If you live in the upper-north east of New England you know that the water temperature of the Atlantic doesn't really get bearable until late August. With "back-to-school" signs in all of the stores and the recent re-release of the PSL everyone's itching to be wearing flannels and bean boots and thoughts of bikinis and sunscreen are a thing of the past. These are lies. September is actually the best month to be on or in the water. The air temperatures might be a bit lower but with the warmer water it's actually the most delightful experience.

1. Summer Is Not Over

Until Sept 22 that is. So enjoy the next few weeks!! That means keep donning those flip flops and enjoy your last days of salty beachy hair!

2. Avoid the Kids and the Crowds

With kids back in school and families back home from vacation don your post-work sunglasses, grab the beach reads you didn't get to and splash some of your favorite summer beverage into a tumbler and get your toes in the sand!

3. The Water is HOT!

And by that I mean it will feel delicious on your skin and not take your breath away in the worst frigid way! Jump in!

4. You are Finally Tan(ish)!

If you're pasty-pale like me that is, by September you finally look a little less translucent so go rock that beach bod!

5. Get Out for One Last Camping Adventure

Late summer and early fall are the best camping seasons so grab your tent one last time and get out there! The water-side sites are finally rid of bugs and some of the best sites are more available in the slight off-season.

prAna just released their fall line which I highly recommend checking out HERE- lots of cozy sweaters and new colors in the Kara jean (if you know me - they are the ones I wear all the time) you can snag 15% off all new items with the code GHGP15 You can also find the suits we’re wearing on sale for 50% off!! Who says back to school shopping is just for kids!? #fallforprana

Kaleigh and I arrived at the Lark Hotel's Field Guide Hotel in Stowe, VT after shooting a wedding at Mad River Glen on a gorgeous Vermont fall day. We were kindly welcomed and given the key to the Lark Suite in the tallest tower in the castle (it did require some hiking to get to it). Upon entering the suite our jaws went slack at the gorgeous interior decorations and Kaleigh jumped up and down like a kid for the cookies that had been left for us. Quick to take in all of the amenities the hotel had to offer, we dropped our things and ran for a dip in the pool, hot tub and soaked our tired bodies in the bathtub with Lather Eucalyptus Bath Salts. We determined that there is no such thing as too much soaking of tired bodies.

We made up a cocktail for the weekend that, after frantic brainstorming we named “The Leaf Peeper in Flannel”. A mix of bourbon, blood orange bitters, cardamom clove syrup and a splash of soda. Refreshing yet quietly alluding to the autumn season knocking loudly at the door.

After exploring a bit of the area, we enjoyed a delicious dinner at The Bench accompanied by the tastiest beer – Edward from Hill Farmstead Brewery - we'll definitely have to check this one out next time we are back in Vermont.

BREAKFAST IN BED!

Our first morning waking up at the Field Guide, Kaleigh leapt out of bed faster than I have ever seen her move before 9 a.m. to retrieve the breakfast basket that waited for us at the door. Having let the staff know at check in that I can’t eat wheat I was delighted to find a number of gluten free items had been included. We devoured the OJ, raisin scone, GF peanut butter oat bar, hardboiled eggs with herbs and washed it down with tea and coffee.

After breakfast we packed up some snacks and headed out for a short, mellow hike up to the Stowe Pinnacle via the Pinnacle Meadows Trail – roughly 2.5 miles round trip the hike was enough to work up a sweat and still have plenty of energy for afternoon adventuring.

COFFEE AND TEA BREAK!

After a short coffee, tea and knitting break, we drove up the road a few miles to check out the brand new von Trapp Brewery Bier Hall that had only opened a few days previously and almost inhaled a flight of beers, a garden salad and bratwurst and cheese platter (I packed rice crackers) and purchased some of the Oktoberfest to bring back to Maine.

We continued a bit further up the road to the Trapp Family Lodge where I spent many days skiing as a kid and high school ski racer and we went for a walk and ran about singing “The Hills Are Alive” at the top of our lungs.

We took a little catnap/cocktail break back at the room, knitting and watching Tastemade on the apple TV before heading downstairs to enjoy a bite to eat at Picnic Social, the hotel’s own restaurant. We split a cheeseburger, curried delicata squash and smashed fingerling potatoes (one of Kaleigh’s favorite things to make at home). I lost at cornhole – terribly (nothing new) and we hit the hay early.

After another breakfast in bed, we enjoyed a yummy cup of Vermont Coffee Company coffee in the lobby before heading home. We were able to sneak in a quick visit to the Gold Brook Covered Bridge before hopping back on 89 south and heading for Maine.

Look 1: Shirt: L.L.Bean Signature Jacket: L.L.Bean (make sure to size down) Jeans: L.L.Bean Signature Boots: L.L. Bean (Order a full size down and do it now!) Necklace: Watts in Maine Watch: North Twenty Two Hat: Stetson(found it at RENY's)

Look 2: Shirt: L.L.Bean Sweater: Dale of Norway Corduroys: prAna Clogs: Troentorp Watch: North Twenty Two

Look 3: Shirt: L.L.Bean Signature Sweater: Dale of Norway Jeans: prAna Clogs: Troentorp Watch: North Twenty Two Necklace: Watts in Maine

Thank you to Lark Hotels and the Field Guide Hotel for putting us up for two nights, and to L.L.Bean, prAna, Watts of Maine, North Twenty Two, and Troentorp Clogs for the fun fall attire!

Also - if you want to snag yourself a cozy fall kit from We Are Knitters for 15% off use the code GPOWERSWAK at check out. : )

5 Reasons to Get On (or In) The Water in September