Events, Features

Update 8/18/21 – It’s looking like rain for the first stop of the New England Blade & Camp. If day one rains out, you can set up your tents at the first camping spot anytime after 5 pm.

Important: Due to the increase in Delta Variant of COVID, our gracious hosts require that you MUST wear a mask inside their homes if you have to use the bathroom. Otherwise, both houses are off-limits. The land owners let us camp for FREE, so please respect their kindness and wear your masks indoors. This also applies to the barn at Myles’ house. If you are unvaccinated, he has asked that you please wear a mask. If you have an issue with this, then either stay outside or stay home.

After a year break due to COVID-19, the Annual New England Blade & Camp event in Vermont returns and will occur August 19th-23rd. For 2021 we bring you a bigger and better weekend and have extended the event to five days and four nights of skating, camping, and swimming. This year we will possibly be having up to three video premieres. The first one to be confirmed is “BINS” by Tyler Night. This year we will also are putting together a challenge style competition influenced by what Winterclash did this year. We are still working out the details of this concept and will post information shortly. 

The event kicks off Thursday, August 19th at 2:00 pm at the Brattleboro Skatepark in Southern Vermont. The 2021 NEBC is taking placed the weekend before the 6th Annual Boschi Pope Skate Off (August 28th) in New York City. We hope that you can attend both of these events in the Northeast.

When posting to social media, please tag all your photos and videos with #NEBCVT2021. Go to the official Facebook Event Page for more information. Cell phone service in Vermont is terrible, so you should download offline maps onto your google maps app on your phone to navigate your way around the state.

Myles Cotter-Sparrow and I look forward to seeing you all in Vermont for a fun weekend of skating and swimming.

Jan Eric Welch

Note: This is a live article and will be updated with new information throughout the month.

Thursday August 19th

Brattleboro Skatepark

Perseverance skatepark
157 Guilford St.
Brattleboro, VT 05301

2:00 pm – Meetup at Perseverance skatepark in Brattleboro, Vermont. We will session this park for two hours before driving one hour north to the Ludlow Skatepark.

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Food Recommendations Brattleboro Area

Ludlow Skatepark

Dorsey Park
41 Andover St.
Ludlow, VT 05149

Meetup at 5:00 pm at Dorsey Park in Ludlow, Vermont. After the session, we will go swimming at Buttermilk Falls.

Swimming at Buttermilk Falls in Ludlow

After skating at Ludlow park, we will head to Buttermilk Falls to swim. The falls are a 10-minute drive from the skatepark. Once you arrive at the falls, it is a .05 mile hike down a trail. Buttermilk Falls is one of several classic swimming holes in southern Vermont. There is a large pool below both the middle and upper falls, each deep enough for complete submersion. The 20-foot tall middle falls drops into a deep 25-foot vast pool of clear, olive-green tinted water.

Buttermilk Falls
Ludlow, Vermont

Food Recommendations Ludlow

Camping in Stockbridge

After skating and swimming we will head north 50 minutes to Myles Cotter-Sparrows house on top of hunger mountain in Stockbridge, Vermont to set up camp for Thursday and Friday nights. Make sure you load off-line maps on your map app because cell service doesn’t work here. Here is the dropped pin in google maps for Myle’s house. Myles and his family are kind enough to host us for two nights of camping on their property so please be as respectful as possible.

Note: For people who are bypassing the first campsites, or want to set up early, the property will be available all day for you to set up tents. Most people will be arriving at night, so may sure you have headlamps and flashlights so you can find your campsite and set up your area.

Video Premiere (tba)

Several videos are slated to premiere at this year’s event. Which videos will premiere on which night, will be announced soon.

Food Recommendations Stockbridge Area

  • Cockadoodle Pizza Cafe (Bethel, Vermont) – Pizza, good Beer selection.
  • Wild Fern (Stockbridge, Vermont) – Farm to Table
  • Tozier’s Restaurant (Bethel, Vermont) – Snackbar style, specializes in seafood
  • Creekhouse Diner (Bethel, Vermont) – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.

Friday August 20th

Friday we will wake up and skate the Bristol Skatepark, before driving to the Warren DIY Park, followed by swimming at Warren falls. Friday night we will be camping at Myles’ house again.

Bristol Skatepark

We will meet at Bristol Skatepark at 11:00 am. The skatepark is a one-hour drive from Myles’ house. We will skate there for a couple of hours before moving to the Warren Skatepark.

Bristol Skatepark
80 Airport Dr.
Bristol, VT 05443

Food Recommendations Near Bristol

Warren Skatepark

We will meet at the Warren Skatepark at 2:00 pm and skate there till 5:00 pm. The park is a 30-minute drive from Bristol park. Note: The images of the Warren Skatepark below were shot in 2019. Since then, the park builders have removed much of the old asphalt on the ground and replaced it with concrete. This is a top-notch DIY concrete park!

Warren Skatepark
254 School Rd
Warren, VT 05674

Swimming at Warren Falls

After Warren Skatepark, we will venture to the iconic Warren Falls, a Vermont favorite. The pools below the falls are spacious and full of clear green-tinted water. Cliff jumping is a true past-time here. The falls themselves, a series of several small plunges, are mostly overshadowed by the allure of the pools and the striking gorge walls.

Warren Falls
3919 VT-100
Warren, VT 05674

Food Recommendations Warren

Optional Skatepark: Bethel Skatepark

A small new concrete skate park was built down the road from Myles’ house in Bethel, Vermont. This is an optional park for people to skate.

