Think of Vermont surrounded by water and you'll have a picture of Grand Isle County: three islands and a peninsula comprising five towns strung north to south along Lake Champlain. Here on Isle La Motte, North Hero, South Hero, Grand Isle and the peninsula of Alburg, there is much of the variety of the mainland. Summer days are colored with emerald fields, red barns and brown dirt roads ribboning between meadows sprinkled with wildflowers, so typical of Vermont's favorite landscapes. The major difference is that while mountains are visible, none of them is actually on these islands. Both the Adirondacks of New York and the Green Mountains of Vermont are separated from the islands by Lake Champlain, often called the sixth Great Lake.

This small but crucial difference makes Grand Isle a haven for bicyclists seeking a more or less flat landscape. But bike riders are not alone in enjoying the quiet beauty of this sparsely populated county. Tourism has long been the area's major source of income. The rugged beauty of the rocky shoreline and the numerous campgrounds on the islands regularly draw thousands of summer visitors. Second homes are common to the area. So too are mom-and-pop bed and breakfasts, which throw their doors and porches wide open to visitors all summer, then batten them down again as the long winter closes the islands to many visitors.

Agriculture still plays an important role in the county, as is evident from the pride and plenty of South Hero's annual Apple Fest. Although apple orchards still dot the islands, dairy farming has diminished and dozens of alternative farming enterprises are taking root, from herb farms to a winery.

Despite these enterprises, most residents commute to the mainland to work, and although there are plenty of convenience stores, many islanders head to St. Albans or Burlington on the mainland to do their shopping.

While the county is experiencing some of the effects of rapid change in neighboring in Franklin and Chittenden counties, it remains a place of quiet charm. With their scenic, winding shorelines and orderly fields adorned with flowers and trees, the islands are rural diamonds, nestled in a glistening sapphire setting.