Vermont made the monarch its state butterfly, and it is a good choice for families because the whole life cycle is easy to find. Milkweed grows along nearly every Vermont field edge, and if you turn the leaves over in July you can find the striped caterpillars doing the work. The adults you see in September are the great-grandchildren of the ones that left Mexico in spring, and they are the generation that makes the entire journey back. Around them fly fritillaries over the mountain meadows, red admirals patrolling garden paths, and swallowtails drifting along the sunny edges of the Green Mountains.
This guide maps the best spots to find butterflies in Vermont with kids. Give your young explorer a mission before you go with Nature Explorer Club's Butterflies of Vermont Activity Book to track every discovery your family makes.
Best Spots for Butterfly Watching in Vermont
We mapped the best butterfly watching locations in Vermont so you can plan your adventure before you go.
- Green Mountain National Forest, Rochester — Sunny forest clearings and meadow edges where fritillaries and swallowtails drift between wildflowers.
- Shelburne Farms, Shelburne — Flower gardens and open pasture that pull in monarchs, cabbage whites, and sulphurs.
- VINS Nature Center, Quechee — A nature center with pollinator gardens planted specifically to draw local butterflies.
- Camels Hump State Forest, Huntington — Mountain meadows with violets and asters — the host plants fritillary caterpillars need.
- Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge, Swanton — Wetland meadows thick with milkweed, the only plant monarch caterpillars will eat.
- Billings Farm & Museum, Woodstock — Working-farm gardens and hayfields busy with common meadow butterflies.
- Mt. Mansfield State Forest, Cambridge — Alpine and subalpine openings on Vermont's highest peak, with high-elevation species.
- North Beach Park, Burlington — Lakeside dunes and flowering brush along the Champlain shore.
- Quechee State Park, Quechee — Warm, open trails along the gorge rim — good for basking butterflies at midday.
- Lake Champlain, Burlington — Shoreline meadows and wildflower banks that attract painted ladies and red admirals.
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Make the Adventure Real The Butterflies of Vermont Activity Book turns your trip into a hands-on mission for ages 7–12 — with a species tracker, fun facts, drawing pages, games, and puzzles. Shop the Book Get the Full VT Set |
Family Tips for Butterfly Watching in Vermont
- Go on warm, still, sunny days. Butterflies need body heat to fly and will not be out in wind or cloud. Mid-morning to mid-afternoon is the window.
- Turn over milkweed leaves in July. Monarch eggs and striped caterpillars are on the undersides. Finding the caterpillar is often more exciting for a child than seeing the adult.
- Move slowly and watch your shadow. A shadow falling across a butterfly reads as a predator overhead. Approach from the side and stop often.
- Wait at the flowers instead of chasing. Butterflies work a patch of blooms in a circuit and come back. Standing still near good nectar plants beats walking after them.
Frequently Asked Questions: Butterflies of Vermont with Kids
Does Vermont have a state butterfly?
Yes — the monarch, adopted in 1987. It is a fitting choice because milkweed, the only plant monarch caterpillars eat, grows along field edges all over the state, making the full life cycle easy for families to find.
Where is the best place to see butterflies in Vermont with kids?
The VINS Nature Center in Quechee has pollinator gardens planted specifically to attract them, which makes for a reliable first visit. Shelburne Farms and Billings Farm both offer gardens and hayfields with easy walking.
When is the best time to see butterflies in Vermont?
July and August, on warm sunny days between mid-morning and mid-afternoon. September is best for monarchs, when the migratory generation is moving south.
How do monarchs migrate from Vermont?
The monarchs flying in September are several generations removed from the ones that arrived in spring, yet they navigate to the same overwintering forests in central Mexico — a journey of roughly 2,500 miles that no individual butterfly has made before.
What makes Vermont butterfly watching special?
The mountain meadows. Species that need cool, high, open ground — including several fritillaries — persist on peaks like Camels Hump and Mt. Mansfield in habitat that has largely disappeared at lower elevations.
Turn Your Vermont Adventure Into a Real Butterfly Watching Experience
Give your kids a mission before you go. Our Butterflies of Vermont Activity Book is a nature journal for ages 7 to 12 — with a species tracker, fun facts about each one, category guides, drawing pages, games, and puzzles.
Or get all four Vermont nature books together — the Vermont Nature Explorer Series bundles the Birds, Butterflies, Leaves, and Wildflowers of Vermont activity books.
Also exploring Vermont's nature? Read our family guides to Birds of Vermont with Kids, Wildflowers of Vermont with Kids, and Leaves of Vermont with Kids.
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