A village on a pond
Island Pond takes its name from the 22-acre island in the middle of its pond, and the village grew up around both the water and the railroad. In the 19th century it was a Grand Trunk Railway division point midway between Montreal and Portland, and the old depot still anchors a compact, walkable center with a village beach.
Brighton State Park
On the edge of the village, Brighton State Park offers a sandy beach, campsites, boat rentals and a nature center on Spectacle Pond — an easy, family-friendly introduction to the far Kingdom’s water and woods.
Into the Nulhegan Basin
Just east, the Nulhegan Basin spreads across tens of thousands of acres of boreal forest and bog. Its logging roads and trails are open for walking, cycling, paddling and wildlife-watching, and interpretive sites explain the rare spruce-fir ecosystem and its moose, bear and boreal birds.
Four seasons at the edge
Island Pond is a year-round basecamp — paddling and fishing in summer, foliage and moose in fall, and in winter one of Vermont’s great snowmobiling hubs, with VAST trails fanning out in every direction.
Good to know
Why is it called Island Pond?+
For the 22-acre island in the middle of the pond the village wraps around.
What is the Nulhegan Basin?+
A boreal wilderness east of Island Pond — the Vermont unit of the Silvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge, full of moose, bog and spruce-fir forest.
Is Island Pond good in winter?+
Yes — it is a major snowmobiling hub, with VAST trails radiating out and ice fishing on the pond.