Lake Champlain’s oldest tap room is in Addison, Vermont, and yes, you can hurl spears here

It’s the lake’s oldest tap room

A tavern built around 1785 sits on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain in Addison, Vermont, right at the foot of the Lake Champlain Bridge. Walk inside and you’re standing in the oldest tap room on the lake.

The building now holds a small museum that traces three waves of people who lived here: Native American, French Colonial and early American.

But every September, the real draw pulls you outside, where competitors line up on the lakeshore to hurl spears with a tool older than the bow and arrow.

People have gathered on this shore for 9,000 years

Nearly 9,000 years of human life have roots in this exact spot.

Native Americans fished, hunted, traded and camped along this stretch of Lake Champlain for thousands of years before Europeans arrived.

In 1731, the French built a fort here to control traffic on the lake, and the location became one of the most strategic points in the whole Champlain Valley.

After the Revolution, the tavern went up on the same ground and has welcomed guests ever since.

Competitors hurl spears with an ancient hunting tool

Every September, the Northeast Open Atlatl Championship takes over the lakeshore field at Chimney Point. The atlatl is a spear-throwing device that predates the bow and arrow by thousands of years.

People once used it to bring down massive animals, including woolly mammoths. You line up, aim at targets set across the grass, and let your dart fly.

Fans describe it as low-pressure and family-friendly, and competitors of all ages show up to test their aim.

Build your own atlatl and fletch your darts

First-timers can sign up for a workshop and build their own atlatl from scratch. You feather and fletch your own darts, and you take them home when you’re done.

Coaches walk you through the mechanics so you can find your throwing form before you compete.

Throwers go for both accuracy and distance, and kids get their own age groups so they compete right alongside the grown-ups. You don’t need experience to join in.

The 1785 tap room still has stories on the walls

Inside the original tavern building, exhibits walk you through the long life of the structure itself. Displays trace the Barnes family, who owned the land for well over a century.

You learn about the old ferries that crossed the lake and the 1929 bridge that once connected Vermont to New York from this very point.

Standing in a room where travelers have stopped for nearly 240 years puts the history right under your feet.

Pull open drawers full of 6,000-year-old artifacts

A collector’s cabinet sits in the museum, and you’re meant to open it.

Pull out the drawers and you’ll find stone tools and pottery pieces dating back as far as 6,000 years.

The objects show how the earliest people on this shore lived and worked, and all of them were gathered from western Vermont and eastern New York.

It’s a hands-on way to connect with a past that stretches far beyond anything written down.

Two exhibits trace the clash of cultures at this point

The “Crossing Paths” exhibit follows the meeting of different peoples on this narrow stretch of Lake Champlain. “Point of Contact” digs into Native, French, English and early American life along the shore.

Both displays use real artifacts dug up during the bridge construction project, and they lay out how different groups shared and fought over this land.

The curators keep the storytelling clear, so a complex history never feels like a lecture.

A tiny post office display adds a local twist

One small exhibit honors the Chimney Point post office, which operated here for years. You can see its old postmark and learn the story behind the office itself.

Interpretive materials about the Lake Champlain Bridge crossing add context to what you see when you step outside.

These compact displays round out the museum without dragging, and they give you a sense of how this small piece of shoreline stayed connected to the wider world.

Walk the outdoor trail through 9,000 years of markers

A short loop trail circles the grounds with interpretive signs spaced along the way. Markers cover the earliest human life here, going back 9,000 years.

One sign explains the 1731 French fort. Another tells the story of redware pottery made on this ground in the 1790s.

At one point along the path, you can still see a preserved pier from the old 1929 bridge. The whole walk takes minutes, but it covers millennia.

Bring a fishing rod and a picnic blanket

The grounds open right onto the lake, with a picnic area set near the water and a dock that gives you easy access to the shore.

Anglers favor this spot for fishing on Lake Champlain, and a boat launch lets you get out on the water if you bring your own vessel. Kids have room to run on the open lawn while you eat.

It’s a lunch stop that earns its own visit.

The porch view stretches clear to New York

A wide porch wraps around the tavern, and from it you look straight out over Lake Champlain to the bridge and the New York shore.

At this point, the lake narrows to about a third of a mile, so the far side feels close enough to wave at. You can sit here and watch boats pass through one of the most scenic gateways into Vermont.

The view alone would be worth the drive, even without everything inside.

Walk across the bridge to forts and a Rodin sculpture

The 2011 Lake Champlain Bridge has paths for walkers and bikers, and a stroll across takes you to Crown Point, New York. On the other side, you can wander the ruins of two old forts that once guarded the lake.

The nearby Champlain Memorial Lighthouse holds a sculpture by Auguste Rodin, which is not what you expect to find on a lakeshore in upstate New York. Signs along both sides explain the history as you go.

Visit Chimney Point State Historic Site in Vermont

You’ll find Chimney Point State Historic Site at 8149 VT Route 17W in Addison, Vermont, right at the foot of the Lake Champlain Bridge.

The museum opens seasonally from late May through mid-October, closing on Indigenous Peoples’ Day. The atlatl championship falls on a set weekend each September, so check the official website for exact dates.

The grounds, picnic area and history trail are all open during the season, and walking paths across the bridge connect you to Crown Point on the New York side.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

Read more from this brand:

• Congress made Vermont’s Lake Champlain a Great Lake, then took it back 18 days later
• Burlington, Vermont sits between two mountain ranges and a lake Congress called a Great Lake
• Two Vermont towns on Route 100 refused to sell out and serious skiers noticed