WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Fall Foliage: Randolph

Randolph, Vermont - October 7, 2011

Finally, some frost in the North Country; a precious ingredient in the complex recipe for the reds and oranges of fall foliage.

This season has been delayed, at least in part due to the extended stretch of dismal, gray, mild weather, but now some bright sun to melt the cold and hopefully brighten the leaves.

When searching for fall foliage, it's always fun to tie the tour in with something else and today, photographer Shelly Holt Allen and I decided to follow the Vermont Cheese Trail. The Vermont Cheese Council has put together a map that points to the Vermont cheesemakers who are open to the public.

We picked up the Cheese Trail in Websterville, where we were hoping to see some nice color and sample some cheese at the Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery.

Asked what her favorite is, Hilary Schwoegler of Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery replied, "I'd have to say my favorite is Bom Bouche, a really fantastic aged goat cheese. It's ash-ripened, it's a soft-ripened cheese, it's really fantastic."

We continued on to Brookfield, home of the famous Floating Bridge. It's warming up now, feeling more like late summer again instead of fall, and the foliage seems a bit stuck between seasons as well. Even the geese don't seem to be in a big hurry to fly south.

Time for another cheese stop. This sounds good-- Fat Toad Farm! Say hello to the goats and stop in the farm store for a sample of cheese and caramel.

Just a bit up the road you can visit the cows and try more cheese at Neighborly Farms. They also have a shop open to the public.

Also in the neighborhood is Turkey Hill Farm. The Oshas are busy pressing cider and getting ready for their apple festival this weekend. They'll be having chili and apple crisp and of course lots of cider.

"We also do a boiled cider; it's something that our ancestors used to do quite often every year. It's a wonderful product, people love it. It's a syrup," said Stuart Osha of Turkey Hill Farm.

We've had to work a little harder today to find the bright colors of fall, but there is more to a Vermont autumn than colored leaves. We still have pumpkins, apple pies, cider and of course, Vermont cheese.