west river trail

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Bag a Bean for the West River Trail

The Brattleboro Food Co-op’s Bag a Bean program is a convenient way for shoppers to donate money to local organizations. Many thanks to the Co-op for featuring The West River Trail in April. If you shop at the Brattleboro Food Co-op this month, please consider donating your beans to the West River Trail. Each Fava bean is worth 5¢ each, and helps support improvements to the West River Trail.

How does it work? For every reusable bag or container you use during your shopping trip, we will provide you with a Fava bean at the register. These Fava beans are worth 5¢ each when donated to one of the three local non-profits displayed at our exit. Each month there are three different organizations to choose from (organizations are featured on a rotating basis).

Visit or Contact:
Brattleboro Food Coop
2 Main Street
Brattleboro, VT 05301
Hours: Monday – Saturday: 7am-9pm, Sunday: 9am-9pm

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Windham Regional Commission Trails Count

The excerpt below is from the Windham Regional Commission Trails Count Program. Click through to read the full story on the WRC website.

Would you believe that dozens of people each day were out on the West River Trail? Windham Regional Commission has expanded its pedestrian count program to the winter months, and recent data both surprised and pleased us.
Counts on the West River Trail in Brattleboro from December 11, 2018 through New Year’s Day 2019 were only about 15 percent lower than the long term average for non-winter months. It was probably the short days as much as, if not more so, than the cold though that kept people from getting out. We came to this conclusion because while weekday counts for that period were lower than average, weekend counts, when people are more likely to have an opportunity to get out during daylight hours, were exactly the same as the long term average for data recorded in spring, summer, and fall.
On Christmas Day we recorded 110 “trips” on our West River Trail counter. A “trip” is one person passing in one direction on the trail. At a place like the West River Trail where most people go out and back, we can estimate the number of persons using the trail to be about half the number of trips. This would mean about 55 people were out on the West River Trail on Christmas Day, about 50 on New Year’s Eve day, and about 68—our highest daily number—on December 29.

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Successful Trail Work Day, October 20, on the Lower Section of the West River Trail!

west-river-trail-nov-2018 - 1Charlie, Jennifer, Sue, Jason and Malcolm, our enthusiastic trail crew for the day, got a lot accomplished. They planted a post for the chain at the Rice Farm Road Trailhead and cleared the area for the new kiosk (for which we recently received approval from the Dummerston DRB!) Grass was trimmed and overgrown brush was pruned back a mile along the trail from each end. Drainage ditches and culverts were raked out, leaving the trail in good shape! A big thank you to our volunteers!

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Dash to the Dam Costumed 5K Race

Dash_to_the_dam_AdOn October 20th, West River Valley Thrives (wrvthrives.com), a substance use education and prevention organization focusing primarily on youth, will host their 3rd annual costumed 5k run/walk along the West River Trail in Townshend, with registration starting at 9am. At 10 am, runners will race from the “Old Route 30” trailhead to the Townshend Dam Rec Area. At the finish there will be food, drinks, prizes and activities for everyone. Adults pay $20 to race and kids under 15 pay $15. Children under 5 run for free. Wear a costume – runner or not – and you might win a prize!
For more information and to register, visit West River Valley Thrives website at wrvthrives.com, scroll down and click on the registration button. You may also call Nick Plante at 802-365-4700.

This race is a fundraiser to benefit the programs of West River Valley Thrives, a youth substance use education and prevention organization in Townshend, Vermont, serving the upper West River Valley towns.

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Volunteers pull 135 tires from marsh

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Kathy Urffer, the Connecticut River Watershed Council’s River Steward for Vermont and New Hampshire, stands next to truck tires that were pulled from a marsh near Spring Tree Road.

Impressive clean-up effort near the West River Trail! Click link for the full story on the Brattleboro Reformer website. Photo courtesy of the Brattleboro Reformer.

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WRT Volunteer Trail Work Day

cropped-milton-avery-in-vermontWe are having a Trail Work Day on Saturday, October 20 from 10 AM to 2 PM. We will meet at the Rice Farm Road Trail head. We’ll be doing some trimming along the trail, weed whacking under the power lines, clearing drainage ditches of leaves and debris, planting a post, putting up some new signs, etc. Wear boots, bring water, snack, work gloves. We will have tools, but you are welcome to bring your own, such as a shovel, clippers, pruner, rake. Lunch will be provided. It will be fun! We look forward to seeing you and are so grateful for your help. For more information or to let us know you’re coming, contact us at: lowersection@westrivertrail.org. Thank you!

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River Loop Trail Closed Saturday, September 29 for Invasive Plant Treatment

riverstone-preserve-wrt-sept-2018-jeff-nugentThe River Loop on the Riverstone Preserve will be closed on September 29th for 1 day only. There will be signs about the closure posted at the junctions of this trail with the West River Trail, and at the Rice Farm Road and Marina trail heads. We are sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience as we deal with the important issue of invasive plant mitigation on this special piece of land between the river and the West River Trail.

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The West River Railroad Museum

This is one very cool little museum, beautifully restored with fun displays and knowledgeable docents. A hidden gem (just behind the General Store) in Newfane Village. The West River Railroad Museum is open to visitors Saturdays and Sundays from Noon to 5 pm from Memorial Day through Columbus Day Weekend. The Museum is also open by appointment. Click on the Historical Society of Windham County website for more info. Well worth a visit!

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Riverstone Preserve Trail Closure

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RIVERSTONE PRESERVE TRAIL CLOSURE UPDATE! The West River Trail will be open again from the Marina trail head to the Rice Farm Rd trail head, starting Wednesday, Sept 5, for the rest of the week and until further notice. The trails on the Riverstone Preserve will be closed this Wednesday and Thursday, due to the invasive plant treatment. There will be signage explaining which trails are closed.

There will most likely be more trail closures announced during the fall for this purpose.

Thank you for your patience!

RIVERSTONE PRESERVE TRAIL CLOSURE

The Friends of the West River Trail received a grant from the USDA and have hired Long View Forest, Inc to treat Bittersweet, Multiflora Rose, Black Swallowort, Buckthorn, Japanese Barberry (and possibly a few others).

Monday, Sept 3 and Tuesday, Sept 4 the Riverstone Preserve portion of the West River Trail will be closed for treatment on invasive plants. The main West River Trail will be closed where it passes along the Riverstone Preserve. Trails within the Riverstone Preserve will be closed. There will be signs at the trailheads at the Marina and Rice Farm Road, and at either end of the section of the Main trail that will be closed. We are sorry for the inconvenience.