Vermont Car Rental and St. Johnsbury, VT

St. Johnsbury is a town in Caledonia County, VT that is about 40 miles south of the Canadian border with your Vermont car rental. This was named as the “best Small Town” in National Geographic Adventure’s “where to live and play” in 2006. The town lies at the heart of the Passumpsic River basin 10 miles northwest of the Connecticut River.

Step back to a simpler time

In 1760 the town was granted as part of the New Hampshire Grants, but was regranted by Vermont in 1786. Soon there were 143 people living in the town. By the mid-1800s the town was a minor manufacturing center, mainly producing scales and maple syrup products. A railroad connected Boston to Montreal, Canada in the 1850s and St. Johnsbury quickly grew in size.

Expand your horizons

The Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium is a great place to stop with your Vermont car rental to learn about natural science. They house an extensive collection in an old Victorian building on Main Street in town. When you visit with your Vermont car rental you will find a collection of historical objects as well as scientific objects. Many of the displays feature significant examples of 19th century agricultural, industrial, and household life. There are farm instruments, costumes and textiles, photographs, diaries, and much more of what happened in the area before our time.

The museum also features the largest and most comprehensive collection of New England fauna and flora north of Boston. There is also a large collection of New England mammals and birds, with most of the native species represented when you visit with your Vermont car rental. Also found here is the Vermont State Geologic Collection and a herbarium of New England plants.

Visiting the museum is easy. It is located at 1302 Main Street in St. Johnsbury with your Vermont car rental. The museum is open Monday – Saturday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Sunday afternoon from 1-5. There are show times in the Planetarium on weekends at 1:30. Admission is $6 for adults and $5 for children.

Enjoy the great outdoors

Outdoor activities are also abundant with your Vermont car rental. In the summer, many people around here like to mountain bike and run on the trails near St. Johnsbury. There is an extensive system of trails maintained by Kingdom Trails on 15 minutes north of the town. Here will find more than one hundred miles of trails to enjoy. Also nearby is the Connecticut River where you can enjoy canoeing, kayaking, and boating (rentals are available). In the winter there are many ski resorts within a one hour drive of St. Johnsbury with your Vermont car rental. There is also a small mountain nearby, Burke Mountain.