Dear Editor,
It brought a big smile to my face this morning to read about the state’s purchase and conservation of the island in Island Pond.
One of the first people I met when I moved to Vermont in 1970 — and soon settled in Derby — was Robert Hall, who lived nearby. Robert was the last of his family — which owned the island — to live in Vermont, and he was immensely proud of the island’s heritage
Just say the word and off you’d go to Island Pond, be popped into the rowboat he kept tied up in an out-of-the-way spot on shore, and be taken out to the island, which at the time still included a cabin, which I believe his grandfather had built.
He knew the island’s history, what birds and animals managed to make it there and back, and loved it dearly.
I’m sure there are many of us whose love of Vermont was enhanced by Robert’s joy at being able to share the island, and now many more will be able to have that experience.
Dinah Yessne
Calais
Read the story on VTDigger here: Dinah Yessne: Remembering Robert Hall and Island Pond’s island.