our Saviour/Mission Farm who died in 2016 at age 102. The trail follows an old logging road and gets steep in places with a total of 281 feet of elevation. The trails are well maintained by Mission Farm volunteers, headed up by Anne Brown.
“The Killington Farmers’ Market had a wonderful first season bringing together local vendors and Killington residents in a beautiful setting, Mission Farm,” said Foutch. “It was great to see so much community support and enthusiasm. I am looking forward to moving ahead next year with the market on a weekly basis. Having it weekly will create a more stable schedule for folks so that they can rely on the market for some of their more common weekly needs like eggs and vegetables.”
Elena Santos, a vendor from Farm and Wilderness, said she enjoyed the landscape and the small number of vendors. The relaxed setting made it easy to have nice interactions and conversations with people, compared to the hustle and bustle of the larger markets. She knows the market will grow with time, but she has enjoyed being involved at the beginning. Farm and Wilderness offered fresh produce, maple syrup, and other products they produced at all six markets of the season.
The market included non-farm products as well. Colleen Wilcox from Wander on Words plans on coming back next year.
“It is nice to chat with everyone and hear what’s on their minds, and since I sell cards it’s an appropriate time to find out who is celebrating an anniversary or birthday and get more involved in the community,” Wilcox said.
The market was co-sponsored by the Town of Killington, Church of Our Saviour at Mission Farm, and the Killington Pico Area Association, and it averaged about six to seven vendors each month. Next year’s market is tentatively scheduled for Thursdays from 3:30-6 p.m., June 13 through Oct. 10, 2019. If you would like to be a vendor and learn how to get involved please contact Cathy Foutch, recdirector@killingtontown.com.
Photo Submitted
Cathy Foutch, Janina Curtis, and Theresa Toole hike the trails at Mission Farm church in Killington.
