A new 6-mile stretch of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, connecting Sheldon and Highgate, is open for public use, officials said Tuesday.
The segment starts at the trail’s intersection with the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail in Sheldon Junction and extends about 6.3 miles west to Gore Road in Highgate.
Along the way, it roughly follows the path of Route 78 and the Missisquoi River.
The new stretch also completes a 12.6-mile portion of the rail trail between Sheldon and South River Street in Swanton.
“Outdoor recreation is key to Vermont’s economy and quality of life,” Gov. Phil Scott said in a statement, “and this new section of trail offers exciting new opportunities.”
The new segment ends near Highgate Elementary School and the town’s recreation facility, and it likely will provide benefits to both, said Ken Bown, who manages the rail trail project at the Vermont Association of Snow Travelers.
It’s also now easier to ride snowmobiles through the area, Brown said. Swanton Recreation is planning a running race on the trail, he said.
Now that the Sheldon-Highgate segment is open, about 50 miles of the 93-mile Lamoille Valley Rail Trail remain to be completed, officials said Tuesday.
That includes an 18-mile section between Sheldon and Cambridge, a 12-mile segment between Morrisville and Hardwick, and 18 miles between Hardwick and West Danville.
All 93 miles of the trail should be finished by the end of next year, making it the longest rail trail in New England.
Trail construction got a boost in 2020 when $2.8 million in state funds were approved for the project, first proposed by the Scott administration before the pandemic. That state money brought in about $11 million of federal matching money.
The connecting Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail also recently received state funding for new informational kiosks and wayfinding signs.
State Transportation Secretary Joe Flynn said in a statement Tuesday that when it’s completed, the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail will be a major draw for outdoor tourism.
“The business and community development opportunities are limited only by the imagination of Vermont entrepreneurs,” Flynn said, “and the creative communities that the trail traverses.”