Bethel Skatepark
115 Pleasant St.
Bethel, VT 05032

Video Premiere (tba)

Several videos are slated to premiere at this year’s event. Which videos will premiere on which night, will be announced soon.

Saturday August 21st

Saturday we will pack up camp and head north to session Barre Skatepark, then Johnson Skatepark, followed by swimming, before heading to the property of Jan Welch’s family in Lyndonville, Vermont to camp Saturday and Sunday nights.

Barre Recreational Skate Park

Our first park of the day will be the Barre Recreational Skate Park in Barre, Vermont. It is a 45-minute drive from Myles’ house. The meetup will be at 11:00 am.

Barre Recreational Skate Park
46 Websterville Rd
East Barre, VT 05649

Johnson Skatepark

We will meet at the Johnson Skatepark at 3:00 pm, which is a one-hour drive north of the Barre skatepark.

Johnson Skate Park
186 Park Loop
Johnson, VT 05656

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Optional: Trail Skating the Stowe Recreation Path

If you want to get in a distance skate on your big wheel setup, Stowe has a beautiful and scenic paved 5.3-mile recreational path that you can check out.

Stowe Recreation Path
Stowe, VT 05672

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Swimming at Joe’s Pond

Conveniently located on state highway 15 on the way to Lyndonville from the Johnson Skatepark, Joe’s Pond in West Danville offers a beautiful public beach on a scenic body of water. The parking lot is right at the beach before the 15 meets up with the 2. There are two food options right near the beach as well (see below).

Joe’s Pond Beach
West Danville, VT 05873

Food Recommendations Warren

Drive to Lyndonville to Camp

Saturday late afternoon we will drive 1.5 hours to Lyndonville, Vermont to camp at my parent’s property. They are being kind enough to open up their property for us. The address will be provided during the event.

Camping in Lyndonville, Vermont

Saturday and Sunday nights, we will be camping on Jan Eric Welch’s parent’s property in Lyndonville, Vermont. The property has gorgeous views of Burke Mountain. Jan has done significant work on the property since the last event in 2019. There are now several areas to set up camp in the woods for both tents and hammocks. There are currently five baskets on the property for people who like disc golf, so bring your discs if you want to play some rounds.

Jan Welch Home
767 Cotton Road
Lyndonville, VT 05851

Food Recommendations Lyndonville

Sunday August 22nd

Lyndonville Skatepark

Sunday we will start the day at the Lyndon Outing Club Skatepark in Lyndonville, Vermont from 10:00 am-noon. We will then make the hour drive up north to the Newport Skatepark.

Lyndon Outing Club Skatepark
1580 Lily Pond Rd
Lyndonville, VT 05851

Newport Skatepark

We will meet at the Newport Skatepark at 1:30 pm and session there until 4:00 pm before heading to Lake Willoughby.

Newport Skatepark
155 Gardner Park Rd.
Newport VT

Swimming at Lake Willoughby

From the Newport Skatepark, we will drive for 30 minutes to the north shore of Lake Willoughby to dip into its healing waters and hang out at the beach. We will meet a North Beach at 5:00 pm. This has been the fan-favorite swimming spot for the past two road trips. Lake Willoughby is a 5-mile long glacial lake over 320 feet (98 m) deep in From the Newport Skatepark, we will drive for 30 minutes to the north shore of Lake Willoughby to dip into its healing waters and hang out at the beach. Lake Willoughby is a 5-mile long glacial lake over 320 feet (98 m) deep in places and resembles a Norwegian fjord. This stunning natural wonder has been listed as a National Natural Landmark since 1967. The sheer cliffs of Mount Pisgah and Mount Hor in the background are nesting areas for the rare peregrine falcon.

Willoughby Lake North Beach
Brownington, VT 05860

Dinner at Parker Pie

After swimming at Lake Willoughby we will head to Parker Pie Company in West Glover Vermont meeting there around 6:30 – 7:00 pm. Parker Pie’s is the most famous pizza joint in Vermont and has some amazing beers on tap including the famed Hill Farmstead Brewery.

Parker Pie Company
161 County Rd
West Glover, VT 05875

Other Things to see and do around Lyndonville

University of Northern Vermont Skatepark

There is a small prefab park one mile from my house that is fun to skate.

Light Plant Drive Swimming Hole

There is another little secluded swimming hole at the end of Light Plant Drive.

Burke Mountain Toll Road & Fire Tour

About 7 miles away from Lyndonville is Burke Mountain. It is a premiere ski area in the winter and an amazing place to hike in the summer. For $5 a carload you can drive to the summit and walk up the old fire tower to see amazing 360 views of Quebec, New Hampshire and Vermont.

Monday August 23rd

West Lebanon Skatepark

Rusty Bearings Skatepark
West Lebanon, NH 03784

Monday we will be packing up at camp and making our way an hour south to the West Lebanon Skatepark for the final session of the event. Meetup at 11:00 am.

Food Recommendations Lebanon/White River Junction

Edits from Previous Years

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What you need to know…

What you should bring:

  • Water
  • Bug spray
  • Sunscreen
  • Head lamps / flashlights
  • Tent or hammock with bug net and rain tarp
  • Sleeping bag
  • swimsuit / towel

Everything else:

We will be camping on private land. Property owners will be present so please be respectful. We are practicing a pack it in and pack it out policy. If you bring dogs, they need to be leashed at the Lyndonville campsite.

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