The big news in our little town of Montgomery is that we finally have a cell tower in town.
Anyone who’s stayed with us knows that our little slice of heaven in the mountains has been isolated from cell signals for some time. AT&T and T-Mobile customers were usually able to get a whiff of a signal while staying at the Phineas Swann, but you Verizon folks were out of luck.
It was never a major problem once folks learned how to do cell calling over WiFi. Our internet signal at the Phineas is as strong as the wires leading in allow – strong and wide enough for guests to stream movies if they want.
But for those tethered to a cellular signal, we were as isolated as 15th-century Nepal.
Last week a new tower was activated attached to the barn down the street from us (doesn’t that sound 100 percent Vermont). You can get three bars almost everywhere on our campus, and two bars inside our deepest building.
It’s a great improvement for guests who want to stay connected, but there always was a bit of charm in being isolated.
In the days before wifi calling, we had landlines in the rooms. We always told guests “You can call out to your boss – but you don’t have to let him know he can call in.”
Many guests when told we had no cell service would at first frown and go “No cell service?” Then suddenly, as the vision of enjoying a vacation without interruptions from work crossed their minds, their eyes would twinkle, a smile would break across their face, and they would gleefully call out “No cell service!”
We continue to operate under the same rule: We have cell service, but when you’re here on vacation, we won’t be letting the boss know you have it.