1. Cost of living is expensive in comparison to what people make here. Depends on how much space you need, what town you're in, how luxurious you live, etc. Vermont is small compared to TX, but still, there are differences in the cost of living of Burlington vs. Barre, St. Johnsbury, etc.
2. You'll freeze. We always have stretch of weather in the winter where it's 0 during the day for a high, with lows at -10 or -15 at night. That's here in the Champlain Valley, gets colder the higher you are and up in the northeast kingdom.
3. Apartment is your best bet, but they are expensive. Most of Vermont's rental stock are hacked up century old or older buildings. And they typically are expensive to heat. Even if you get a good deal on rent, you'll pay in heating costs.

I get the desire to have that once in a lifetime experience, but right now would be the toughest time to do it.