Bike a Charming Lost Valley

Lost Valley: Putney and Westminster West, VT. 12.5 miles. Elevation gain 975 feet. Moderate/Challenging. A long climb on a paved road and a long descent on an impossibly pretty backroad. This ride makes you feel glad to be alive. Let's flee the bugs again and head back across the river to black-fly-free Putney, Vermont. Start this ride at the Putney Central School. This is not to be confused with The Putney School (an independent high school) or the Putney Grammar School (an independent K-8 school). Ample parking at Putney Central just past the school itself on Westminster W. Road. in Putney. If during school hours, park out of the way in the back of the lot. Turn right out of the parking road and make friends with this road — you're on it for the next three and a half miles. This is classically beautiful Vermont farm country with sprawling meadows on both sides of the road. But it's also classically steep Vermont countryside so you're going to climb a lot of those miles. Appreciate the pavement that makes the climbing a bit easier. When you've about had it with climbing, right after High Meadows Farm, take a right off the paved road on South Valley Road. Drift along here for about .75 miles and drop into the valley of East Putney Brook. Solar panels accentuate the view of meadows and a distant ridge. At the juncture, bear left to stay on South Valley Road. (To the right is East Putney Brook Road — a different and very cool ride for another time.) You'll take a right on Westminster W. Road (that little side trip on South Valley was to avoid a hill) and you'll approach the village of Westminster West. You'll be reminded to go SLOW, then SLOWER, and finally SLOWEST as you reach the village center. The little school here was the subject of a wonderful progressive education film called "The World in Claire's Classroom" about a one room schoolhouse at the end of the 20th century. Look it up. The film portrays, &emsp;&emsp;"What can a classroom of first and second graders in the whitest state in the union teach us about respecting diversity and building community? The World In Claire's Classroom documents a veteran public school teacher and her class over the course of a year, with a focus on the children's sustained, in-depth study of another culture. Within this deep and textured exploration, she continually focuses the children's attention back on themselves in relationship to each other, their local community, and the world." Doesn't this sound like what we need today, in all schools large and small? Claire Oglesby was a brilliant teacher who was widely respected. Remarkable that it happened in this lost little Vermont village. &emsp;&emsp;However, the signpost at the juncture in the village center pointing out distances to Minneapolis 1035, Szenstrup 3545, Putney 7, Brienza 4322 suggests this is the hub of the universe. Time to head toward Putney and you're not finished climbing yet. Take a sharp left, heading uphill on West Road on well-packed gravel. This climb is pretty and at the top of the hill it will be prettier and then you can relax into the prettiest section of the ride. All that climbing now pays off in a joyful, never too fast, low-traffic gambol down a close-to-perfect backroad. On your left you get maple-tree-framed window views of sun splashed meadows. On your right, the hills rise up to the Putney Mountain-Pinnacle-Windmill Ridge range, which is accessible via a well-maintained set of trails. This land conservation initiative is a wonderful gift to southern Vermonters, windmillhillpinnacle.org. As you descend, you'll drop into the valley of a branch of Sacketts Brook and you'll transition from sun-splashed meadows into a narrow dappled hemlock glen. Back out into meadows, then back into hemlock glen. All this while mostly gliding downhill without much effort. This if what all those Life is Good t-shirts are referring to. At the bottom of this glide, you'll merge with Tavern Hill Road and then quickly cross the main stem of Sacketts Brook. Take note as this is where you want to return to for a post-ride swim. After passing a few stately homes and a string of barns you'll be back at Westminster W. Road. Take a right and you're soon back at Putney Central School. For a digital map for this ride see: ridewithgps.com/routes/55199478 Apres Velo The Putney Diner now occupies a very non-diner looking building at the crossroads in the center of the village. Great for a cold drink and a comfort food lunch. Consider the locally famous Cajun Skillet. Great for unfussy dinners as well. Closed Tuesday and Wednesday and also between the hours of 3 and 5 p.m. For simpler grab and go salads, sandwiches and cold drinks, you can't beat The Putney Coop. It's been around since before the idea of hip cooperative grocery stores was a thing. The Putney Coop was founded in 1941 to make acquisition of food more possible for local residents during the shortages of World War II. Great place to shop, nice little cafe, a pleasing little deli. It'll give you that warm and fuzzy feeling of doing good while you shop or dine. Swimming Opportunity The Culvert, right across from the Putney Grammar School on Hickory Ridge Road (not Putney Central School), is a popular local swimming hole. You passed it a few miles back. Sackett's Brook tumbles through a big culvert into a deep emerald pool right next to the road. Really short distance from parking to immersion. Crystal clear water, sandy and gravelly bottom, always bracingly chilly, nothing creepy. Access it via steep footpath on the right side of the brook.