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Vermont
The Green Mountain State, the only landlocked New England state
Vermont is New England turned inland and uphill — the only state in the region without an Atlantic coast, defined instead by the Green Mountains that run the length of it like a spine. Forest covers some three-quarters of the state, and the rounded, ancient peaks give Vermont both its name (from the French vert mont, "green mountain") and its character. Mount Mansfield, the high point at 4,393 feet (1,339 m), crowns the range near the center.
Water bounds it instead of ocean: the Connecticut River forms the entire eastern border with New Hampshire, while long, deep Lake Champlain fills the western lowland between Vermont and New York, a glacial trough that drains north to the St. Lawrence. The fertile Champlain Valley holds the best farmland and the largest city, Burlington. Famous for fall foliage, maple sugaring, and small farms, Vermont is the second-least-populous state — rural, wooded, and mountainous from end to end.
Economy
Vermont's economy is shaped by its rural character: dairy farming and the nation's largest maple-syrup output, a strong tourism industry built on skiing and fall foliage, and a celebrated specialty-food and craft economy that includes Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Small-scale manufacturing and a major college presence round it out.
Politics
Vermont carries 3 electoral votes and is one of the most reliably Democratic and progressive states in the country. It is represented in the U.S. Senate by the prominent independent and self-described democratic socialist Bernie Sanders.