You’d think losing all that retail space would be a drawback, but consider it again: Every one in town pretty much has to come by every day or two. Guaranteed traffic, right past the milk case. There’s a two-bedroom apartment upstairs and a small barn out back. Also out back, the beautiful Middlebury River flows through a deep gorge; out front, Route 125 leads up from the college town below, the conduit for a steady stream of bike riders who pause at the store to quench their thirst. In the summer, authors from around the world flow in for the famed Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference; in the fall, the colors are unmatched.

Source: New York Times March 31, 2018 01:30 UTC