Where the Roads Lead is a blog about the journeys that shape us, told through stories of family trips, bookstores, mountain roads, quiet tables, unexpected detours, and the places that stay with us long after we leave.

​

I am Corey Stottlemyer. This project began in 2018, when my children, Cade and Liberty, and I took our first road trip to Vermont. It was our first big adventure as just the three of us, with a minivan packed with snacks, loose plans, and the hope that getting away might help us find something we needed.

What began as a vacation became something more lasting. Over time, Vermont became part of our family’s story. It became a place of traditions, small discoveries, wrong turns, favorite stops, and conversations that could only happen after hours together in the car.

I am now working on a book, What Brings Me to Vermont, that grows out of these trips and the years surrounding them. The book is about fatherhood, change, travel, memory, and the way a place can help a family understand itself differently.

This blog remains part of that larger journey. Some posts look back at places we found along the way. Others reflect on parenting, growth, art, books, music, and the ordinary moments that become meaningful over time.

You will not find packing lists or travel hacks here. But if you have ever returned to a place because it helped you feel more like yourself, wondered what your children will remember, or found meaning in a road you did not expect to take, you may feel at home in these stories.