NEWFANE — The state has barricaded the usually teeming parking lot at this town’s Rock and West river swimming holes in the Agency of Transportation’s first and so far only such response to Covid-19 crowds.
But the action hasn’t stopped day trippers from such far-flung pandemic hot spots as Florida and Georgia from leaving dozens of vehicles in the breakdown lane of Route 30, some 15 minutes from the southern Vermont gateway exits of Interstate 91.
Local leaders have faced public safety complaints for months as tourists have flouted travel restrictions to descend on the recreation area, often without masks, physical distancing or pre-visit quarantining.
“These swimming holes are being advertised on the internet,” the Newfane Selectboard wrote in a letter to state officials. “Activities including building campfires, drinking alcohol and fighting have increased the need for emergency services being called, putting our emergency personnel unnecessarily at risk.”
In response, the Vermont Agency of Transportation, while acknowledging the swimming holes remain open to foot traffic, has blocked the parking lot with nearly 75 plastic barrels.
“From where I sit, it’s the first and only closure like this I’m aware of,” highway division director Wayne Symonds says.
(The state didn’t participate in the earlier shutting of the privately owned Dorset Quarry an hour northwest on Route 30.)
Initial reports of swimming hole problems in June sparked headlines, social media posts about similar issues statewide and a public comment from Gov. Phil Scott.
“It seems like all states have some sort of quarantine requirement that people just aren’t aware of,” Scott said at a broadcast media briefing. “It’s difficult to get the message out.”
But Newfane’s parking lot closure is only slowing rather than stopping people from traveling to the area.
A Father’s Day count of more than 100 parked vehicles found only two dozen from Vermont, with 40 from Massachusetts (many with stickers identifying them from high-caseload Boston and suburbs), 20 from Connecticut, 15 from New Hampshire, 10 from New York, five from New Jersey, two from Rhode Island and one each from Florida, Missouri and North Carolina.
A similar check on three recent weekdays found the parking lot closed but up to 35 cars and trucks in the breakdown lane each afternoon, with only a half-dozen from Vermont and the rest from elsewhere in New England and New York as well as Southern states as far away as Texas.
“We’re just visiting,” said one maskless woman who wasn’t aware of Vermont travel standards and mistakenly assumed they don’t apply to those not staying overnight.
The Rock River swimming holes, just a few of several drawing crowds along Route 30, are managed by a nonprofit preservation organization whose website features a series of public warnings.
“Vermont has done well containing Covid-19 and this is a serious preventative measure to what looked like a bad situation in the making,” the latest alert says of the parking lot closure. “We invite you to join us in accepting the practical, communitarian Vermont values manifest in this state decision.”
The Agency of Transportation has no plans to block off the breakdown lane.
“It’s there for emergencies and bicyclists — if we restrict that, we’re introducing other safety concerns,” Symonds says.
The Windham County Sheriff’s Office has received complaints about vehicles parking on Route 30 and pedestrians not yielding when crossing. Although some residents are calling for ticketing or towing, the law doesn’t prohibit use of the road shoulder unless it interferes with traffic or is identified as a no parking zone.
“What we can do is extremely limited,” Sheriff Mark Anderson says. “We are keeping an eye on it and ensuring people are aware of the laws and the concerns of the community.”
