Otter Creek rises in the
Green Mountain National Forest on the western slopes of Mt. Tabor in the town of
Peru in
Bennington County, and flows southwesterly into the town of
Dorset towards
East Dorset, thence veering northward into Emerald Lake. Thence it runs northward passing through the towns of
Danby,
Wallingford,
Clarendon, and
Rutland town, the city of
Rutland, and the towns of
Proctor,
Pittsford, and
Brandon, all in Rutland County. On entering Addison County, it generally forms the boundary between various towns. It next passes through
Middlebury,
Weybridge and
Vergennes and eventually empties into
Lake Champlain at
Ferrisburgh. The stretch of water between the mouth at Fort Cassin Point, Lake Champlain (the site of the former Fort Cassin) and Vergennes is passable by boat, and is frequented by motor boats, canoes, and kayaks. Indeed, Vergennes was a shipyard of some importance in the various wars of the 18th century. Many nesting platforms have been built along the creek, so one is likely to see both
osprey and
bald eagles in the area. Otter Creek has a falls in the town of Middlebury, the site chosen in 1800 to be Vermont's original seat of higher education,
Middlebury College. In Addison and Rutland counties, Otter Creek passes through significant wetlands, in particular Cornwall Marsh, Little Otter Creek Marsh and the Brandon Swamp. Because of its name, the unusual situation of a river emptying into a creek occurs several times along Otter Creek’s length. For a list of these tributaries, see
Lake Champlain. The source and mouth are separated by distance—the (approximate) additional are due to meandering. == Ecology ==