Editors' picks across 8categories — the dock with the deepest channel, the winery with the view, the restaurant with the right wine list, the trail nobody's on at sunrise.
The only real restaurant on Lake Willoughby itself, on Route 5A a few minutes below North Beach — burgers, a full bar, and a patio angled toward the water. A local family took over the space after years of it sitting empty and split the operation in two: the pub runs seven days into the evening, but the kitchen keeps a tighter Wednesday-through-Sunday window. Show up on a Monday and you'll get a beer, not dinner.
Visit ↗Small seven-barrel, family-owned brewery on Route 5 in West Burke, about 15 minutes south of the lake — the closest real taproom to Westmore. Open seasonally, May through October, which lines up with the lake season almost exactly. Not a destination brewery on the scale of some in this region, but the right stop on the way back from a day at South Beach.
Visit ↗The lake's family beach, at the north end off Route 5A — a long sand crescent with a gradual drop-off, bathhouses, and Mount Pisgah's cliffs framing the far shore. Parking is free, at least for now; Westmore has floated charging for it, so don't assume that stays true forever. This is the default swimming spot for anyone with small kids, since the bottom doesn't fall away a few feet from shore.
Visit ↗A pebble-and-sand stretch at the base of the Mount Pisgah cliffs, reached by a short, flat walk-in from the south-end parking. The water goes cold and deep fast here — this is a 300-foot lake, not a swimming pool — and the far end has a long-running informal clothing-optional tradition worth knowing before you bring the kids or a visiting grandparent. Better for the view and the paddle launch than for wading.
The hike Lake Willoughby is actually known for — the South Trail runs 4.4 miles round-trip with about 1,650 feet of climbing to cliff-edge overlooks straight down onto the water. North and Long Pond approaches offer shorter or longer alternatives to the same summit. The cliffs close seasonally, typically March through August, to protect nesting peregrine falcons — check before planning a summit push.
A three-lane concrete ramp on the lake's northeast shore, state-run, with gravel parking and a small dock — no beach, no swimming area, just the access point. This is essentially the entire public boat infrastructure on a lake with almost no motorized-boat culture; most of what launches here is a fishing boat or a pontoon heading for a quiet cove, not a wake-boat crowd. Free to use.
Visit ↗Family-run campground at the lake's south end renting kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards for the specific experience of paddling under the cliffs rather than around them — the water often sits flat enough at sunrise to make an early start worth it. The camp store runs a small coffee counter in season, which is about as close to a coffee shop as Lake Willoughby gets. Closed for the winter like nearly everything else down here.
Visit ↗Vermont Route 58, approaching from the north, delivers the view the lake is known for — the water opening up between the sheer faces of Pisgah and Hor from a height most people don't expect on a back road. There's no marked pull-off; drivers just stop where the shoulder allows and get out. Better in early morning light, before summer haze settles into the gap by afternoon.