Saint Anne’s Shrine (Isle La Motte, VT)

The weather could not have been more perfect when we visited Saint Anne’s Shrine yesterday. This 32-acre historic attraction is named after Saint Anne, the mother of the Blessed Mother, Mary. It is close to the Quebec border, on a small rural Vermont island within Lake Champlain, called Isle La Motte. The history goes back to 1666 when Pierre De La Motte built a French fort on what is now the shrine. The island is only 7 miles long by 2 miles wide, with only 500 permanent inhabitants.

The shrine has a stunning view of the lake and holds daily summer Mass in the quaint outdoor chapel and pavilion lined with white wooden pews. We walked along the rustic grottoes devoted to Saints scattered among the property. The landscaping is beautiful and nature is incorporated into the Shrine so well. We also visited The Way of the Cross, then headed down a small path to the private beach to sit by the water. It is certainly a peaceful place to visit for devotion, meditation, or contemplation. It was a challenge trying to keep Gabby quiet during our visit, but I used a visit to the nearby playground as a reward.

Later that evening when I went to look at my photos, I noticed something interesting about a couple photos from the Saint Grottos: the way to sun shines down through the trees creates a beautiful set of arched rays. In the middle of the arched rays is a perfect circular lens flair which adds a miraculous element to the photograph. The lens flair is also present in my photo of Saint Joseph as a halo placed perfectly on his head. You can see these photos below and I promise they are not photoshopped.