The making of the longest rail trail in New England: the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail

Note: The following story was originally slated to publish the week of July 9, 2023, until massive flooding in Vermont caused an estimated $11 million worth of damage to the new, $31 million Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, and delayed its grand opening.

After 25 years of planning and construction, Vermont's Lamoille Valley Rail Trail is complete, the longest rail trail in New England. Spanning 93 miles, the four-season rail trail extends from Swanton to St. Johnsbury, passing through 18 towns, including Cambridge, Morrristown, Hardwick, Danville and more along the way.

Like all rail trails, the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail used to be an active railway line. The relatively flat path that trains demand is well-suited for biking, walking, cross country skiing, snowmobiling, and more.

"The scenery is gorgeous. It's quiet. I find that I use it a ton to connect gravel road to gravel road without getting on Route 15," said Hardwick Selectboard Chair Eric Remick. "As a cyclist, Route 15 is difficult to navigate. And the rail trail is beautiful and quiet, and you're very unlikely to get hit by a car."

A project 25 years in the making

The Lamoille Valley Rail Trail's path dates back to 1869, when construction began for the Vermont Division of the Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad, according to the Vermont Agency of Transportation.

The railroad was owned by various private managers under various names for about a century, until it was purchased by the state of Vermont in 1973. Renamed the Lamoille Valley Railroad, the tracks were used until 1994.

"The interstate highway system made big trucks a viable business," said Elizabeth Dow of the Hardwick Historical Society. "That pretty much did in the railroads."

In 1997, the nonprofit Vermont Association of Snow Travelers created a committee and started developing a plan to convert the path into a recreational trail. In 2002, this committee submitted a proposal for the rail trail that was accepted by the state Legislature.

In 2006, the association signed a lease with the state for the rail path, and soon began designing and seeking permits for the rail trail. Construction of the rail trail lasted from 2013-2022, and was a joint effort between the Vermont Association of Snow Travelers and state Agency of Transportation.

Construction involved removing the old tracks, remediating the land to mitigate pollution left behind by the railway, and paving the trail with crushed stone.

The total cost of construction exceeded $31 million, according to the Vermont Agency of Transportation. Funding sources included the state, federal government, Vermont Association of Snow Travelers, private foundations, and individual donations.

"It's a big process, and it takes quite a bit of time to get it all done," said Michael O'Hara of the Vermont Association of Snow Travelers.

The full trail opened on May 26, 2023.

Now that the project is done, O'Hara wants to move on to his next big goal: extending the rail trail to Massachusetts.

"It's probably going to be another 25 years until that happens, but we're hanging in there," O'Hara said.

Why the rail trail was worth the process

As a member of the planning group Friends of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, Danville resident Laural Ruggles got involved in the planning of the rail trail in 2005, and stayed with it ever since because she believed in the potential of the trail.

"It's hard for me to look back and think it's been almost 20 years," Ruggles laughed. "And it's been worth it."

One of the rail trail's biggest appeals to Ruggles is how accessible it is due to its relatively flat and even terrain.

"I see all kinds of people, all ages [on the trail]. I love it when you see whole families," Ruggles said. "You got grandkids and parents and the grandparents all out there together. And all kinds of bikes. Little Tikes on with training wheels, and it's just great."

The trail's accessibility is also a big draw for Jackie Cassino, rail trails program manager at the Vermont Agency of Transportation.

"You don't have to have special equipment to get out on it. You don't have to have a technical skill set," Cassino said. "So it really is everyone from toddlers to retirees are out here and able to access it."

Hardwick Town Manager David Upson is a supporter of the trail because he believes it will bring a positive economic impact to the small towns that are located along the rail trail — Hardwick being one of those towns.

"I believe we'll have a slow but upward climb of visitors to the Hardwick area," Upson said. "We've already seen it. We had a group here eight or nine people from New Hampshire that decided to take a ride into the downtown and grab a bite to eat."

Contact April Fisher at amfisher@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter: @AMFisherMedia

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: The making of Vermont's newly-opened Lamoille Valley Rail Trail